Synthesis and biological evaluation of 2,5-bis(alkylamino)-1,4-benzoquinones

Synthesis of spiropyrans via Ru(II)-catalyzed coupling of 3-aryl-2H-benzo[b][1,4]oxazines with benzoquinones

An efficient Ru(II)-catalyzed C-H activation-based spiroannulation of benzoxazines with the easily available benzoquinone and N-sulfonyl quinone monoimine has been realized, providing a straightforward strategy to access NH-containing spiropyrans in moderate to good yields with good functional group compatibility. The procedure features atom- and step-economy, mild conditions, and excellent chemoselectivity. Moreover, a catalytically competent five-membered cycloruthenated complex has been isolated.

Solvent-Driven Chirality Switching of a Pillar[4]arene[1]quinone Having a Chiral Amine-Substituted Quinone Subunit

Several new chiral pillar[4]arene[1]quinone derivatives were synthesized by reacting pillar[4]arene[1]quinone (EtP4Q1), containing four 1,4-diethoxybenzene units and one benzoquinone unit, with various chiral amines via Michael addition. Due to the direct introduction of chiral substituents on the rim of pillar[n]arene and the close location of the chiral center to the rim of EtP4Q1, the newly prepared compounds showed unique chiroptical properties without complicated chiral resolution processes, and unprecedented high anisotropy factor of up to −0.018 at the charge transfer absorption band was observed. Intriguingly, the benzene sidearm attached pillar[4]arene[1]quinone derivative 1a showed solvent- and complexation-driven chirality inversion. This work provides a promising potential for absolute asymmetric synthesis of pillararene-based derivatives.

Synthesis of some NH- and NH,S- substituted 1,4-quinones

A series of NH-substituted-1,4-quinones, possessing one, two, three or not chlorine, were synthesized by the reaction between different quinones (p-chloranil (1), p-toluquinone (2), or 2,3-dichloro-1,4-naphthoquinone (3)) and (-)-cis-myrtanylamine (5) via nucleophilic reactions. Moreover, 2-bromo-1,4-naphthoquinone (4) was reacted with 2-(methylthio)ethylamine (11) to produce amino-substituted naphthoquinones (12 and 13), bearing with bromine and not bromine. In addition, 2-bromo-1,4-naphthoquinone (4) was reacted with 4′-aminodibenzo-18-crown-6 (14) and 4′-aminobenzo-18-crown-6 (16) to yield crown-containing 1,4-naphthoquinones (15 and 17), respectively. New compounds were characterized, providing ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, FTIR, MS-ESI, UV/Vis and elemental analysis.

Antiureolytic Activity of Substituted 2,5-Diaminobenzoquinones

A series of 2,5-bis(alkyl/arylamino)-1,4-benzoquinones (1-12) were investigated in vitro for their potential to inhibit the activity of jack bean urease. Compounds 1-6, 8, 9, 11 and 12 effectively inhibited the jack bean urease activity by 90.8 % when tested at 5 μm, whereas 7 and 10 had relatively little effect. The IC₅₀ for most compounds was in the nanomolar range (31.4 nm and 36.0 nm for 2 and 8, respectively). The mechanism of enzyme inhibition shown by 2 and 8 is typical of mixed-type inhibitors, whose affinity for the active site is over 6- and 2-fold higher (K_i =30.0 and 22.8 nm, for 2 and 8, respectively) than that of an allosteric site. Molecular docking studies revealed that both 2 and 8 establish hydrogen bonds with the amino acids residues Asp494, Met588, His593 and Ala636 in the active site of jack bean urease. These results indicate that such aminoquinones are useful leads for the development of more efficient urease inhibitors of wider utility.

Post-Synthetic Modification of Nonporous Adaptive Crystals of Pillar[4]arene[1]quinone by Capturing Vaporized Amines

Postsynthetic modification in crystalline solids without disruption of crystallinity is very important for exerting control that is unattainable over chemical transformation in solution. This has been achieved in porous crystalline frameworks via solid-solution reactions to endow them with multiple functions. However, this is rather rare in nonporous molecular crystals, especially via solid-vapor reactions. Herein, we report unique solid-vapor postsynthetic modification of nonporous adaptive crystals (NACs) of a pillar[4]arene[1]quinone (EtP4Q1) containing four inert 1,4-diethoxybenzene units and one active benzoquinone unit. Amine vapors that can be physically adsorbed by EtP4Q1 NACs react with the EtP4Q1 backbone via Michael addition with in situ formation of new crystal structures. First, amines are physically adsorbed into cavities of EtP4Q1 molecules and slowly react due to their juxtapsition with the benzoquinone units. Amines that are too bulky to enter EtP4Q1 NACs do not react. Moreover, the process displays both reactant-size and -shape selectivities because of the rigid cavity of EtP4Q1 and the different binding strengths of various amines with EtP4Q1.

Amino-substituted para-Benzoquinones as Potential Herbicides

Although quinones present a large array of biological activities, a few studies on the herbicidal potential of 2,5-bis(alkyl/arylamino)-1,4-benzoquinones have been reported to date. In this work, starting from benzoquinone, 13 2,5-bis(alkyl/arylamino)-1,4-benzoquinones were prepared in 46 - 93% yield. The products were fully characterized by spectroscopic analyses and their phytotoxicity against Cucumis sativus and Sorghum bicolor seedlings was investigated. At 100 ppm, compounds caused 10 - 88% growth inhibition of the dicotyledonous species, whereas the monocotyledon was less affected. Most compounds exerted little inhibitory effect on a cyanobacterial model strain. However, at 100 μm, compounds 8 - 10 caused about 50% inhibition of algal growth, and compounds 1 and 2 reduced cell viability in the 1 - 10 μm range. The ability of benzoquinone derivatives to interfere with the light-driven ferricyanide reduction by isolated spinach chloroplasts was evaluated. Some substances showed a moderate effect as uncouplers, but no relationship was found between this property and their biological activity, indicating that the herbicidal effect is not associated with the inhibition of the photosynthetic electron transport chain. Phytotoxic compounds were not toxic to insects, strengthening the possibility that they may serve as lead for the development of eco-friendly herbicides.

On-Water Reactivity and Regioselectivity of Quinones in C–N Coupling with Amines: Experimental and Theoretical Study

A study about the oxidative coupling of some representative carbo- and heterocyclic non-symmetrical quinones with aryl- and alkylamines, was carried out comparing dichloromethane and water as reaction mediums. We found that the on-water reactions gave better or, at worst, the same results as a conventional organic medium like dichloromethane. Descriptors derived from conceptual density functional theory and approaches of electrostatic nature, such as the molecular electrostatic potential, were used to explain the observed chemical reactivity and regioselectivity. Further, the on-water conditions were used to obtain 24 new aminoquinones with potential biological activity.

The fungal phytotoxin alternariol 9-methyl ether and some of its synthetic analogues inhibit the photosynthetic electron transport chain

Alternariol and monomethylalternariol are natural phytotoxins produced by some fungal strains, such as Nimbya and Alternaria. These substances confer virulence to phytopathogens, yet no information is available concerning their mode of action. Here we show that in the micromolar range alternariol 9-methyl ether is able to inhibit the electron transport chain (IC50 = 29.1 ± 6.5 μM) in isolated spinach chloroplasts. Since its effectiveness is limited by poor solubility in water, several alternariol analogues were synthesized using different aromatic aldehydes. The synthesized 6H-benzo[c]cromen-6-ones, 5H-chromene[4,3-b]pyridin-5-one, and 5H-chromene[4,3-c]pyridin-5-one also showed inhibitory properties, and three 6H-benzo[c]cromen-6-ones were more effective (IC50 = 12.8-22.8 μM) than the lead compound. Their addition to the culture medium of a cyanobacterial model strain was found to inhibit algal growth, with a relative effectiveness that was consistent with their activity in vitro. In contrast, the growth of a nonphotosynthetic plant cell culture was poorly affected. These compounds may represent a novel lead for the development of new active principles targeting photosynthesis.

Synthesis and antiproliferative activity of C-3 functionalized isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ones

A series of thirteen C-3 functionalized isobenzofuran-1(3H)-ones (phtalides) was synthesized via condensation, aromatization, and acetylation reactions. NMR (one and two dimensional experiments), IR, and mass spectrometry analysis allowed confirmation of the identity of the synthesized compounds. The substances were submitted to in vitro bioassays against U937 (lymphoma) and K562 (myeloid leukemia) cancer cell lines using the MTT cytotoxicity assay. Some derivatives inhibited 90% of cell viability at 100 µM. Also, two phtalides presented biological activity superior than that of etoposide (VP16), a commercial drug used as a positive control in the assays. In silico drug properties of the evaluated compounds were calculated and the results are discussed.

Site-specific crosslinking of annexin proteins by 1,4-benzoquinone: a novel crosslinker for the formation of protein dimers and diverse protein conjugates

Annexin V (1) specifically binds to phosphatidylserine on apoptotic and necrotic cells as well as certain cancer cells, making it an attractive vehicle for the delivery of therapeutically-relevant conjugates to such sites. The wild-type protein possesses a single thiol at Cys316, which is difficultly accessible to site-specific labeling by simple maleimides. By contrast, 1,4-benzoquinone site-specifically labels annexin V in minutes. The resulting conjugate (5) serves as an intermediate for crosslinking annexin molecules, which can be accomplished within hours either directly for linking annexin V-128 (19), or via an extended sequence involving the crosslinking of two units of (5) by the symmetrical α,ω-dithiol (20). Besides its ability to mediate protein dimer formation while retaining annexin V's ability to bind phosphatidylserine, (5) possesses classic 1,4-benzoquinone reactivity. Various nucleophiles and Diels-Alder dienes form adducts with (5) in reactions that may have general utility for the synthesis of novel biologically active entities. The present work presents the first example of thiol-specific crosslinking of proteins by 1,4-quinone-based methodology designed to exploit the reactivity of this versatile chemical entity.

Sorgoleone: benzoquinona lipídica de sorgo com efeitos alelopáticos na agricultura como herbicida

A cultura do sorgo cresceu rapidamente nestes últimos anos, por ser uma planta com características xerófilas, apresentando um aumento de sua produção principalmente na região nordeste devido a sua capacidade de suportar ambientes de cultivo mais secos. As ervas daninhas são um grande problema para os cultivares, pois estas podem reduzir significativamente a produção de grãos, particularmente quando surgem nas fases iniciais das culturas. Visando a obtenção de culturas resistentes às ervas daninhas, estudos têm sido realizados demonstrando que algumas plantas possuem uma defesa natural que consiste na capacidade de um organismo produzir metabólitos que atuam inibindo ou o crescimento ou o desenvolvimento de outros organismos que estão próximos; a esta capacidade dá-se o nome de alelopatia. O sorgo é uma das plantas que possuem sua alelopatia comprovada, produzindo um complexo de substâncias lipídicas e proteínas denominados genericamente de sorgoleone, tendo como seu principal composto o 2-hidroxi-5-metoxi-3-[(Z,Z)-8',11',14'-pentadecatrieno]-p-benzoquinona, que é naturalmente liberado para o solo a partir dos tricomas das suas raízes e, no momento em que entram em contato com as ervas daninhas, inibem seu crescimento. Devido a tais características inerentes à cultura do sorgo, este trabalho tem como objetivo discorrer sobre os possíveis benefícios do uso desse cereal devido a sua comprovada alelopatia, bem como informar os conhecidos mecanismos de produção e atuação dos principais compostos constituintes do sorgoleone produzidos pelas suas raízes.