Synthetic ventures inspired by biosynthetic hypotheses: the evolution of a method for the oxidative amidation of phenols

Synthesis of the Marine Alkaloid Cylindricine C and Serendipitous Synthesis of Its 2,13-Di-epi Stereoisomer

A new approach to the marine alkaloid cylindricine C afforded its previously unreported (±)-2,13-di-epi stereoisomer as the major product along with a minor amount of the racemic parent alkaloid. Key steps included a stereoselective dianion alkylation of a monoester of 1,2-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid and an annulation based on the tandem conjugate addition of a primary amine to an acetylenic sulfone, followed by intramolecular acylation of the resulting sulfone-stabilized carbanion. The cis-azadecalin moiety thus formed, comprising the cyclohexane A-ring and enaminone B-ring of the products, was further elaborated by the selenenyl chloride-induced cyclofunctionalization of a pendant butenyl substituent with the enaminone moiety, followed by a seleno-Pummerer reaction. Desulfonylation and enaminone reduction afforded the final products. Molecular modeling and X-ray crystallography provided further insight into these processes.

Dearomatization-rearomatization strategy of tyrosine for peptide/protein modification through thiol-addition reactions

We have developed a dearomatization-rearomatization strategy for the modification of peptides/proteins through a thiol-Michael addition to the electrophilic cyclohexadienone intermediate that is generated in situ via the oxidation of tyrosine. This strategy enriches the conjugation toolbox and has great potential for applications in medicinal chemistry and chemical biology.

Tyrosine-Specific Modification via a Dearomatization-Rearomatization Strategy: Access to Azobenzene Functionalized Peptides

Azobenzene functionalized peptides are of great importance in photoresponsive biosystems and photopharmacology. Herein, we report an efficient approach to prepare azobenzene functionalized peptides through late-stage modification of tyrosine-containing peptides using a dearomatization-rearomatization strategy. This approach shows good chemoselectivity and site selectivity as well as sensitive group tolerance to various peptides. This method enriches the postsynthetic modification toolbox of peptides and has great potential to be applied in medicinal chemistry and chemical biology.

Rapid Generation of Molecular Complexity by Chemical Synthesis: Highly Efficient Total Synthesis of Hexacyclic Alkaloid (-)-Chaetominine and Its Biosynthetic Implications

The efficiency becomes a key issue in today's natural product total synthesis. While biomimetic synthesis is one of the most elegant strategies to achieve synthetic efficiency and thus to approach the ideal synthesis, most biogenetic pathways are unknown or unconfirmed. In this account, we demonstrate, through the shortest and also the most efficient asymmetric total syntheses of the hexacyclic alkaloid (-)-chaetominine to date, that on the basis of biogenetic thinking, one can develop quite efficient bio-inspired total synthesis, which in turn serves to suggest and chemically validate plausible biosynthetic routes for the natural product. The synthetic strategy thus developed is also inspiring for the development of other synthetic methods and efficient total synthesis of other natural products.

Formation of the Main Cores Present in Natural Products by Tandem Additions

A rapid route to 5,5- and 5,6- bicyclic systems is provided by an 1,3-alkyl-shift process mediated by a hypervalent iodine reagent on aromatics. The structures obtained contain several unsaturations with different behaviors and reactivities. Such diversity allows further elaborations for the rapid formation of compact systems present in a variety of natural products. The potential for further transformations has been demonstrated by performing a double Michael addition. This cyclization process is regio- and stereoselective due to the presence of a former benzylic substituent. Furthermore, an extension of this approach has been accomplished on indole derivatives.

Synthetic studies on heterocyclic natural products

This paper highlights ongoing efforts toward Erythrina alkaloids, himandrine, tetrodotoxin, and thiopeptide antibiotics such as nosiheptide and describes representative spinoffs in biomedicine that emanated from the author’s research in synthetic organic chemistry.

Further studies toward himandrine via sequential oxidative amidation – intramolecular Diels–Alder reactions

Exploratory work toward the alkaloid himandrine evaluated the directing ability of a pyrrolidine C-3 substituent in a diastereotopic group elective intramolecular Diels–Alder reaction of a spirodienone obtained by the oxidative amidation of a phenol. The study also defined a technique for the construction of ring D of the alkaloid.

Use of sulfur fragments for the synthesis of nitrogen heterocycles

This contribution contains a representative sampling from the Padwa laboratory of the conjugate addition of oximes with 2,3-bis(phenylsulfonyl)-1,3-butadiene followed by a subsequent dipolar cycloaddition cascade to produce a variety of alkaloids. The resulting cycloadducts are cleaved reductively to provide azapolycyclic scaffolds with strategically placed functionality for further manipulation of the target compounds.

The chemical synthesis of tetrodoxin: an ongoing quest

This contribution reviews all the synthetic work on tetrodotoxin that has appeared in the literature through June 2011.

Oxidative spirocyclization of phenolic sulfonamides: scope and applications

A full account of the oxidative dearomatization of para- and ortho-phenolic sulfonamides is provided together with an overview of the chemistry of the products and their elaboration to building blocks for spirocyclic alkaloids. A concise total synthesis of putative lepadiformine complements the discussion.

Forming spirocyclohexadienone-oxocarbenium cation species in the biomimetic synthesis of amomols

The oxidation of appropriate 2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethyl ketones gives direct access to amomols by means of the formation of a transient spirocyclohexadienone-oxocarbenium ion that is intermolecularly intercepted by an alcohol. Furthermore, homochiral amomols and other new analogues were synthesized for the first time and were biologically evaluated on Plasmodium falciparum.

Oxidation of α-oxo-oximes to nitrile oxides with hypervalent iodine reagents

Upon reaction with PhI(OAc)(2), α-oxo-aldoximes are oxidized to α-oxo-nitrile oxides, while α-oxo-ketoximes are converted into nitrile oxides via the oxidative cleavage of the carbonyl-imino σ bond. The nitrile oxides thus formed were trapped with norbornene or styrene in good yield. α,α'-Dioxo-ketoximes react less efficiently.

Expeditious total syntheses of natural allenic products via aromatic ring umpolung

Concise diastereoselective syntheses of the marine (+/-)-panacene and terrestrial (+/-)-desbromopanacene have been achieved in a few steps based on a concept of "aromatic ring umpolung". The synthetic avenue to the (+/-)-panacene involved a novel oxymercuration strategy to produce the correct configuration of the bromoallene moiety.

Novel method of aromatic coupling between N-aryl methanesulfonamide and thiophene derivatives

Oxidation of N-aromatic methanesulfonamides with iodobenzene diacetate in the presence of substituted thiophene promotes interesting coupling reactions in moderate to good yields.