Enantioselective synthesis of (2R,3R)- and (2S,3S)-2- [(3-chlorophenyl)-(2-methoxyphenoxy)methyl]morpholine

Organocatalyzed Protecting-Group-Free Total Synthesis of (S,S)- and (S,R)-Reboxetine, an Antidepressant Drug

An efficient, simple, and concise organocatalyzed protecting-group-free synthetic approach to the stereoisomers of the antidepressant drug reboxetine and its implementation toward the asymmetric synthesis of (S,S)-reboxetine and (S,R)-reboxetine from commercially available trans-cinnamaldehyde are described. The synthesis features organocatalytic Jørgensen asymmetric epoxidation, epoxide migration, and Mitsunobu inversion as key steps.

Rearrangement of beta-amino alcohols and application to the synthesis of biologically active compounds

Beta-amino alcohols derived from natural amino acids have been used extensively as a powerful source of chirality. Transformation of the hydroxy group of these beta-amino alcohols into a good leaving group, by using trifluoroacetic anhydride, led to rearranged beta-amino alcohols in good yields and with high enantiomeric excesses. This rearrangement has allowed the transformation of substituted prolinols to substituted 3-hydroxypiperidines and linear beta-amino alcohols, issued from natural amino acids, to rearranged beta-amino alcohols.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 1-alkyl-tryptophan analogs as potential antitumor agents

To seek novel antitumor agents, we designed and synthesized new 1-tryptophan analogs based on tryptophan catabolism. 1-Alkyltryptophan analogues including 1-ethyl-tryptophan (1-ET), 1-propyltryptophan (1-PT), 1-isopropyltryptophan (1-isoPT) and 1-butyltryptophan (1-BT) were synthesized from tryptophan. We examined whether those compounds had the antiproliferative effects on SGC7901 and HeLa cells line by using MTT assay in vitro, respectively. Compared to tryptophan, all targeted compounds efficiently inhibited proliferation of two cancer cell lines at 2 mmol/L for 48 hours. Among these tryptophan analogs, 1-BT showed the most powerful cytotoxicity against SGC7901 and HeLa cells at 1 mmol/L and 2 mmol/L concentration. These data suggest that some specific tryptophan analogs could be developed as potential anti-neoplastic agents.