Vibrational Circular Dichroism Discrimination of Diastereomeric Cedranol Acetates

Deuterium labelling to extract local stereochemical information by VCD spectroscopy in the C-D stretching region: a case study of sugars

Stereochemical elucidation of molecules with multiple chiral centers is difficult. Even with VCD spectroscopy, excluding all but one diastereomeric structural candidate is challenging because the stereochemical inversion of one chiral center among many centers does not always result in noticeable differences in their VCD spectra. This work demonstrates that the introduction of a suitable VCD chromophore with absorption in the 2300-1900 cm^-1 region can be used for extracting local stereochemical information and for the stereochemical assignment of the C-1 position of various sugars as a case study. Through studies on a series of epimeric pairs of monosaccharides and their derivatives, we found that the introduction of one -OCD₃ group to each C-1 position produced almost mirror-image VCD patterns in the 2300-1900 cm^-1 region depending on the C-1 stereochemistry irrespective of the other molecular moieties. This work also shows that comparison of the observed VCD signals and the calculated ones enables the stereochemical assignment of a chiral center in the vicinity of the chromophore. This study provides a proof of concept that the use of a VCD chromophore in the 2300-1900 cm^-1 region enables the analysis of selected stereochemistry of suitable molecular systems. Further studies on this concept should lead to the development of a method useful for the structural elucidation of other types of complex molecules.

Complete 1 H NMR assignment of cedranolides

Complete and unambiguous ¹ H NMR chemical shift assignment of α-cedrene (2) and cedrol (9), as well as for α-pipitzol (1), isocedrol (10), and the six related compounds 3-8 has been established by iterative full spin analysis using the PERCH NMR software (PERCH Solutions Ltd., Kuopio, Finland). The total sets of coupling constants are described and correlated with the conformational equilibria of the five-membered ring of 1-10, which were calculated using the complete basis set method. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Analysis of Configuration and Conformation of Furanose Ring in Carbohydrate and Nucleoside by Vibrational Circular Dichroism

A reliable and convenient method for determining the configuration and conformation of the furanose ring in carbohydrates and nucleosides by vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) spectroscopy is described. Diastereomeric pairs of several furanose monosaccharides and nucleosides were prepared, and their VCD spectra were analyzed. The results revealed that VCD spectroscopy elucidates the equibrated state of the furanose ring puckers, which is often difficult to study by other techniques.

Absolute Configuration of Menthene Derivatives by Vibrational Circular Dichroism

The aerial parts of Ageratina glabrata afforded (-)-(3S,4R,5R,6S)-3,5,6-trihydroxy-1-menthene 3-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (1) and (-)-(3S,4S,6R)-3,6-dihydroxy-1-menthene 3-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (3). Acid hydrolysis of 1 yielded (+)-(1R,4S,5R,6R)-1,5,6-trihydroxy-2-menthene (5) and (+)-(1S,4S,5R,6R)-1,5,6-trihydroxy-2-menthene (6), while hydrolysis of 3 yielded (+)-(3S,4S,6R)-3,6-dihydroxy-1-menthene (10), (+)-(1R,4S,6R)-1,6-dihydroxy-2-menthene (11), and (+)-(1S,4S,6R)-1,6-dihydroxy-2-menthene (12). The structures of the new compounds 1, 2, 5-9, and 11 were defined by 1D and 2D NMR experiments, while the absolute configurations of the series of compounds were determined by comparison of the experimental vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) spectra of the 1,6-acetonide 5-acetate derived from 6 and of the 1,6-acetonide derived from 12 with their DFT-calculated spectra. In addition, Flack and Hooft X-ray parameters of 10 permitted the same conclusion. The results further led to the absolute configuration reassignment of 10 isolated from Brickellia rosmarinifolia, Mikania saltensis, Ligularia muliensis, L. sagitta, and Lindera strychnifolia, as well as of 11 from Cacalia tangutica, as ent-11.

Recent advances in the use of vibrational chiroptical spectroscopic methods for stereochemical characterization of natural products

A comprehensive look into application of vibrational optical activity methods for conformational and configurational assignments in natural product molecules over the last 15 years is provided.

Absolute configuration of (13R)- and (13S)-labdane diterpenes coexisting in Ageratina jocotepecana

Chemical investigation of the hexanes extracts of Ageratina jocotepecana afforded (-)-(5S,9S,10S,13S)-labd-7-en-15-oic acid (1), methyl (-)-(5S,9S,10S,13S)-labd-7-en-15-oate (2), (+)-(5S,8R,9R,10S,13R)-8-hydroxylabdan-15-oic acid (3), and (-)-(5S,9S,10S,13Z)-labda-7,13-dien-15-oic acid (5). The coexistence of (13R)- and (13S)-labdanes in this member of the Asteraceae family was demonstrated by vibration circular dichroism measurements of ester 2 and methyl (+)-(5S,8R,9R,10S,13R)-8-hydroxylabdan-15-oate (4) in comparison to the DFT B3LYP/DGDZVP-calculated spectra. In addition, transformation of 1 and 3 with HClO4 in MeOH yielded epimeric methyl (+)-(5S,10S,13S)-labd-8-en-15-oate (6) and methyl (+)-(5S,10S,13R)-labd-8-en-15-oate (7), respectively, confirming the presence of C-13 epimers in this plant. Diterpene 1 showed remarkable antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis (MIC 0.15 mg/mL) and Staphylococcus aureus (MIC 0.78 mg/mL), while diterpene 3 exhibited moderate activities against the same organisms.

Comparison of experimental and calculated chiroptical spectra for chiral molecular structure determination

For three different chiroptical spectroscopic methods, namely, vibrational circular dichroism (VCD), electronic circular dichroism (ECD), and Raman optical activity (ROA), the measures of similarity of the experimental spectra to the corresponding spectra predicted using quantum chemical theories are summarized. In determining the absolute configuration and/or predominant conformations of chiral molecules, these similarity measures provide numerical estimates of agreement between experimental observations and theoretical predictions. Selected applications illustrating the similarity measures for absorption, circular dichroism, and corresponding dissymmetry factor (DF) spectra, in the case of VCD and ECD, and for Raman, ROA, and circular intensity differential (CID) spectra in the case of ROA, are presented. The analysis of similarity in DF or CID spectra is considered to be much more discerning and accurate than that in absorption (or Raman) and circular dichroism (or ROA) spectra, undertaken individually.