1-Benzotriazol-1-yl-3,3,3-trifluoro-2-methoxy-2- phenylpropan-1-ones: Mosher-Bt Reagents

In vivo detection of d-amino acid oxidase with hyperpolarized d-[1-13 C]alanine

d-amino acid oxidase (DAO) is a peroxisomal enzyme that catalyzes the oxidative deamination of several neutral and basic d-amino acids to their corresponding α-keto acids. In most mammalian species studied, high DAO activity is found in the kidney, liver, brain and polymorphonuclear leukocytes, and its main function is to maintain low circulating d-amino acid levels. DAO expression and activity have been associated with acute and chronic kidney diseases and with several pathologies related to N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor hypo/hyper-function; however, its precise role is not completely understood. In the present study we show that DAO activity can be detected in vivo in the rat kidney using hyperpolarized d-[1-¹³ C]alanine. Following a bolus of hyperpolarized d-alanine, accumulation of pyruvate, lactate and bicarbonate was observed only when DAO activity was not inhibited. The measured lactate-to-d-alanine ratio was comparable to the values measured when the l-enantiomer was injected. Metabolites downstream of DAO were not observed when scanning the liver and brain. The conversion of hyperpolarized d-[1-¹³ C]alanine to lactate and pyruvate was detected in blood ex vivo, and lactate and bicarbonate were detected on scanning the blood pool in the heart in vivo; however, the bicarbonate-to-d-alanine ratio was significantly lower compared with the kidney. These results demonstrate that the specific metabolism of the two enantiomers of hyperpolarized [1-¹³ C]alanine in the kidney and in the blood can be distinguished, underscoring the potential of d-[1-¹³ C]alanine as a probe of d-amino acid metabolism.

Recent Advances in Multinuclear NMR Spectroscopy for Chiral Recognition of Organic Compounds

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a powerful tool for the elucidation of chemical structure and chiral recognition. In the last decade, the number of probes, media, and experiments to analyze chiral environments has rapidly increased. The evaluation of chiral molecules and systems has become a routine task in almost all NMR laboratories, allowing for the determination of molecular connectivities and the construction of spatial relationships. Among the features that improve the chiral recognition abilities by NMR is the application of different nuclei. The simplicity of the multinuclear NMR spectra relative to ¹H, the minimal influence of the experimental conditions, and the larger shift dispersion make these nuclei especially suitable for NMR analysis. Herein, the recent advances in multinuclear (¹⁹F, ³¹P, ¹³C, and ⁷⁷Se) NMR spectroscopy for chiral recognition of organic compounds are presented. The review describes new chiral derivatizing agents and chiral solvating agents used for stereodiscrimination and the assignment of the absolute configuration of small organic compounds.

Characteristic conformation of Mosher's amide elucidated using the cambridge structural database

Conformations of the crystalline 3,3,3-trifluoro-2-methoxy-2-phenylpropanamide derivatives (MTPA amides) deposited in the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD) were examined statistically as R_acid-enantiomers. The majority of dihedral angles (48/58, ca. 83%) of the amide carbonyl groups and the trifluoromethyl groups ranged from –30° to 0° with an average angle θ¹ of −13°. The other conformational properties were also clarified: (1) one of the fluorine atoms was antiperiplanar (ap) to the amide carbonyl group, forming a staggered conformation; (2) the MTPA amides prepared from primary amines showed a Z form in amide moieties; (3) in the case of the MTPA amide prepared from a primary amine possessing secondary alkyl groups (i.e., Mosher-type MTPA amide), the dihedral angles between the methine groups and the carbonyl groups were syn and indicative of a moderate conformational flexibility; (4) the phenyl plane was inclined from the O–C_chiral bond of the methoxy moiety with an average dihedral angle θ² of +21°; (5) the methyl group of the methoxy moiety was ap to the ipso-carbon atom of the phenyl group.

Chiral peptide nucleic acid monomers (PNAM) with modified backbones

Convenient high yielding syntheses of optically pure PNAMs comprising l- or d-serine, l-lysine and l-arginine units linked to thymine or Cbz-cytosine are described. Simple workup and inexpensive reagents are employed and free amino acids are used as coupling components.

Monosaccharide-based water-soluble fluorescent tags

Monosaccharides are fluorescently labeled under microwave irradiation by N-(coumarin-3-carbonyl)benzotriazole 4. 1,2:3,4-di- O-isopropylidene-alpha- d-galactopyranose 9 gives 12 (90%), 1,2:5,6-di- O-isopropylidene- d-glucose 10 gives 13 (89%), 2,3:5,6-di- O-isopropylidene-alpha- d-mannofuranose 11 gives 14 (65%) (all by O-acylation) and 2,3,4,5-tetra- O-pivaloyl-beta- d-galactopyranosylamine 15 gives 16 (60%) (by N-acylation). Similarly, the coumarin-containing activated lysine derivatives 7 and 8 afford the l-lysine-scaffold based coumarin labeled sugars 17, 18a, b, and 19 (67-85%) which, after removal of the diisopropylidene groups, provide water-soluble fluorescent derivatives.

1,2,3-Triazoles

Rapid progress in the synthetic application of benzotriazole derivatives in the last 20 years has resulted in over 1000 scientific papers on the subject. This fact is reflected in Section 5.01.7, which involves almost a half of the volume of this chapter. The section is arranged according to hybridization of the C-α atom and atomic numbers of the atoms in positions β and γ to allow an easy access to the material of interest. Recent discovery of copper catalysis in [3+2] cycloadditions of azides to acetylenes, the so-called ‘click chemistry’, which boosted application of the 1,2,3-triazole derivatives, especially in medicinal chemistry, is presented in Section 5.01.9. From the point of view of practical applications, Section 5.01.11 is organized according to the number, position, and combination of the substituents at the aromatic rings. Another novel feature that has no precedence in the previous editions of Comprehensive Heterocyclic Chemistry is an addition of triazole and benzotriazole complexes with various transitions metals to Section 5.01.4.

Enantioselective Benzoylation of α-Amino Esters Using (S)-1-Benzoyl-2- (α-acetoxyethyl)benzimidazole, a Chiral Benzimidazolide

A new chiral benzimidazolide is developed as a nonenzymatic acylating agent for enantioselective benzoylation of racemic alpha-amino esters. The process is highly efficient, which exhibits uniformly high enantioselectivity for alpha-amino esters with or without aryl substituents under mild reaction conditions. The chiral benzimidazolide is inexpensive and is easily accessible.