Regio- and stereoselective synthesis of constrained enantiomeric β-amino acid derivatives

β-Amino Acid Organocatalysts in the Asymmetric Michael Addition of Isobutyraldehyde to N-Substituted Maleimides

Asymmetric Michael additions of carbonyl compounds to N-substituted maleimides are among the most convenient reactions to prepare optically pure succinimide building blocks. Although a few β-amino acids were found to be highly efficient organocatalysts in the addition of α-branched aldehydes, the effect of their structure on the results of these reactions has not yet been investigated. In the present study, we disclose several unexpected and interesting structural effects of aliphatic and cycloaliphatic β-amino acids obtained in the enantioselective conjugate addition of isobutyraldehyde to N-benzylmaleimide. The dependence of the sense of the enantioselectivity on the bulkiness of the substituent on the β-carbon atom, the beneficial spatial arrangements of the functional groups in cis isomers with cyclohexane scaffold and the inversion of the enantioselectivity depending on the absence of a base additive observed with some trans isomers are unprecedented findings. The minor influence of the nitrogen substituent of the maleimide ring on both the reaction rate and the enantioselectivity was also evidenced using alicyclic β-amino acid prepared from an easily available terpene derivative.

Indoloazepinone-Constrained Oligomers as Cell-Penetrating and Blood-Brain-Barrier-Permeating Compounds

Non-cationic and amphipathic indoloazepinone-constrained (Aia) oligomers have been synthesized as new vectors for intracellular delivery. The conformational preferences of the [l-Aia-Xxx]_n oligomers were investigated by circular dichroism (CD) and NMR spectroscopy. Whereas Boc-[l-Aia-Gly]_2,4 -OBn oligomers 12 and 13 and Boc-[l-Aia-β³ -h-l-Ala]_2,4 -OBn oligomers 16 and 17 were totally or partially disordered, Boc-[l-Aia-l-Ala]₂ -OBn (14) induced a typical turn stabilized by C₅ - and C₇ -membered H-bond pseudo-cycles and aromatic interactions. Boc-[l-Aia-l-Ala]₄ -OBn (15) exhibited a unique structure with remarkable T-shaped π-stacking interactions involving the indole rings of the four l-Aia residues forming a dense hydrophobic cluster. All of the proposed FITC-6-Ahx-[l-Aia-Xxx]₄ -NH₂ oligomers 19-23, with the exception of FITC-6-Ahx-[l-Aia-Gly]₄ -NH₂ (18), were internalized by MDA-MB-231 cells with higher efficiency than the positive references penetratin and Arg₈ . In parallel, the compounds of this series were successfully explored in an in vitro blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeation assay. Although no passive diffusion permeability was observed for any of the tested Ac-[l-Aia-Xxx]₄ -NH₂ oligomers in the PAMPA model, Ac-[l-Aia-l-Arg]₄ -NH₂ (26) showed significant permeation in the in vitro cell-based human model of the BBB, suggesting an active mechanism of cell penetration.

Recent developments in the synthesis of condensed β-lactams

β-Lactams are important heterocycles with diverse pharmacological profiles and have emerged as useful organic synthons.

Induced folding of protein-sized foldameric β-sandwich models with core β-amino acid residues

The mimicry of protein-sized β-sheet structures with unnatural peptidic sequences (foldamers) is a considerable challenge. In this work, the de novo designed betabellin-14 β-sheet has been used as a template, and α→β residue mutations were carried out in the hydrophobic core (positions 12 and 19). β-Residues with diverse structural properties were utilized: Homologous β(3) -amino acids, (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclopentanecarboxylic acid (ACPC), (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclohexanecarboxylic acid (ACHC), (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclohex-3-enecarboxylic acid (ACEC), and (1S,2S,3R,5S)-2-amino-6,6-dimethylbicyclo[3.1.1]heptane-3-carboxylic acid (ABHC). Six α/β-peptidic chains were constructed in both monomeric and disulfide-linked dimeric forms. Structural studies based on circular dichroism spectroscopy, the analysis of NMR chemical shifts, and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that dimerization induced β-sheet formation in the 64-residue foldameric systems. Core replacement with (1R,2S)-ACHC was found to be unique among the β-amino acid building blocks studied because it was simultaneously able to maintain the interstrand hydrogen-bonding network and to fit sterically into the hydrophobic interior of the β-sandwich. The novel β-sandwich model containing 25 % unnatural building blocks afforded protein-like thermal denaturation behavior.

Stereoselective synthesis of perillaldehyde-based chiral β-amino acid derivatives through conjugate addition of lithium amides

The Michael addition of dibenzylamine to (+)-tert-butyl perillate (3) and to (+)-tert-butyl phellandrate (6), derived from (S)-(-)-perillaldehyde (1), resulted in diastereomeric β-amino esters 7A-D in a moderately stereospecific reaction in a ratio of 76:17:6:1. After separation of the diastereoisomers, the major product, cis isomer 7A, was quantitatively isomerized to the minor component, trans-amino ester 7D. All four isomers were transformed to the corresponding β-amino acids 10A-D, which are promising building blocks for the synthesis of β-peptides and 1,3-heterocycles in three steps. The steric effects of the isopropyl group at position 4 and of the α-methyl substituent of (R)-N-benzyl-N-α-methylbenzylamine on the reactivity were also studied and, upon application of a chiral amine, excellent stereoselectivity of the conjugate addition was observed. Amino ester 11 was obtained as a single product and transformed to the corresponding amino acids 10A and 10D in good yields on the gram scale.

Stereoselective synthesis and cytoselective toxicity of monoterpene-fused 2-imino-1,3-thiazines

Starting from pinane-, apopinane- and carane-based 1,3-amino alcohols obtained from monoterpene-based β-amino acids, a library of monoterpene-fused 2-imino-1,3-thiazines as main products and 2-thioxo-1,3-oxazines as side-products were prepared via two- or three-step syntheses. When thiourea adducts prepared from 1,3-amino alcohols and aryl isothiocyanates were reacted with CDI under mild conditions, O-imidazolylcarbonyl intermediates were isolated which could be transformed to the desired 1,3-thiazines under microwave conditions. 1,3-Thiazines and 2-thioxo-1,3-oxazine side-products could also be prepared in one-step reactions through the application of CDI and microwave irradiation. The ring-closure process was extended to cycloalkane-based γ-hydroxythioureas. The carane- and apopinane-based derivatives exhibited marked antiproliferative activity against a panel of human adherent cancer cell lines (HeLa, A2780, MCF7 and A431).

Isocyanide-based multicomponent reactions towards cyclic constrained peptidomimetics

In the recent past, the design and synthesis of peptide mimics (peptidomimetics) has received much attention. This because they have shown in many cases enhanced pharmacological properties over their natural peptide analogues. In particular, the incorporation of cyclic constructs into peptides is of high interest as they reduce the flexibility of the peptide enhancing often affinity for a certain receptor. Moreover, these cyclic mimics force the molecule into a well-defined secondary structure. Constraint structural and conformational features are often found in biological active peptides. For the synthesis of cyclic constrained peptidomimetics usually a sequence of multiple reactions has been applied, which makes it difficult to easily introduce structural diversity necessary for fine tuning the biological activity. A promising approach to tackle this problem is the use of multicomponent reactions (MCRs), because they can introduce both structural diversity and molecular complexity in only one step. Among the MCRs, the isocyanide-based multicomponent reactions (IMCRs) are most relevant for the synthesis of peptidomimetics because they provide peptide-like products. However, these IMCRs usually give linear products and in order to obtain cyclic constrained peptidomimetics, the acyclic products have to be cyclized via additional cyclization strategies. This is possible via incorporation of bifunctional substrates into the initial IMCR. Examples of such bifunctional groups are N-protected amino acids, convertible isocyanides or MCR-components that bear an additional alkene, alkyne or azide moiety and can be cyclized via either a deprotection-cyclization strategy, a ring-closing metathesis, a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition or even via a sequence of multiple multicomponent reactions. The sequential IMCR-cyclization reactions can afford small cyclic peptide mimics (ranging from four- to seven-membered rings), medium-sized cyclic constructs or peptidic macrocycles (>12 membered rings). This review describes the developments since 2002 of IMCRs-cyclization strategies towards a wide variety of small cyclic mimics, medium sized cyclic constructs and macrocyclic peptidomimetics.

Sculpting the beta-peptide foldamer H12 helix via a designed side-chain shape

The long-range side-chain repulsion between the (1R,2R,3R,5R)-2-amino-6,6-dimethyl-bicyclo[3.1.1]-heptane-3-carboxylic acid (trans-ABHC) residues stabilize the H12 helix in beta-peptide oligomers.