Concise synthesis of iminocyclitols via Petasis-type aminocyclization

PIFA-Mediated Dearomatizative Spirocyclization of Phenolic Biarylic Ketones via Oxidation and C-C Bond Cleavage

The dearomatizing spirocyclization of phenolic biarylic ketones using PhI(OCOCF₃)₂ as oxidant is presented. The reaction affords various cyclohexadienones through C-C bond cleavage under mild conditions. Mechanistic investigations reveal that an exocyclic enol ether acts as the key intermediate in the transformation.

Reactivity and Synthetic Applications of Multicomponent Petasis Reactions

The Petasis boron-Mannich reaction, simply referred to as the Petasis reaction, is a powerful multicomponent coupling reaction of a boronic acid, an amine, and a carbonyl derivative. Highly functionalized amines with multiple stereogenic centers can be efficiently accessed via the Petasis reaction with high levels of both diastereoselectivity and enantioselectivity. By drawing attention to examples reported in the past 8 years, this Review demonstrates the breadth of the reactivity and synthetic applications of Petasis reactions in several frontiers: the expansion of the substrate scope in the classic three-component process; nonclassic Petasis reactions with additional components; Petasis-type reactions with noncanonical substrates, mechanism, and products; new asymmetric versions assisted by chiral catalysts; combinations with a secondary or tertiary transformation in a cascade- or sequence-specific manner to access structurally complex, natural-product-like heterocycles; and the synthesis of polyhydroxy alkaloids and biologically interesting molecules.

Application of sequential proline-catalyzed α-chlorination and aldol reactions in the total synthesis of 1-deoxygalactonojirimycin

A short enantioselective total synthesis of 1-deoxygalactonojirimycin (migalastat) has been achieved that does not rely on chiral pool starting materials or biocatalysis. Instead, this synthesis exploits a one-pot proline-catalyzed α-chlorination and aldol reaction of a commercially available aldehyde to assemble the entire carbon skeleton in a single step. The key role played by a nitrogen protecting group in the final epoxide opening reaction is highlighted as is the amenability to access structural analogues using this route.

Synthesis of enantioenriched 1,2-trans-diamines using the borono-Mannich reaction with N-protected α-amino aldehydes

The three-component Petasis borono-Mannich reaction starting with easily accessible N-protected α-amino aldehydes produces efficiently and diastereoselectively 1,2-trans-diamines with an enantiomeric excess of up to 98%.

Direct synthesis of imino-C-nucleoside analogues and other biologically active iminosugars

Iminosugars have attracted increasing attention as chemical probes, chaperones and leads for drug discovery. Despite several clinical successes, their de novo synthesis remains a significant challenge that also limits their integration with modern high-throughput screening technologies. Herein, we describe a unique synthetic strategy that converts a wide range of acetaldehyde derivatives into iminosugars and imino-C-nucleoside analogues in two or three straightforward transformations. We also show that this strategy can be readily applied to the rapid production of indolizidine and pyrrolizidine iminosugars. The high levels of enantio- and diastereoselectivity, excellent overall yields, convenience and broad substrate scope make this an appealing process for diversity-oriented synthesis, and should enable drug discovery efforts.

Iminosugars are biologically and medicinally important compounds but methods for their synthesis are often laborious. Here, the authors report a simple, rapid route for the enantioselective synthesis of multiple biologically active iminosugars and C-nucleoside analogues.

γ-Aminoalcohol rearrangement applied to pentahydroxylated azepanes provides pyrrolidines epimeric to homoDMDP

A series of pentahydroxylated pyrrolidines, displaying five contiguous stereogenic centres and epimeric to α-glucosidase inhibitor homoDMDP, have been synthesized. The key step involves a γ-aminoalcohol rearrangement applied to polyhydroxylated azepanes. These five-membered iminosugars demonstrate micromolar inhibition of glycosidases.

Divergent synthesis of various iminocyclitols from d-ribose

A very efficient route to the diastereoselective synthesis of polyhydroxy pyrrolidines, piperidines and azepanes from an aldehyde derivative of ribose is reported.

Glycerol as an efficient medium for the petasis borono-mannich reaction

The multicomponent Petasis borono–Mannich (PBM) reaction is a useful tool for the preparation of complex molecules in a single step from boronic acids, aldehydes/ketones, and amines. Here, we describe the use of glycerol in the PBM reaction of salicylaldehydes or 2-pyridinecarbaldehyde with several boronic acids and secondary amines. From these readily available starting materials, alkylaminophenols, 2-substituted pyridines, and 2H-chromenes were prepared in reasonable to good yields. Glycerol was compared with other solvents, and in some cases, it provided the reaction product in higher yield. Crude glycerol, as generated by the biodiesel industry, was evaluated and found to be a suitable solvent for the PBM reaction, successfully expanding the potential use of this industry by-product. Based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations and the obtained experimental results, the involvement of glycerol-derived boronic esters in the reaction mechanism is suggested to be competitive with the free boronic acid pathway. Similar Gibbs free energies for the aryl migration from the boronate species to the iminium were determined for both mechanisms.

From enantiopure hydroxyaldehydes to complex heterocyclic scaffolds: development of domino Petasis/Diels-Alder and cross-metathesis/Michael addition reactions

One-step assembly of hexahydroisoindole scaffolds by a sequence that combines the Petasis (borono-Mannich) and Diels-Alder reactions is described. The unique selectivity observed experimentally was confirmed by quantum calculations. The current method is applicable to a broad range of substrates, including free sugars, and holds significant potential to efficiently and stereoselectively build new heterocyclic structures. This easy and fast entry to functionalized polycyclic compounds can be pursued by further transformations, for example, additional ring closure by a cross-metathesis/Michael addition domino sequence.

An approach to 8 stereoisomers of homonojirimycin from (D)-glucose via kinetic & thermodynamic azido-γ-lactones

Crystal structures were obtained for the two C2 epimeric azido-γ-lactones 2-azido-2-deoxy-3,5:6,7-di-O-isopropylidene-d-glycero-d-ido-heptono-1,4-lactone and 2-azido-2-deoxy-3,5:6,7-di-O-isopropylidene-d-glycero-d-gulo-heptono-1,4-lactone prepared from kinetic and thermodynamic azide displacements of a triflate derived from d-glucoheptonolactone. Azido-γ-lactones are very useful intermediates in the synthesis of iminosugars and polyhydroxylated amino acids. In this study two epimeric azido-heptitols allow biotechnological transformations via Izumoring techniques to 8 of the 16 possible homonojirimycin analogues, 5 of which were isolated pure because of the lack of stereoselectivity of the final reductive amination. A side-by-side glycosidase inhibition profile of 11 of the possible 16 HNJ stereoisomers derived from d-glucose and d-mannose is presented.

Catalytic asymmetric Petasis reactions of vinylboronates

Binaphthol-catalyzed asymmetric Petasis reactions of salicylaldehydes with dibutyl vinylboronates and secondary amines in the presence of 4 Å molecular sieves (MS) afforded products with up to 99% ee in isolated yields of 39-94%. The 99% ee of the product indicated that the reaction by the binaphthol-catalyzed pathway was roughly 500 times faster than the uncatalyzed pathway. NMR experiments ((1)H and (11)B) showed that the amine component played a role in triggering the reaction between the binaphthol catalyst and the vinylboronate in the catalytic reaction sequence. The 4 Å MS enhanced both the rate and enantioselectivity by effective removal of water from the reaction system. A novel rearrangement reaction of the unconjugated allylic amine Petasis reaction product to a conjugated allylic amine was also observed.

Recent developments in asymmetric multicomponent reactions

Multicomponent reactions (MCRs) receive increasing attention because they address both diversity and complexity in organic synthesis. Thus, in principle diverse sets of relatively complex structures can be generated from simple starting materials in a single reaction step. The ever increasing need for optically pure compounds for pharmaceutical and agricultural applications as well as for catalysis promotes the development of asymmetric multicomponent reactions. In recent years, asymmetric multicomponent reactions have been applied to the total synthesis of various enantiopure natural products and commercial drugs, reducing the number of required reaction steps significantly. Although many developments in diastereoselective MCRs have been reported, the field of catalytic enantioselective MCRs has just started to blossom. This critical review describes developments in both diastereoselective and catalytic enantioselective multicomponent reactions since 2004. Significantly broadened scopes, new techniques, more environmentally benign methods and entirely novel MCRs reflect the increasingly inventive paths that synthetic chemist follow in this field. Until recently, enantioselective transition metal-catalyzed MCRs represented the majority of catalytic enantioselective MCRs. However, metal contamination is highly undesirable for drug synthesis. The emergence of organocatalysis greatly influences the quest for new asymmetric MCRs.

Eight stereoisomers of homonojirimycin from D-mannose

Although there are 32 6-azidoheptitols, there are only 16 homonojirimycin (HNJ) stereoisomers. Two epimeric azidoalditols derived from d-mannose allow the synthesis in water of eight stereoisomers of HNJ.

Enantioselective organocatalytic three-component Petasis reaction among salicylaldehydes, amines, and organoboronic acids

The catalytic enantioselective three-component Petasis reaction among salicylaldehydes, amines, and organoboronic acids with a newly designed thiourea-binol catalyst is presented. A broad range of alkylaminophenols can be obtained in good yield (up to 92%) and good to high enantioselectivity (up to 95% ee). A possible reaction pathway for this catalytic enantioselective Petasis reaction is tentatively proposed.

Remarkable stereoselectivity in intramolecular Borono-Mannich reactions: synthesis of conduramines

An unprecedented intramolecular Petasis condensation provides a novel approach to biologically important conduramines. The compounds are produced with an exclusive anti stereoselectivity for the newly created β-amino alcohol motif. The stereochemical outcome of the reaction is opposite to the one usually observed in the intermolecular reaction.

Acceleration of Petasis reactions of salicylaldehyde derivatives with molecular sieves

Mild reaction conditions for Petasis reactions of substituted salicylaldehydes with various amines and arylboronic acids in the presence of molecular sieves were developed. Molecular sieves (MS) significantly accelerated the reaction rates and drove the reactions to high conversions. The conditions were applied to the synthesis of the core structure of BIIB042, a γ-secretase modulator, without stereochemical erosion of a stereogenic center in the salicylaldehyde intermediate.

Catalytic diastereoselective petasis reactions

Multicomponent Petasis reactions: the first diastereoselective Petasis reaction catalyzed by chiral biphenols that enables the synthesis of syn and anti β-amino alcohols in pure form has been developed. The reaction exploits a multicomponent approach that involves boronates, α-hydroxy aldehydes, and amines.

Total synthesis of (-)-cocaine and (-)-ferruginine

Total synthesis of tropane alkaloids (-)-cocaine and (-)-ferruginine were accomplished in nine steps each and in 55% and 46% overall yields, respectively, starting from the known Betti base derivative (+)-(7aR,10R,12S)-10-(1H-benzotriazol-1-yl)-7a,8,9,10-tetrahydro-12-phenyl-12H-naphtho[1,2-e]pyrrolo[2,1-b][1,3]oxazine. In this novel route, RCM reaction and 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition were employed as key steps for the enantioselective construction of tropane skeleton and the regioselective introduction of 3-bromo-2-isoxazoline ring as masked cis-2,3-disubstituents. To obtain the desired precursor (2S,5R)-2-allyl-5-vinylpyrrolidine for RCM reaction, we developed a general and practical method for the preparation of enantiopure cis-2,5-disubstituted pyrrolidines bearing alkene- and/or alkyne-containing substituents. We also offered two highly efficient pathways for the conversion of the 3-bromo-2-isoxazoline ring into the desired cis-2,3-disubstituted groups in (-)-cocaine and (-)-ferruginine.

Analysis of the reaction coordinate of alpha-L-fucosidases: a combined structural and quantum mechanical approach

The enzymatic hydrolysis of alpha-L-fucosides is of importance in cancer, bacterial infections, and fucosidosis, a neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disorder. Here we show a series of snapshots along the reaction coordinate of a glycoside hydrolase family GH29 alpha-L-fucosidase unveiling a Michaelis (ES) complex in a (1)C(4) (chair) conformation and a covalent glycosyl-enzyme intermediate in (3)S(1) (skew-boat). First principles metadynamics simulations on isolated alpha-L-fucose strongly support a (1)C(4)<-->(3)H(4)<-->(3)S(1) conformational itinerary for the glycosylation step of the reaction mechanism and indicate a strong "preactivation" of the (1)C(4) complex to nucleophilic attack as reflected by free energy, C1-O1/O5-C1 bond length elongation/reduction, C1-O1 bond orientation, and positive charge development around the anomeric carbon. Analysis of an imino sugar inhibitor is consistent with tight binding of a chair-conformed charged species.

An expedient procedure for the oxidative cleavage of olefinic bonds with PhI(OAc)2, NMO, and catalytic OsO4

PhI(OAc)(2) in the presence of OsO(4) (cat.) and 2,6-lutidine cleaves olefinic bonds to yield the corresponding carbonyl compounds, albeit, in some cases, with alpha-hydroxy ketones as byproduct. A more practical and clean protocol to effect oxidative cleavage of olefinic bonds involves NMO, OsO(4) (cat.), 2,6-lutidine, and PhI(OAc)(2).