Formal total synthesis of hemibrevetoxin B by a convergent strategy

Concise construction of the trans-fused 7/7/6/6 tetracyclic ether part of hemibrevetoxin B (1) was achieved by a convergent strategy based on coupling reaction of an acyl anion equivalent, reductive cyclization of an α,ε-dihydroxyketone, and introduction of a methyl group at the central ring junction by the Nicolaou method. The resultant tetracyclic ether was transformed into the known intermediate, which was already converted to 1 by the Yamamoto group, thereby completing the formal total synthesis of 1.     

W(CO)5(L)-catalyzed formal cope rearrangement of allenyl silyl enol ethers

[reaction: see text] On treatment of 5-siloxyhexa-1,2,5-trienes with a catalytic amount of W(CO)(6) under photoirradiation, formal Cope rearrangement proceeded to give 2-siloxyhex-1-en-5-ynes in good yield. The electrophilic activation of the allenyl moiety by W(CO)(5) triggers the intramolecular attack of the silyl enol ether in a 6-endo manner to produce a cyclohexenyl tungsten species. Carbon-carbon bond cleavage occurs by electron donation from the anionic W(CO)(5) into the silyloxonium moiety to afford the products with regeneration of the W(CO)(5)(L).     

Studies on steroids. CCXXXXV. Determination of 5 beta-cholestanoic acids in human urine by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with negative ion chemical ionization detection

A method for the determination of 3 alpha,7 alpha-dihydroxy-5 beta-cholestanoic acid (DHCA) and 3 alpha,7 alpha,12 alpha-trihydroxy-5 beta-cholestanoic acid (THCA) in human urine by gas chromatography (GC) in combination with negative ion chemical ionization (NICI) mass spectrometry is described. Unconjugated, glycine- and taurine-conjugated DHCA and THCA labelled with 18O and 2H were used as internal standards. 5 beta-Cholestanoic acids in urine were extracted with a Sep-Pak C18 cartridge, separated into the unconjugated, glycine- and taurine-conjugated fractions by ion-exchange chromatography on piperidinohydroxypropyl Sephadex LH-20 and, following alkaline hydrolysis of conjugated forms, derivatization into the pentafluorobenzyl ester-dimethylethylsilyl ethers. Subsequent resolution of each fraction into DHCA and THCA was attained by GC on a cross-linked 5% phenylmethylsilicone fused-silica capillary column where 5 beta-cholestanoic acids were monitored with a characteristic carboxylate anion [M-181]- in the NICI mode using isobutane as a reagent gas. The method was applied to separation and determination of 5 beta-cholestanoic acids in urine from a patient with Zellweger syndrome and from healthy volunteers.     

Homoleptic cyclometalated iridium complexes with highly efficient red phosphorescence and application to organic light-emitting diode

Phosphorescence studies of a series of facial homoleptic cyclometalated iridium(III) complexes have been carried out. The complexes studied have the general structure Ir(III)(C-N)(3), where (C-N) is a monoanionic cyclometalating ligand: 2-(5-methylthiophen-2-yl)pyridinato, 2-(thiophen-2-yl)-5-trifluoromethylpyridinato, 2,5-di(thiophen-2-yl)pyridinato, 2,5-di(5-methylthiophen-2-yl)pyridinato, 2-(benzo[b]thiophen-2-yl)pyridinato, 2-(9,9-dimethyl-9H-fluoren-2-yl)pyridinato, 1-phenylisoquinolinato, 1-(thiophen-2-yl)isoquinolinato, or 1-(9,9-dimethyl-9H-fluoren-2-yl)isoquinolinato. Luminescence properties of all the complexes at 298 K in toluene are as follows: quantum yields of phosphorescence Phi(p) = 0.08-0.29, emission peaks lambda(max) = 558-652 nm, and emission lifetimes tau = 0.74-4.7 micros. Bathochromic shifts of the Ir(thpy)(3) family [the complexes with 2-(thiophen-2-yl)pyridine derivatives] are observed by introducing appropriate substituents, e.g., methyl, trifluoromethyl, or thiophen-2-yl. However, Phi(p) of the red emissive complexes (lambda(max) > 600 nm) becomes small, caused by a significant decrease of the radiative rate constant, k(r). In contrast, the complexes with the 1-arylisoquinoline ligands are found to have marked red shifts of lambda(max) and very high Phi(p) (0.19-0.26). These complexes are found to possess dominantly (3)MLCT (metal-to-ligand charge transfer) excited states and have k(r) values approximately 1 order of magnitude larger than those of the Ir(thpy)(3) family. An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device that uses Ir(1-phenylisoquinolinato)(3) as a phosphorescent dopant produces very high efficiency (external quantum efficiency eta(ex) = 10.3% and power efficiency 8.0 lm/W at 100 cd/m(2)) and pure-red emission with 1931 CIE (Commission Internationale de L'Eclairage) chromaticity coordinates (x = 0.68, y = 0.32).     

Determination of trace amounts of vanadium in air samples with 2-(8-quinolylazo)-5-N,N-diethylaminophenol by reversed-phase liquid chromatography

A reversed-phase liquid chromatographic method for the determination of trace amounts of vanadium is described. Metal ions are converted into 2-(8-quinolylazo)-5-N,N-diethylaminophenol chelates in an off-line system. The chelates are injected onto a Zorbax CN column and separated with an aqueous acetonitrile mobile phase containing no chromogenic reagent. Unter these conditions, only vanadium(V) is spectrophotometrically detected at 540 nm among the metal ions Al(III), Ba(II), Ca(II), Cd(II), Co(II), Cr(III), Cu(II), Fe(III), Ga(III), Hg(II), Mg(II), Mn(II), Ni(II), Pb(II), V(V) and Zn(II). Amounts of 8.0–200 pg of vanadium(V) in 100-μl injections can be determined without interference from 10-fold molar excesses of many cations. At 0.001 a.u.f.s., the detection limit (twice the peak-to-peak noise) for vanadium(V) is 8.0 pg in 100 μl of injected solution and the relative standard deviation at 120 pg of vanadium(V) in a 100-μl injection is 3.5%. The proposed method is applied to the determination of vanadium in rain water and airborne particulates.     

De novo design of a redox-active minimal rubredoxin mimic

Metal-binding sites in metalloproteins frequently occur at the interfaces of elements of secondary structure, which has enabled the retrostructural analysis of natural proteins and the de novo design of helical bundles that bind metal ion cofactors. However, the design of metalloproteins containing beta-structure is less well developed, despite the frequent occurrence of beta-conformations in natural metalloproteins. Here, we describe the design and construction of a beta-protein, RM1, that forms a stable, redox-active 4-Cys thiolate Fe(II/III) site analogous to the active site of rubredoxin. The protein folds into a beta-structure in the presence and absence of metal ions and binds Fe(II/III) to form a redox-active site that is stable to repeated cycles of oxidation and reduction, even in an aerobic environment.     

1,2-silyl-migrative cyclization of vinylsilanes bearing a hydroxy group: stereoselective synthesis of multisubstituted tetrahydropyrans and tetrahydrofurans(1)

Acid-catalyzed intramolecular addition of a hydroxy group to alpha-alkylated vinylsilanes has been studied. Treatment of (Z)-5-alkyl-5-silyl-4-penten-1-ols 1 (R = alkyl) with 5 mol % TiCl(4) in CHCl(3) gave trans-2-alkyl-3-silyltetrahydropyrans 2 exclusively (trans/cis = >99/1 to 97/3). The cyclization efficiency and rate strongly depended on the geometry of the C-C double bond and the silyl group. The use of (E)-vinylsilanes resulted in lower yields with poor cis-selectivity. In the cyclization of (Z)-1 (R = Bu), the silyl group used, the reaction time, and the yield of 2 were as follows: SiMe(2)Ph, 9.5 h, 75%; SiMe(3), 7.5 h, 66%; SiMePh(2), 24 h, 58%; SiMe(2)-t-Bu, 0.75 h, 85%; SiMe(2)Bn, 1.5 h, 78%. This 1,2-silyl-migrative cyclization could be applied to stereoselective synthesis of trisubstituted tetrahydropyrans. The acid-catalyzed reaction of 1-, 2-, or 3-substituted (Z)-5-silyl-4-nonen-1-ols 8 gave r-2,t-3,c-6-, r-2,t-3,t-5-, or r-2,t-3,c-4-trisubstituted tetrahydropyrans with high diastereoselectivity, respectively. (Z)-4-Alkyl-4-silyl-3-buten-1-ols 5 as well as 1 underwent the 1,2-silyl-migrative cyclization to give 2-alkyl-3-silyltetrahydrofurans 6 with high trans-selectivity. This silicon-directed cyclization was also available for the stereoselective synthesis of tri- and tetrasubstituted tetrahydrofurans.     

Indium-mediated beta-allylation,beta-propargylation,and beta-allenylation onto alpha,beta-unsaturated ketones: reactions of in-situ-generated 3-tert-butyldimethylsilyloxyalk-2-enylsulfonium salts with in-situ-generated organoindium reagents

3-tert-Butyldimethylsilyloxyalk-2-enylsulfonium salts, generated in situ from the reaction of alpha,beta-enones with dimethyl sulfide in the presence of TBSOTf, underwent a novel nucleophilic substitution with allylindiums to give silyl enol ethers of delta,epsilon-alkenyl ketones in good yields, which correspond to formal Michael addition products. In a similar manner, 1,4-propargylation of propargylindiums onto the sulfonium salts produced the corresponding silyl enol ethers of delta,epsilon-alkynyl ketones in good yields. Organoindium reagents derived from gamma-substituted propargyl bromide and indium afforded the corresponding silyl enol ethers of beta-allenyl ketones in good yields. The reaction proceeds via an addition-substitution mechanism involving the formation of allylic sulfonium salts. The presence of the intermediate sulfonium salt was confirmed by observation of the low-temperature (1)H NMR spectra.