Synthesis of the C50 Diastereomers of the C33-C51 Fragment of Stambomycin D

As products of genome mining, the stereochemical assignment of the macrolide antibiotics stambomycins A–D has been made on the basis of sequence analysis of the associated polyketide synthase, aside from...

A Palladium-Catalysed Allylic Alkylation Cascade: Towards the Total Synthesis of Thromboxanes A₂ and B₂

<p>The design and development of new chemical reactions is crucial to the ongoing success of organic synthesis research. In this work the scope and utility of a recently discovered regioselective palladium-catalysed allylic alkylation (Pd-AA) cascade was explored through increasing the range of non-symmetric pyran-based biselectrophiles and β-dicarbonyl bis-nucleophiles that can be used in this reaction. Four differentially protected tri-substituted dihydropyrans based on glucose were synthesised, including 2,3-unsaturated silyl glycosides and α,β-unsaturated lactones. These substrates were assessed as bis-electrophiles in the Pd-AA cascade. One silyl glycoside bis-electrophile, possessing a carbonate leaving group, was shown to be an excellent substrate for reaction with a number of cyclic bis-nucleophiles. Furthermore, a series of regioisomeric methylated 4-hydroxycoumarins were synthesised, tested and found to be equally effective as bis-nucleophiles in the Pd-AA cascade with both acyclic and cyclic bis-electrophiles. Advances made during this research include a novel Ferrier reaction with silanol nucleophiles, which was found to produce silyl glycosides, albeit in low yields. Additionally, several Perlin aldehydes were generated by the Ferrier-type hydrolysis of 3,4,6-tri-O-acetyl-D-glucal and led to the discovery of discrepant structural assignments in the literature. Furthermore, a ¹³C NMR shielding template was generated as a tool for the stereochemical assignment of tri-substituted dihydropyrans. An extended variant of the Pd-AA cascade was achieved by employment of the bisnucleophile Meldrum’s acid with the optimal tri-substituted bis-electrophile in the presence of H₂O. The reaction afforded a γ-butyrolactone that could serve as a potential intermediate en route to the synthesis of the biologically interesting compounds thromboxanes A₂ and B₂. This extended Pd-AA cascade, although currently unoptimised, is capable of performing five synthetic transformations in one-pot and holds the potential to improve on the current syntheses of the thromboxanes.</p>

A Palladium-Catalysed Allylic Alkylation Cascade: Towards the Total Synthesis of Thromboxanes A₂ and B₂

<p>The design and development of new chemical reactions is crucial to the ongoing success of organic synthesis research. In this work the scope and utility of a recently discovered regioselective palladium-catalysed allylic alkylation (Pd-AA) cascade was explored through increasing the range of non-symmetric pyran-based biselectrophiles and β-dicarbonyl bis-nucleophiles that can be used in this reaction. Four differentially protected tri-substituted dihydropyrans based on glucose were synthesised, including 2,3-unsaturated silyl glycosides and α,β-unsaturated lactones. These substrates were assessed as bis-electrophiles in the Pd-AA cascade. One silyl glycoside bis-electrophile, possessing a carbonate leaving group, was shown to be an excellent substrate for reaction with a number of cyclic bis-nucleophiles. Furthermore, a series of regioisomeric methylated 4-hydroxycoumarins were synthesised, tested and found to be equally effective as bis-nucleophiles in the Pd-AA cascade with both acyclic and cyclic bis-electrophiles. Advances made during this research include a novel Ferrier reaction with silanol nucleophiles, which was found to produce silyl glycosides, albeit in low yields. Additionally, several Perlin aldehydes were generated by the Ferrier-type hydrolysis of 3,4,6-tri-O-acetyl-D-glucal and led to the discovery of discrepant structural assignments in the literature. Furthermore, a ¹³C NMR shielding template was generated as a tool for the stereochemical assignment of tri-substituted dihydropyrans. An extended variant of the Pd-AA cascade was achieved by employment of the bisnucleophile Meldrum’s acid with the optimal tri-substituted bis-electrophile in the presence of H₂O. The reaction afforded a γ-butyrolactone that could serve as a potential intermediate en route to the synthesis of the biologically interesting compounds thromboxanes A₂ and B₂. This extended Pd-AA cascade, although currently unoptimised, is capable of performing five synthetic transformations in one-pot and holds the potential to improve on the current syntheses of the thromboxanes.</p>

Unambiguous Stereochemical Assignment of Cyclo(Phe-Pro), Cyclo(Leu-Pro), and Cyclo(Val-Pro) by Electronic Circular Dichroic Spectroscopy

2,5-diketopiperazines (DKPs) are cyclic dipeptides ubiquitously found in nature. In particular, cyclo(Phe-Pro), cyclo(Leu-Pro), and cyclo(Val-Pro) are frequently detected in many microbial cultures. Each of these DKPs has four possible stereoisomers due to the presence of two chirality centers. However, absolute configurations of natural DKPs are often ambiguous due to the lack of a simple, sensitive, and reproducible method for stereochemical assignment. This is an important problem because stereochemistry is a key determinant of biological activity. Here, we report a synthetic DKP library containing all stereoisomers of cyclo(Phe-Pro), cyclo(Leu-Pro), and cyclo(Val-Pro). The library was subjected to spectroscopic characterization using mass spectrometry, NMR, and electronic circular dichroism (ECD). It turned out that ECD can clearly differentiate DKP stereoisomers. Thus, our ECD dataset can serve as a reference for unambiguous stereochemical assignment of cyclo(Phe-Pro), cyclo(Leu-Pro), and cyclo(Val-Pro) samples from natural sources. The DKP library was also subjected to a biological screening using assays for E. coli growth and biofilm formation, which revealed distinct biological effects of cyclo(D-Phe-L-Pro).

Synthesis-Driven Stereochemical Assignment of Marine Polycyclic Ether Natural Products

Marine polycyclic ether natural products have gained significant interest from the chemical community due to their impressively huge molecular architecture and diverse biological functions. The structure assignment of this class of extraordinarily complex natural products has mainly relied on NMR spectroscopic analysis. However, NMR spectroscopic analysis has its own limitations, including configurational assignment of stereogenic centers within conformationally flexible systems. Chemical shift deviation analysis of synthetic model compounds is a reliable means to assign the relative configuration of “difficult” stereogenic centers. The complete configurational assignment must be ultimately established through total synthesis. The aim of this review is to summarize the indispensable role of organic synthesis in stereochemical assignment of marine polycyclic ethers.

A Biomimetic Synthesis-Enabled Stereochemical Assignment of Rhodotomentones A and B, Two Unusual Caryophyllene-Derived Meroterpenoids from Rhodomyrtus tomentosa

Rhodotomentones A and B (1 and 2), two unusual caryophyllene-derived meroterpenoids (CDMTs) featuring a rare 6/6/9/4/6/6 hexacyclic ring system, along with their biogenetically-related CDMTs 7 and 12–15, were isolated from...

Discovery of benthol A and its challenging stereochemical assignment: opening up a new window for skeletal diversity of super-carbon-chain compounds

Super-carbon-chain compounds (SCCCs) are marine organic molecules featuring long polyol carbon chains with numerous stereocenters. Polyol-polyene compounds (PPCs) and ladder-frame polyethers (LFPs) are two major families. It is highly challenging...

Isolation and crystal structure of lawinal

The structure of the natural product lawinal [systematic name: (−)-(2S)-5,7-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4-oxo-2-phenylchromane-8-carbaldehyde, C17H14O5] at 150 K is reported. The compound crystallizes with monoclinic (I2) symmetry and with Z′ = 2. The absolute configuration could not be determined reliably from X-ray analysis only. However, our analysis returns the S-configuration at the C-2 position, consistent with previous stereochemical assignment from specific rotation. The independent molecules form into alternating hydrogen-bonded chains with C—H...O=CH intermolecular linkages that run parallel to the crystallographic a axis and are extended into the ac plane by π–π interactions between their phenyl substituents.