New Method for Regioselective Glycosylation Employing Saccharide Oxyanions

Secondary metabolites from the Actinomadura sp. and their cytotoxic activity

Actinomadura sp., which is usually found in muddy habitats, produces various secondary metabolites with biological activities. In this study, five new compounds named formosensin A (1), formosensin B (2), oxanthroquinone-3-O-α-d-mannose (8), oxanthromicin A (9), and oxanthromicin B (10) were isolated from the culture of Actinomadura sp. together with five known compounds (3-7). Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic methods including NMR and MS. In particular, the absolute configurations of compounds 1 and 2 were determined using computational methods. Moreover, compounds 1-2 and 8-10 were screened for cytotoxic activity using a panel of human tumor cell lines. Compound 9 induced significant cytotoxicity in five human tumor cell lines (HL-60, A-549, SMMC-7721, MCF-7, and SW480) with IC50 values of 8.7, 17.5, 15.0, 17.8, and 14.6 μM, respectively. These findings suggested that compound 9 could provide therapeutic benefits in the treatment of tumor-related diseases.

Synthesis of 4-Deoxy-4-Fluoro-d-Sedoheptulose: A Promising New Sugar to Apply the Principle of Metabolic Trapping

Fluorinated carbohydrates are important tools for understanding the deregulation of metabolic fluxes and pathways. Fluorinating specific positions within the sugar scaffold can lead to enhanced metabolic stability and subsequent metabolic trapping in cells. This principle has, however, never been applied to study the metabolism of the rare sugars of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). In this study, two fluorinated derivatives of d-sedoheptulose were designed and synthesized: 4-deoxy-4-fluoro-d-sedoheptulose (4DFS) and 3-deoxy-3-fluoro-d-sedoheptulose (3DFS). Both sugars are taken up by human fibroblasts but only 4DFS is phosphorylated. Fluorination of d-sedoheptulose at C-4 effectively halts the enzymatic degradation by transaldolase and transketolase. 4DFS thus has a high potential as a new PPP imaging probe based on the principle of metabolic trapping. Therefore, the synthesis of potential radiolabeling precursors for 4DFS for future radiofluorinations with fluorine-18 is presented.

Application of Redox-Active Ester Catalysis to the Synthesis of Pyranose Alkyl C-Glycosides

The direct coupling of shelf-stable, tetrachloro-N-hydroxyphthalimide ester (TCNHPI) glycosyl donors with a variety of alkylzinc reagents under redox catalysis is described. Alkyl C-glycosides are formed directly by a decarboxylative, Negishi-type process in 31-73% yields without the need for photocatalytic activation or additional reductants. Extension of this approach to the coupling of TCNHPI donors with stereodefined α-alkoxy furan-containing alkylzinc halides enabled de novo synthesis of methylene-linked exo-C-disaccharides via an Achmatowicz rearrangement.

Can Side-Chain Conformation and Glycosylation Selectivity of Hexopyranosyl Donors Be Controlled with a Dummy Ligand?

The use of a phenylthio group (SPh) as a dummy ligand at the 6-position to control the side-chain conformation of a series of hexopyranosyl donors is described. The SPh group limits side-chain conformation in a configuration-specific manner, which parallels that seen in the heptopyranosides, and so influences glycosylation selectivity. With both d- and l-glycero-d-galacto-configured donors, the equatorial products are highly favored as they are with an l-glycero-d-gluco donor. For the d-glycero-d-gluco donor, on the other hand, modest axial selectivity is observed. Selectivity patterns are discussed in terms of the side-chain conformation of the donors in combination with the electron-withdrawing effect of the thioacetal group. After glycosylation, removal of the thiophenyl moiety and hydrogenolytic deprotection is achieved in a single step with Raney nickel.

Cyanomethyl (CNMe) ether: an orthogonal protecting group for saccharides

Logical manipulation of protecting groups is one of the vital strategies involved in the synthesis of complex oligosachharides. As opposed to the robust permanent protecting groups, the chemoselective protection-deprotection processes on orthogonal protecting groups have facilitated the synthesis of the target molecules with higher effeciency. While the derivatives of benzyl ethers are the most popular orthogonal ether based protecting groups for hydroxyls, the exploration of methyl ethers for similar synthetic application is much limited. We herein report cyanomethyl (CNMe) ether as a readily synthesized orthogonal protecting group for saccharides. The ether moiety was rapidly removed under Na-naphthalenide conditions in good to excellent yields and was found to be compatible with other well-known benzyl/methyl/silyl ether and acetal protecting groups. Additionally, the CNMe group was observed to be tolerant to standard reagents used for the deprotection of ether, ester and acetal protecting groups. The protection and deprotection steps remained unaffected by the position of hydroxyl, the configuration of monosaccharides or the presence of olefins in the skeleton.

Facile Synthesis of Sugar Lactols via Bromine-Mediated Oxidation of Thioglycosides

Synthesis of a variety of sugar lactols (hemiacetals) has been accomplished in moderate to excellent yields by using bromine-mediated oxidation of thioglycosides. It was found that acetonitrile is the optimal solvent for this oxidation reaction. This approach involving bromine as oxidant is superior to that using N-bromosuccimide (NBS) which produces byproduct succinimide often difficult to separate from the lactol products.

A Warburg effect targeting vector designed to increase the uptake of compounds by cancer cells demonstrates glucose and hypoxia dependent uptake

Glycoconjugation to target the Warburg effect provides the potential to enhance selective uptake of anticancer or imaging agents by cancer cells. A Warburg effect targeting group, rationally designed to facilitate uptake by glucose transporters and promote cellular accumulation due to phosphorylation by hexokinase (HK), has been synthesised. This targeting group, the C2 modified glucose analogue 2-(2-[2-(2-aminoethoxy)ethoxy]ethoxy)-D-glucose, has been conjugated to the fluorophore nitrobenzoxadiazole to evaluate its effect on uptake and accumulation in cancer cells. The targeting vector has demonstrated inhibition of glucose phosphorylation by HK, indicating its interaction with the enzyme and thereby confirming the potential to facilitate an intracellular trapping mechanism for compounds it is conjugated with. The cellular uptake of the fluorescent analogue is dependent on the glucose concentration and is so to a greater extent than is that of the widely used fluorescent glucose analogue, 2-NBDG. It also demonstrates selective uptake in the hypoxic regions of 3D spheroid tumour models whereas 2-NBDG is distributed primarily through the normoxic regions of the spheroid. The increased selectivity is consistent with the blocking of alternative uptake pathways.

Total synthesis of agalloside, isolated from Aquilaria agallocha, by the 5-O-glycosylation of flavan

Agalloside (1) is a neural stem cell differentiation activator isolated from Aquilaria agallocha by our group using Hes1 immobilized beads. We conducted the first total synthesis of agalloside (1) via the 5-O-glycosylation of flavan 25 using glycosyl fluoride 20 in the presence of BF₃·Et₂O. Subsequent oxidation with DDQ to flavanone 2 and deprotection successively provided agalloside (1). This synthetic strategy holds promise for use in the synthesis of 5-O-glycosylated flavonoids. The synthesized agalloside (1) accelerated neural stem cell differentiation, which is a result comparable to that for the naturally occurring compound 1.

Rapid assembly of branched mannose oligosaccharides through consecutive regioselective glycosylation: A convergent and efficient strategy

A convergent and efficient strategy for the synthesis of high-mannose oligosaccharides is described wherein regioselective glycosylations between trichloroacetimidate donors and partially protected acceptors are employed to reduce the number of protection-deprotection steps. Two representative branched mannose oligosaccharides, a mannose heptasaccharide (Man7) and a mannose nonasaccharide (Man9) were constructed via (4+3) and (5+4) glycosylations, respectively. These mannose-containing oligosaccharides were obtained in nine steps in ~25% overall yield and >98% purity on 60-70 mg scales to demonstrate the effectiveness of the strategy.

Analysis of carbohydrates and glycoconjugates by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry: An update for 2011-2012

This review is the seventh update of the original article published in 1999 on the application of MALDI mass spectrometry to the analysis of carbohydrates and glycoconjugates and brings coverage of the literature to the end of 2012. General aspects such as theory of the MALDI process, matrices, derivatization, MALDI imaging, and fragmentation are covered in the first part of the review and applications to various structural types constitute the remainder. The main groups of compound are oligo- and poly-saccharides, glycoproteins, glycolipids, glycosides, and biopharmaceuticals. Much of this material is presented in tabular form. Also discussed are medical and industrial applications of the technique, studies of enzyme reactions, and applications to chemical synthesis. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Mass Spec Rev 36:255-422, 2017.

Macrocyclic bis-thioureas catalyze stereospecific glycosylation reactions

Carbohydrates are involved in nearly all aspects of biochemistry, but their complex chemical structures present long-standing practical challenges to their synthesis. In particular, stereochemical outcomes in glycosylation reactions are highly dependent on the steric and electronic properties of coupling partners; thus, carbohydrate synthesis is not easily predictable. Here we report the discovery of a macrocyclic bis-thiourea derivative that catalyzes stereospecific invertive substitution pathways of glycosyl chlorides. The utility of the catalyst is demonstrated in the synthesis of trans-1,2-, cis-1,2-, and 2-deoxy-β-glycosides. Mechanistic studies are consistent with a cooperative mechanism in which an electrophile and a nucleophile are simultaneously activated to effect a stereospecific substitution reaction.

A Synthetic Toolbox for the In Situ Formation of Functionalized Homo- and Heteropolysaccharide-Based Hydrogel Libraries

A synthetic toolbox for the introduction of aldehydo and hydrazido groups into the polysaccharides hyaluronic acid, alginate, dextran, pullulan, glycogen, and carboxymethyl cellulose and their use for hydrogel formation is reported. Upon mixing differently functionalized polysaccharides derived from the same natural precursor, hydrazone cross-linking takes place, which results in formation of a hydrogel composed of one type of polysaccharide backbone. Likewise, hydrogels based on two different polysaccharide strands can be formed after mixing the corresponding aldehydo- and hydrazido-modified polysaccharides. A second line of these studies paves the way to introduce a biomedically relevant ligand, namely, the adhesion factor cyclic RGD pentapeptide, by using an orthogonal click reaction. This set of modified polysaccharides served to create a library of hydrogels that differ in the combination of polysaccharide strands and the degree of cross-linking. The different hydrogels were evaluated with respect to their rheological properties, their ability to absorb water, and their cytotoxicity towards human fibroblast cell cultures. None of the hydrogels studied were cytotoxic, and, hence, they are in principal biocompatible for applications in tissue engineering.

Synthesis of l-Pyranosides by Hydroboration of Hex-5-enopyranosides Revisited

Extensive study of the diastereoselective synthesis of l-pyranosides utilizing hydroboration of substituted exo-glucals (5-enopyranosides) obtained from d-sugars is presented. On the basis of this study we present the empirical rules describing the reaction stereoselectivity and the correlation between the yield of the l-ido product and the size of protecting groups used. Application of these guidelines revealed that the hydroboration of methyl 2,3-O-methyl-6-deoxy-α-d-xylo-hex-5-enopyranoside resulted in exclusive formation of l-ido product with high yield. This method can be successfully applied to the synthesis of l-iduronic acid being an essential component of anticoagulant drugs with diastereoselectivity superior to previously published protocols.

Probing the influence of a 4,6-O-acetal on the reactivity of galactopyranosyl donors: verification of the disarming influence of the trans-gauche conformation of C5-C6 bonds

The effect of a 4,6-O-alkylidene acetal on the rate of acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of methyl galactopyranosides and of spontaneous hydrolysis of 2,4-dinitrophenyl galactopyranosides has been studied through the synthesis and hydrolysis of analogs in which O6 is replaced by a methoxymethylene unit in which the methoxy group adopts either an equatorial or an axial position according to the configuration. Consistent with earlier studies under both acid-catalyzed and spontaneous hydrolysis conditions, the alkylidene acetal, or its 7-carba analog, retards hydrolysis with respect to comparable systems lacking the cyclic protecting group. The configuration at C6 in the 7-carba analogs does not influence the rate of acid-catalyzed hydrolysis but has a minor influence on the rate of spontaneous hydrolysis of the 2,4-dinitrophenyl galactosides, confirming earlier studies on the role played by the hydroxymethyl group conformation on glycoside reactivity. The benzylidene acetal is found to stabilize the α-anomer of galactopyranose derivatives relative to monocyclic analogs. Reasons for the α-selectivity of 4,6-O-benzylidene-protected galactopyranosyl donors bearing neighboring group-active protecting groups at O2 are discussed.

o-Xylylene protecting group in carbohydrate chemistry: application to the regioselective protection of a single vic-diol segment in cyclodextrins

A systematic study of the suitability of α,α'-dibromo-o-xylene as a reagent for cyclic o-xylylene protection of vic-diols in different monosaccharide substrates is reported. The installation of this protecting group, formally equivalent to a di-O-benzylation reaction, proceeds with good regioselectivity toward 1,2-trans-diequatorial diol systems in pyranose and furanose rings. Initially, the benzyl ether-type derivative of the more acidic hydroxyl is preferentially formed. Subsequent intramolecular etherification toward the equatorial-oriented vicinal OH is kinetically favored. The methodology has been implemented for the simultaneous protection of the secondary O-2 and O-3 positions of a single d-glucopyranosyl unit in cyclic oligosaccharides of the cyclodextrin (CD) family (cyclomaltohexa-, -hepta-, and -octaose; α, β, and γCD).

Acceptor-influenced and donor-tuned base-promoted glycosylation

Base-promoted glycosylation is a recently established stereoselective and regioselective approach for the assembly of di- and oligosaccharides by using partially protected acceptors and glycosyl halide donors. Initial studies were performed on partially methylated acceptor and donor moieties as a model system in order to analyze the key principles of oxyanion reactivities. In this work, extended studies on base-promoted glycosylation are presented by using benzyl protective groups in view of preparative applications. Emphases are placed on the influence of the acceptor anomeric configuration and donor reactivities.