Facile synthesis of saponins containing 2,3-branched oligosaccharides by using partially protected glycosyl donors

Convergent synthesis of glycoalkaloids solasonine and its saponin derivative

We present a practical and convergent synthesis of glycoalkaloids solasonine 1 and its saponin derivative 2, incorporating a {3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-O-[β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→3)]-β-D-galactopyranoside} moiety. The key features of this strategy include the following: (1) AuCl3-tBuCN cooperative catalysis enabling 1,2-trans stereoselective glycosidation of 2-branched trisaccharide trichloroacetimidate donors with steroidal aglycons, in the absence of neighboring group participation; (2) "cyanide effect" mediated regioselective benzoylation of the 4- and 6-hydroxyl groups of galactopyranosyl disaccharide; and (3) an effective approach to prevent orthoester byproduct formation.

Total synthesis and cytotoxicity evaluation of the spirostanol saponin gitonin

The spirostanol saponin gitonin was efficiently synthesized in 12 steps (longest linear sequence) in 18.5% overall yield from the commercially available isopropyl β-D-1-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) and tigogenin. A cascade two-step glycosylation and Schmidt's inverse procedure significantly facilitated the synthesis of gitonin and its derivatives. The cytotoxic activities of gitonin and its structural analogues were evaluated against A549, HepG2, and MCF-7, and most of them exhibited moderate to excellent inhibitory activity. Our study demonstrates that the removal of the β-D-galactopyranosyl residue (attached at C-2 of the glucose unit) from gitonin would not decrease the inhibition activities; however, further cleavage of sugar units could seriously reduce the activities. A bioassay on these cancer cell lines also suggested that the presence of 2α-hydroxy on the aglycone weakened the cytotoxicity of the designed saponin.

Chemical Synthesis of Saponins

Saponins are a large family of amphiphilic glycosides of steroids and triterpenes found in plants and some marine organisms. By expressing a large diversity of structures on both sugar chains and aglycones, saponins exhibit a wide range of biological and pharmacological properties and serve as major active principles in folk medicines, especially in traditional Chinese medicines. Isolation of saponins from natural sources is usually a formidable task due to the microheterogeneity of saponins in Nature. Chemical synthesis can provide access to large amounts of natural saponins as well as congeners for understanding their structure-activity relationships and mechanisms of action. This article presents a comprehensive account on chemical synthesis of saponins. First highlighted are general considerations on saponin synthesis, including preparation of aglycones and carbohydrate building blocks, assembly strategies, and protecting-group strategies. Next described is the state of the art in the synthesis of each type of saponins, with an emphasis on those representative saponins having sophisticated structures and potent biological activities.

Synthesis and conformational analysis of vicinally branched trisaccharide β-d-Galf-(1 → 2)-[β-d-Galf-(1 → 3)-]-α-Galp from Cryptococcus neoformans galactoxylomannan

The synthesis of a vicinally branched trisaccharide composed of two d-galactofuranoside residues attached viaβ-(1 → 2)- and β-(1 → 3)-linkages to the α-d-galactopyranoside unit has been performed for the first time. The reported trisaccharide represents the galactoxylomannan moiety first described in 2017, which is the capsular polysaccharide of the opportunistic fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans responsible for life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients. The NMR-data reported here for the synthetic model trisaccharide are in good agreement with the previously assessed structure of galactoxylomannan and are useful for structural analysis of related polysaccharides. The target trisaccharide as well as the constituent disaccharides were analyzed by a combination of computational and NMR methods to demonstrate good convergence of the theoretical and experimental results. The results suggest that the furanoside ring conformation may strongly depend on the aglycon structure. The reported conformational tendencies are important for further analysis of carbohydrate-protein interaction, which is critical for the host response toward C. neoformans infection.

Diversity-Oriented Synthesis of Steviol Glycosides

With cheap and easily available mixtures of steviol glycosides as starting materials, a practical method for steviol acquisition has been developed, on the basis of which a facile, diversity-oriented, and economic protocol for the synthesis of structurally defined steviol glycosides was established. The novel approach is featured by the highly efficient glycosylation of sterically hindered and acid-sensitive steviol via orchestrated application of Yu glycosylation, Schmidt glycosylation, and PTC glycosylation. Hence, these high-intensity sweeteners and potential lead compounds for drug development are now readily accessible.

Efficient synthesis of novel β-sitosterol scaffolds containing 1,2,3-triazole via copper(I)-catalyzed click reaction under microwave irradiation

In this work, new derivatives of the β-sitosterol scaffolds containing 1,2,3-triazole are prepared by the reaction of β-sitosterol with aromatic alkynes via copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition reactions under microwave irradiation. The reaction has several advantages including high yields, short reaction times, and a simple work-up procedure.

Chemical Synthesis of the Repeating Unit of Type V Group B Streptococcus Capsular Polysaccharide

The first chemical synthesis of the heptasaccharide repeating unit of type V group B Streptococcus capsular polysaccharide (CPS) by a preactivation-based one-pot [2 + 1 + 4] glycosylation strategy is described. The synthetic efficiency was further improved by using diol glycosyl acceptors for regio-/stereoselective glycosylation reactions. The synthetic target contains a free amino group at the reducing end, facilitating additional regioselective elaboration. The results should be useful for synthetic and biological studies of related CPSs.

Chemistry of xylopyranosides

Xylose is one of the few monosaccharidic building blocks that are used by mammalian cells. In comparison with other monosaccharides, xylose is rather unusual and, so far, only found in two different mammalian structures, i.e. in the Notch receptor and as the linker between protein and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chains in proteoglycans. Interestingly, simple soluble xylopyranosides can not only initiate the biosynthesis of soluble GAG chains but also function as inhibitors of important enzymes in the biosynthesis of proteoglycans. Furthermore, xylose is a major constituent of hemicellulosic xylans and thus one of the most abundant carbohydrates on Earth. Altogether, this has spurred a strong interest in xylose chemistry. The scope of this review is to describe synthesis of xylopyranosyl donors, as well as protective group chemistry, modifications, and conformational analysis of xylose.

Chemical synthesis of saponins

Saponins are a large family of amphiphilic glycosides of steroids and triterpenes found in plants and some marine organisms. By expressing a large diversity of structures on both sugar chains and aglycones, saponins exhibit a wide range of biological and pharmacological properties and serve as major active principles in folk medicines, especially in traditional Chinese medicines. Isolation of saponins from natural sources is usually a formidable task due to the microheterogeneity of saponins in Nature. Chemical synthesis can provide access to large amounts of natural saponins as well as congeners for understanding their structure-activity relationships and mechanisms of action. This article presents a comprehensive account on chemical synthesis of saponins. First highlighted are general considerations on saponin synthesis, including preparation of aglycones and carbohydrate building blocks, assembly strategies, and protecting-group strategies. Next described is the state of the art in the synthesis of each type of saponins, with an emphasis on those representative saponins having sophisticated structures and potent biological activities.

N-Alkyl derivatives of diosgenyl 2-amino-2-deoxy-β-D-glucopyranoside; synthesis and antimicrobial activity

Diosgenyl 2-amino-2-deoxy-β-D-glucopyranoside is a synthetic saponin exhibiting attractive pharmacological properties. Different pathways tested by us to obtain this glycoside are summarized here. Moreover, the synthesis of N-alkyl and N,N-dialkyl derivatives of the glucopyranoside is presented. Evaluation of antibacterial and antifungal activities of these derivatives indicates that they have no inhibitory activity against Gram-negative bacteria, whereas many of the tested N-alkyl saponins were found to inhibit the growth of Gram-positive bacteria and human pathogenic fungi.

Glycosyl dithiocarbamates: β-selective couplings without auxiliary groups

In this article, we evaluate glycosyl dithiocarbamates (DTCs) with unprotected C2 hydroxyls as donors in β-linked oligosaccharide synthesis. We report a mild, one-pot conversion of glycals into β-glycosyl DTCs via DMDO oxidation with subsequent ring opening by DTC salts, which can be generated in situ from secondary amines and CS2. Glycosyl DTCs are readily activated with Cu(I) or Cu(II) triflate at low temperatures and are amenable to reiterative synthesis strategies, as demonstrated by the efficient construction of a tri-β-1,6-linked tetrasaccharide. Glycosyl DTC couplings are highly β-selective despite the absence of a preexisting C2 auxiliary group. We provide evidence that the directing effect is mediated by the C2 hydroxyl itself via the putative formation of a cis-fused bicyclic intermediate.

Efficient one-pot synthesis of tigogenin saponins and their antitumor activities

An efficient synthesis of naturally occurring tigogenin triglycoside 1a and its three derivatives 1b-d bearing different carbohydrate moieties, as well as their antitumor activities, is described. Partially protected thiogalactosides bearing unprotected 2,4-OH or 4-OH groups were used to facilitate regioselective reactions for one-pot sequential multi-step glycosylation, which has significantly simplified the target molecule synthesis. The synthetic saponins 1a-d exhibited much higher anti-tumor activities than the positive control cisplatin against the human epithelial cervical cancer cell (HeLa) as evaluated by CCK-8 assay.

Facile synthesis of the naturally cytotoxic triterpenoid saponin Patrinia-glycoside B-II and its conformer

The first chemical synthesis of the natural triterpenoid saponin Patrinia-glycoside B-II, namely oleanolic acid 3-O-α-l-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-[β-d-gluco-pyranosyl-(1→3)]-α-l-arabinopyranoside, has been accomplished in a linear 11-step sequence 11 with 9.4% overall yield. The abnormal ¹C₄ conformation of the arabinose residue was found to occur via conformational fluctuation during preparation of the intermediates. Molecular mechanism and quantum chemistry calculations showed that Patrinia-glycoside B-II and its conformer 1 cannot interconvert under normal conditions. Preliminary structure-activity relationships studies indicated that the ⁴C₁ chair conformation of the arabinose residue in the unique α-l-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-α-l-arabinopyranosyl disaccharide moiety is one of the chief positive factors responsible for its cytotoxic activity against tumors.

Synthesis of a fluorescence-labeled K30 antigen repeating unit using click chemistry

An N-dansyl-labeled K30 antigen repeating unit, [4-[5-(N,N'-dimethylamino)naphthalene-1-sulfonamine]-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl]hexyl beta-D-glucopyranosyluronate-(1-->3)-alpha-D-galactopyranosyl-alpha-D-mannopyranosyl-(1-->3)-beta-D-galactopyranoside, was synthesized using click chemistry, the copper(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction of an azide and an alkyne. The target compound could further facilitate the studies of interactions among K30 oligosaccharides and proteins.

Steroids: partial synthesis in medicinal chemistry

This article reviews the progress in the chemistry of the steroids that was published between January and December 2004. The reactions and partial synthesis of estrogens, androgens, pregnanes, cholic acid derivatives, cholestanes and vitamin D analogues are covered. There are 127 references.

Synthesis of two bidesmosidic ursolic acid saponins bearing a 2,3-branched trisaccharide residue

The focus of this work was on the synthesis of two bidesmosidic ursolic acid saponins bearing a 2,3-branched trisaccharide residue. Therefore, 3-O-{[beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->2)]-[alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-(1-->3)]-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl}ursolic acid-28-O-[beta-D-glucopyranosyl] ester 1 was concisely synthesized by two strategies in 22% and 41% overall yield, respectively, and another congener 3-O-{[beta-D-xylopyranosyl-(1-->2)]-[beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->3)]-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl}ursolic acid-28-O-[beta-D-glucopyranosyl] ester 2 was also efficiently prepared in 81% overall yield. The (1)H NMR and (13)C NMR signals of saponin 2 are all consistent with those reported for the natural product.

Fluorophore-Appended Steroidal Saponin (Dioscin and Polyphyllin D) Derivatives

The synthesis of three fluorophore-appended derivatives of dioscin and polyphyllin D is reported herein. Starting from trillin, dansyl derivatives A-C were prepared in overall yields of 7-12% over 7-10 steps. A study of their behavior in a variety of polar solvents suggests that dansyl derivatives A-C are capable of micellar self-assembly and can maintain cytotoxicities (IC50 = 15-18 muM) against the HeLa carcinoma cell line evaluated by standard MTT assay. [structure: see text]

Efficient synthesis of methyl lycotetraoside, the tetrasaccharide constituent of the tomato defence glycoalkaloid α-tomatine

Branched oligosaccharide lycotetraose, beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->2)-[beta-D-xylopyranosyl-(1-->3)]-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->4)-beta-D-galactopyranose, is a key constituent of many steroidal saponins, including glycoalkaloid alpha-tomatine, which is involved in protection of plants from invading pathogens. A new synthesis of the methyl beta-lycotetraoside () is described. Key steps of the synthesis include two successive glycosylation reactions of disaccharide acceptor methyl (4,6-O-benzylidene-3-O-p-methoxybenzyl-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-(1-->4)-2,3,6-tri-O-benzyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside with readily available benzoylated trichloroacetimidates of alpha-D-glucopyranose and alpha,beta-D-xylopyranose. This scheme allows sequential glycosylation in one-pot on account of the convenient in situ removal of a p-methoxybenzyl protecting group under the acid conditions of the first glycosylation step. Following deprotection, tetrasaccharide was obtained in 19% yield over eight steps.