Sweet Selenium: Synthesis and Properties of Selenium-Containing Sugars and Derivatives

In the last decades, organoselenium compounds gained interest due to their important biological features. However, the lack of solubility, which characterizes most of them, makes their actual clinical exploitability a hard to reach goal. Selenosugars, with their intrinsic polarity, do not suffer from this issue and as a result, they can be conceived as a useful alternative. The aim of this review is to provide basic knowledge of the synthetic aspects of selenosugars, selenonium salts, selenoglycosides, and selenonucleotides. Their biological properties will be briefly detailed. Of course, it will not be a comprehensive dissertation but an analysis of what the authors think is the cream of the crop of this interesting research topic.

Aspects of extraction and biological evaluation of naturally occurring sugar-mimicking sulfonium-ion and their synthetic analogues as potent α-glucosidase inhibitors from Salacia: a review

A review of the selective inhibitory activities of sulfonium compounds ofSalaciaagainst intestinal α-glucosidases, structural features important for effective inhibition and the toggling approach for controlling starch digestion and glucose release.

Towards the elusive structure of kotalanol, a naturally occurring glucosidase inhibitor

This Highlight describes the detailed approach used to determine the absolute stereochemistry of the stereogenic centers in the acyclic side chain of kotalanol, a naturally occurring glucosidase inhibitor isolated from the plant Salacia reticulata. The plant extract itself is used in Ayurvedic medicine for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes. We highlight the syntheses of proposed candidates based on structure-activity relationships, the total synthesis of kotalanol, and crystallographic studies of kotalanol and its de-O-sulfonated derivative complexed with recombinant human maltase glucoamylase (MGA), a critical intestinal glucosidase involved in the breakdown of glucose oligomers into glucose.

Sulfonium-ion glycosidase inhibitors isolated from Salacia species used in traditional medicine, and related compounds

A novel class of naturally-occurring glycosidase inhibitors, having sulfonium sulfate structures, has been isolated as bioactive components from Indian plants, belonging to the Salacia genus in the family Celastraceae, and used in Ayurvedic medicine for the treatment of type-2 diabetes. Thus far, five such sulfonium salts, namely, salacinol, kotalanol, salaprinol, ponkoranol and de-O-sulfonated kotalanol, have been isolated from this plant species. These structurally unique zwitterionic glycosidase inhibitors have received much attention due to their therapeutic potential in the treatment of type-2 diabetes. We recently reported a review article which focused mainly on salacinol and related analogues. The present review presents an update on the remaining four compounds from this class of glycosidase inhibitors, with respect to their isolation, glucosidase inhibitory activities, and synthesis. In addition, progress towards the stereochemical structure elucidation of kotalanol, through synthesis of analogues, is described. Review with 42 references.

Studies directed toward the stereochemical structure determination of the naturally occurring glucosidase inhibitor, kotalanol: synthesis and inhibitory activities against human maltase glucoamylase of seven-carbon, chain-extended homologues of salacinol

The synthesis of new seven-carbon, chain-extended sulfonium salts of 1,4-anhydro-4-thio- d-arabinitol, analogues of the naturally occurring glycosidase inhibitor salacinol, are described. These compounds were designed on the basis of the structure activity data of chain-extended analogues of salacinol, with the intention of determining the hitherto unknown stereochemical structure of kotalanol, the naturally occurring seven-carbon chain-extended analogue of salacinol. The target zwitterionic compounds were synthesized by means of nucleophilic attack of the PMB-protected 1,4-anhydro-4-thio- d-arabinitols at the least hindered carbon atom of two 1,3-cyclic sulfates differing in stereochemistry at only one stereogenic center. The desired cyclic sulfates were synthesized starting from d-glucose via Wittig olefination and Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation. Deprotection of the coupled products by using a two-step sequence afforded two sulfonium sulfates. Optical rotation data for one of our compounds indicated a correspondence with that reported for kotalanol. However, comparison of (1)H and (13)C NMR spectral data of the synthetic compounds with those of kotalanol indicated discrepancies. The collective data from this and published work were used to propose a tentative structure for the naturally occurring compound, kotalanol. Comparison of physical data of previously synthesized analogues with those for the recently isolated six-carbon chain analogue, ponkoranol or reticulanol, also led to elucidation of this structure. Interestingly, both our compounds inhibited recombinant human maltase glucoamylase (MGA), as expected from our previous structure activity studies of lower homologues, with K i values of 0.13 +/- 0.02 and 0.10 +/- 0.02 microM.

Zwitterionic glycosidase inhibitors: salacinol and related analogues

Natural products with interesting biological properties and structural diversity have often served as valuable lead drug candidates for the treatment of human diseases. Salacinol, a naturally occurring alpha-glucosidase inhibitor, was shown to be one of the active principles of the aqueous extract of a medicinal plant that has been prescribed traditionally as an Ayurvedic treatment for type II diabetes. Salacinol contains an intriguing zwitterionic sulfonium-sulfate structure that comprises a 1,4-anhydro-4-thio-D-arabinitol core and a polyhydroxylated acyclic chain. Due to the unique structural features and its potential to become a lead drug candidate in the treatment of type II diabetes, a great deal of attention has been focused on salacinol and its analogues. Since the isolation of salacinol, several papers describing various synthetic routes to salacinol and its analogues have appeared in the literature. This review is aimed at highlighting the synthetic aspects of salacinol and related compounds as well as their structure-activity relationship studies.