Highly stereoselective addition of Grignard reagents to C-cyclopropylnitrone via the bisected s-trans conformation. An efficient synthesis of PEDC, a potent NMDA receptor antagonist having a cyclopropane structure

Highly Stereoselective Grignard Addition to Cis-Substituted C-Cyclopropylaldonitrones. The Bisected s-Trans Transition State Can Be Stabilized Effectively by the Lewis Acid-Coordination

We previously found that Grignard addition to a C-cyclopropylaldonitrone, C-[cis-2-(N,N-diethylcarbamoyl)-trans-2-phenylcyclopropyl]-N-benzylaldonitrone (1), stereoselectively gave the anti-product 3, in which the stereoselectivity was particularly high when MgBr(2) was the additive. In this study, the reaction pathway was investigated in detail. The stereoselective addition was initially thought to occur via either a 1,5-chelation-controlled or a bisected s-trans conformation-controlled pathway. However, Grignard addition to a nonchelating silyl ether-type substrate, C-[cis-2-(tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxymethyl)-trans-2-phenylcyclopropyl]-N-benzylaldonitrone (7), also gave the anti-product 9 with high stereoselectivity suggesting that chelation is not important in the reaction. Theoretical calculations of C-cyclopropylaldonitrones showed that the coordination of Mg(2+) at the nitrone oxygen significantly stabilizes the bisected s-trans conformer due to the effective hyperconjugation between the pi* of the nitrone C=N bond and the electron-donating cyclopropane orbitals. This kind of orbital interaction is able to stabilize the transition state of the nucleophilic addition and is maximized in the bisected conformation, in which the orbitals of the forming bond and the cyclopropane C-C bond are in an almost planar arrangement. Thus, the high stereoselectivity can be explained by nucleophilic attack on the less hindered side of the C=N bond of the substrates in the Mg(2+)-coordinated bisected s-trans conformation.

Cyclopropane-based conformational restriction of histamine. (1S,2S)-2-(2-aminoethyl)-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropane, a highly selective agonist for the histamine H3 receptor, having a cis-cyclopropane structure

A series of cyclopropane-based conformationally restricted analogues of histamine, the "folded" cis-analogues, i.e., (1S,2R)-2-(aminomethyl)-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropane (11), (1S,2S)-2-(2-aminoethyl)-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropane (13), and their enantiomers ent-11 and ent-13, and the "extended" trans-analogues, i.e., (1R,2R)-2-(aminomethyl)-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropane (12) and its enantiomer ent-12, were designed as histamine H(3) receptor agonists. These target compounds were synthesized from the versatile chiral cyclopropane units, (1S,2R)- and (1R,2R)-2-(tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxy)methyl-1-formylcyclopropane (14 and 15, respectively) or their enantiomers ent-14 and ent-15. Among the conformationally restricted analogues, the "folded" analogue 13 (AEIC) having the cis-cyclopropane structure was identified as a potent H(3) receptor agonist, which showed a significant binding affinity (K(i) = 1.31 +/- 0.16 nM) and had an agonist effect (EC(50) value of 10 +/- 3 nM) on the receptor. This compound owes its importance to being the first highly selective H(3) receptor agonist to have virtually no effect on the H(4) subtype receptor. These studies showed that the cis-cyclopropane structure is very effective in the conformational restriction of histamine to improve the specific binding to the histamine H(3) receptor.

A systematic study of the hydride reduction of cyclopropyl ketones with structurally simplified substrates. highly stereoselective reductions of trans-substituted cyclopropyl ketones via the bisected s-cis conformation

The stereoselective hydride reduction of the cis- and trans-substituted cyclopropyl ketones was systematically investigated using a series of structurally simplified substrates, trans-[tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxymethyl]cyclopropyl ketones 1a-e and trans-(benzyloxymethyl)cyclopropyl methyl ketone (2), and the corresponding cis congeners 3a,b,e and 4. The results showed that, not only in the reduction of the cis-substituted cyclopropyl ketones but also in that of the trans-substituted ketones, high stereoselectivity can be realized when the substrate has a bulky substituent on the cyclopropane ring, even though it is attached to the position trans to the acyl moiety. Ab initio calculations based on the density functional theory (DFT) of cyclopropyl ketones showed that (1) the bisected s-cis and s-trans conformers were the only two minimum energy conformers, while the s-cis conformer was more stable than the s-trans and (2) a bulky alkyl group in the acyl moiety and a cis substituent on the cyclopropane ring made the bisected s-cis conformer much more stable. On the basis of these calculations and experimental results, it is likely that the more stable the bisected s-cis conformer of the substrate, the more stereoselective the hydride reduction. Thus, the stereochemistry can be explained by hydride attack on the bisected s-cis conformation of the substrate from the less-hindered face. The predictability of the stereochemical results is predicated on the bisected s-cis transition-state model, which is very important from the viewpoint of synthetic organic chemistry.

Synthesis of derivatives of (1S,2R)-1-phenyl-2-[(S)-1-aminopropyl]-N,N-diethylcyclopropanecarboxamide (PPDC) modified at the 1-aromatic moiety as novel NMDA receptor antagonists: the aromatic group is essential for the activity

(1S,2R)-1-Phenyl-2-[(S)-1-aminopropyl]-N,N-diethylcyclopropanecarboxamide (PPDC, 4a), which is a conformationally restricted analogue of antidepressant milnacipran [(+/-)-1], is a new class of potent noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonists. A series of PPDC analogues modified at the 1-phenyl moiety, that is, the analogue 6 lacking 1-phenyl group, the 1-(fluorophenyl) analogues 4b,c,d, the 1-(methylphenyl) analogues 4e-g and the 1-(naphthyl) analogues 4h,i were synthesized. Analogue 6, lacking the 1-phenyl group, was completely inactive showing that the aromatic moiety is essential for the NMDA receptor binding. Among the analogues synthesized, the 1-o-fluorophenyl and 1-m-fluorophenyl analogues 4b and 4c showed potent affinities for the NMDA receptor [IC(50)=0.16+/-0.001 microM (4b), 0.15+/-0.02 microM (4c)], which were improved to some extent compared to those of the parent compound PPDC (IC(50)=0.20+/-0.02 microM). On the other hand, compounds 4b and 4c showed none of the 5-HT-uptake inhibitory effect, while PPDC turned out to be a weak 5-HT-uptake inhibitor.

Conformational analysis of the NMDA receptor antagonist (1S,2R)-1-phenyl-2-[(S)-1-aminopropyl]-N,N-diethylcyclopropanecarboxamide (PPDC) designed by a novel conformational restriction method based on the structural feature of cyclopropane ring

(1S,2R)-1-phenyl-2-[(S)-1-aminopropyl]-N,N-diethylcyclopropanecarboxamide (2b, PPDC), a new class of potent N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonist, was designed based on a new method for restricting the conformation of compounds having a cyclopropane ring. The three-dimensional structures of PPDC obtained by the three different methods of X-ray crystallographic analysis, usual MM2-calculations in vacuum, and MM2 calculations based on the nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE) data in D2O are similar, which are in accord with that hypothesized. These results suggest that this conformational restriction method is particularly effective in designing novel biologically active molecules.

Development of versatile cis- and trans-dicarbon-substituted chiral cyclopropane units: synthesis of (1S,2R)- and (1R,2R)-2-aminomethyl-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropanes and their enantiomers as conformationally restricted analogues of histamine

The cyclopropane ring can be used effectively in restricting the conformation of biologically active compounds to improve activity and also to investigate bioactive conformations. We designed (1S,2R)- and (1R,2R)-2-aminomethyl-1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)cyclopropanes (1 and 2, respectively) and their enantiomers (ent-1 and ent-2) as conformationally restricted analogues of histamine. The four types of chiral cyclopropanes bearing two differentially functionalized carbon substituents in a cis or trans relationship on a cyclopropane ring, (1S,2R)-2-(tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxy)methyl-1-formylcyclopropane (7) and (1R,2R)-2-(tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxy)methyl-1-formylcyclopropane (8) and their enantiomers (ent-7 and ent-8), were developed as the key intermediates for synthesizing 1, 2, ent-1, and ent-2. The reaction between (R)-epichlorohydrin [(R)-12] and phenylsulfonylacetonitrile (13a) in the presence of NaOEt in EtOH followed by treatment with acid gave the chiral cyclopropane lactone 11a with 98% ee in 82% yield. Compound 11a was converted into both the cis- and trans-chiral cyclopropane units 7 and 8, respectively, via reductive desulfonylation with Mg/MeOH as the key step. The corresponding enantiomers, the cis-substituted ent-7 and the trans-substituted ent-8, were also prepared starting from (S)-epichlorohydrin [(S)-12]. The four conformationally restricted target histamine analogues 1, 2, ent-1, and ent-2 were successfully synthesized from 7, 8, ent-7, and ent-8, respectively. The chiral cyclopropane units 7, 8, ent-7, and ent-8 should be useful as versatile intermediates for synthesizing various compounds having an asymmetric cyclopropane structure.