Method for optical resolution of corey lactone diols

Abstract: The primary hydroxy group of Corey lactone diols is optically selectively acylated to obtain the desired optically active ester and/or diol. The mixture of Corey lactone diols of formulae (Ia) and (Ib): is reacted with an acylating agent optically selectively in the presence of an enzyme and/or a microorganism thereby to acylate, isolate and purify the primary alcohol.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for optical resolution of Corey lactone diols which are intermediates of prostaglandins useful as drugs. Description of Prior Art Prostaglandins are physiologically active substances and play a fundamental role in maintaining homeostasis of the living body so that prostaglandins are expected to be utilized as drugs in various fields. Among them, prostaglandins have already been provided for practical use in the fields of oxytocia (rapid parturition), improvement in peripheral blood stream, anti-ulcer, prevention of platelet agglutination, etc. The most effective method for chemical synthesis of prostaglandins comprises using as a key intermediate Corey lactones (formula [ A ]) reported by Corey et al.: wherein R' and R'' represent hydrogen atom or a hydroxy-protecting group (Reference publication: JACS, 92 , 397 (1970), JACS, 93 , 1490 (1971)). Since many prostaglandins are synthesized via Corey lactones, Corey lactiones are compounds indispensable for synthesis of prostaglandins. For synthesis of optically active Corey lactones, many methods are known. Among others, the following process is considered to be excellent. 1) Corey process ... synthetic process comprising as key steps Diels-Alder reaction of cyclopentadiene derivatives and optical resolution of hydroxycarboxylic acid (Reference Publications: JACS, 92 , 397 (1970), JACS, 93 , 1490 (1971)). 2) Chinoin process ... synthetic process comprising as a key step Prins reaction of optically active dicyclic lactones obtained by optical resolution (Reference Publications: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 52-105163, Tetrahedron Letters (TL), 4639 (1976)). 3) Pfizer process ... synthetic process comprising as key steps Prins reaction of norbornadiene and optical resolution of carboxylic acids (Reference Publications: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 50-111074, JACS, 95 , 7522 (1973)). 4) Asymmetric Diels-Alder process ... synthetic process comprising as a key step asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction using an optically active pantholactone as an asymmetric source (Reference Publication: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. Sho 63-152339)). The three processes 1) through 3) described above all require optical resolution and thus encounter problems that expensive agents for optical resolution should be used, operation for optical resolution such as salt formation, filtration, salt decompostion, recovery of agents used for optical resolution, etc. are complicated. The asymmetric Diels-Alder process 4) is excellent since Corey lactones can be produced in a high yield with high selectivity without optical resolution. After asymmetric reaction, however, the reaction steps for leading to Corey lactones are large in number. Therefore, the process was yet unsuitable as a process in an industrial scale. Chem. Abs. Vol. 113 no. 40320n (1990) and Liebigs Annalen der Chemie (1990), pages 1087-1091 both disclose the resolution of a racemic Corey lactone using enantioselective esterification. The Corey lactone which is resolved has only a single (primary) hydroxyl group. In the first of these documents, the enantioselective esterification is carried out using glyceriol tributyrate and a catalytic amount of lipase. EP-A-0 357 009 discloses a method for stereoselectively esterifying either a primary alcohol or a secondary alcohol by reaction with an enol ester and an esterase. For the foregoing reasons, a simpler method for optical resolution of Corey lactone esters has been desired. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention' is to provide a method for producing one optically active Corey lactone diol which are useful as intermediates for useful drugs, in one step. Detailed Decription of the Preferred Embodiments In view of the fact that Corey lactone diols of formulae (Ia) and (Ib): are useful compounds widely used for synthesis of drugs, agricultural chemicals, etc., the present inventors have made extensive investigations on an industrial method for optical resolution. As a result, the method of the present invention which is quite dissimilar to conventional methods and provides extremely easy operations has been attained. Namely, the present invention relates to a method for producing one optically active Corey lactone diol which comprises reacting a mixture of Corey lactone diols of the formulae (Ia) and (Ib) described above optically selectively with an acylating agent in the presence of enzyme and/or a microorganism capable of asymmetrically hydrolyzing a Corey lactone ester to acylate the primary hydroxy group of one of the diols, and isolating the remaining diol and the formed ester from each other and purifying them. The present invention is expressed by the following reaction scheme: or The enzyme which can be used in the present invention is an enzyme capable of asymmetically hydrolyzing an ester and obtained from a microorganizm belonging to the genus Rhizopus , the genus Mucor , the genus Aspergillus , the genus Candida , the genus Pseudomonas , the genus Alcaligenes , the genus Acromobacter or the genus Bacillus or from animal organs. Examples include enzymes shown in Table 1. The microorganizm which can be used in the present invention is a microorganizm belonging to the genus Rhizopus , the genus Mucor , the genus Aspergillus , the genus Candida , the genus Pseudomonas , the genus Alcaligenes , the genus Acromobacter or the genus Bacillus . Examples include microorganizms shown in Table 1 at the column entitled "Source". These enzymes or microorganisms may be used in various forms, such as purified enzyme, crude enzyme, enzyme-contatining products, microorganism culture broth, culture medium, cells, culture filtrate and products obtained by treating them, etc., depending on necessity. The enzyme and the microorganism may also be used in combination. Upon practice of the method of the present invention, the mixture of Corey lactone diols of the formulae (Ia) and (Ib) as substrates is generally dissolved in an organic solvent and the acylating agent and the enzyme and/or the microorganism are added to the solution to react them, though the practice may vary depending upon the enzyme or microorganism used. Any organic solvent may be used so long as it does not inactivate the enzyme or microorganism and does not react with the substrate and the ester produced. Examples of the organic solvent include methylene chloride, chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethane, hexane, benzene, diethyl ether, etc. Examples of the acylating agent include fatty acid enol esters such as vinyl acetate, vinyl propionate, vinyl octanoate, 2-propylenyl acetate, etc., fatty acid esters such as tributyrin, butynic acid 1,1,1-trichloroethyl, etc.; fatty acid anhydrides such as acetic anhydride, etc. The reaction is performed by stirring or shaking for one hour to several days. The reaction may be carried out at 5°C to 50°C; at a low temperature, the reaction is slow, but at a high temperature, the enzyme might be inactivated and the asymmetric selectivity might be lowered in some occasion. Therefore, the temperature is preferably between 10°C and 35°C. After completion of the reaction, the remaining diol and the formed ester are separated from each other and purified in a conventional manner. The mixture of the diols of the formulae (Ia) and (Ib): which are used as substrates can be prepared by known methods, etc. (for example, Tetrahedron Letters (TL), 4639 (1976)). According to the method of the present invention, optically active Corey lactone diols which are used as intermediates for useful drugs, etc. can be subjected to optical resolution in one step. Therefore, the optically active Corey lactone diols and/or the formed acyl (e.g., acetyl) esters can be provided at low costs. Hereinafter the present invention is described in more detail by referring to the examples but is not deemed to be limited thereto. Example 1 While stirring 508 mg (5.9 mmols) of vinyl acetate was added to a solution of 101.5 mg (6.59 mmols) of (±)-6β,7α-dihydroxy-2-oxa-bicyclo[3.3.0]octan-3-one (1) in CH 2 Cl 2 (10 ml) at room temperature and then 65 mg of lipase AK was added to the mixture. After stirring for 3 hours, the reaction mixture was filtered through Celite® and the Celite® layer was washed with 10% MeOH-CH 2 Cl 2 solution (10 ml x 5 times). The combined organic layer was distilled off under reduced pressure. The residue was subjected to silica gel (15 g) column chromatography. From the eluate with 50% hexane-ethyl acetate, 55.7 mg (44.1%) of oil (2) was obtained. Then 48 mg (47.3%) of oil (3) was obtained from the eluate with ethyl acetate and 2% MeOH-ethyl acetate. Oil (2) : [α] D -27.1° (c=0.842, MeOH); IR (neat): 3460, 1760, 1731 cm -1 ; NMR (CDCl 3 ; 90 MHz) : δ2.08 (3H, s), 1.9-2.8 (7H, m), 4.0-4.2 (1H, m), 4.05 (1H, d, J=2.3Hz) 4.12 (1H, d, J=2.3Hz), 4.95 (1H, m) Mass spectrometry (MS) (m/e): 215 (M + + 1), 171, 154, 136, 126, 95, 82, 54, 43 (100%) High resolution mass spectrometry (MS): Calcd.: 215.0920 (as C 10 H 15 O 5 (M + +1)) Found: 215.0923 Rf value: 0.45 (ethyl acetate); 0.60 (ethyl acetate : MeOH = 6 : 1) Oil (3) : [α] D +29.9° (c=0.822, MeOH); IR (neat): 3380, 1750 cm -1 ; NMR (CD 3 OD; 90 MHz): δ 1.8-2.8 (6H, m), 3.5 (1H, d, J=2Hz), 3.55 (1H, d, J=2Hz), 4.10 (1H, q, J=5.7Hz), 4.85 (2H, br, s), 5.00 (1H, m), MS (m/e): 173 (M + + 1), 154, 126, 82, 54 (100%) high resolution MS: Calcd.: 173.0814 (as C 8 H 13 O 4 (M + +1)) Found : 173.0812 Rf value: 0.05 (ethyl acetate); 0.45 (ethyl acetate : MeOH = 6 : 1) The optical purity was determined according to the following scheme (with respect to MTPACl and MTPA in the reaction scheme, refer to Notes described below). Notes: Ac = CH 3 CO Me = CH 3 Examples 2 to 5 Optical resolution was performed in a manner similar to Example 1 except for using 100 mg of (±)-(1), 0.50 g (10 equivalents) of vinyl acetate, 65 mg of lipase described in Table 2 and 10 ml of 1,2-dichloroethane. The results are shown in Table 2. In Example 4, 10 ml of tetrahydrofuran (THF) was used and 150 mg of Lipase Amano AK was used in Example 5. Example No. Starting Material (1) Lipase (cf. Table 1) Reaction Time (hour) Product (2) Product (3) 2 100.8 mg Lipase Amano PS 3 58.5 mg (46.7%) [α] D -17.7° (c=0.94, MeOH) 43.8 mg (43.4%) [α] D +26.5° (c=0.61, MeOH) 3 101.2 mg PPL (Pig pancreatin lipase made by Shigma) 46 29.7 mg (23.6%) [α] D -21.5° (c=0.594 MeOH) 57.2 mg (56.5%) [α] D +14.71° (c=1.144, MeOH) 4 100.3 mg Lipase Amano AK 2.5 47 mg (37.7%) [α] D -18.86° (c=0.94, MeOH) 30.2 mg (30.1%) [α] D +33.96° (c=0.604, MeOH) 5 100.8 mg Lipase Amano AK 1.45 52.6 mg (42%) [α] D -25.31° (c=1.052, MeOH) 45.6 mg (45.2%) [α] D +33.0° (c=0.844, MeOH)

Claims: A method for producing one optically active Corey lactone diol which comprises reacting a mixture of Corey lactone diols of formulae (Ia) and (Ib): optically selectively with an acylating agent in the presence of enzyme and/or a microorganism capable of asymmetrically hydrolyzing an ester to acylate the primary hydroxy group of one of the diols, and isolating the remaining diol and the formed ester from each other and purifying them. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said enzyme is an enzyme obtained from a microorganism belonging to the genus Rhizopus , the genus Mucor , the genus Aspergillus , the genus Candida , the genus Pseudomonas , the genus Alcaligenes , the genus Acromobacter or the genus Bacillus or an animal organ. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said microorganism is a microorganism belonging to the genus Rhizopus , the genus Mucor , the genus Aspergillus , the genus Candida , the genus Pseudomonas , the genus Alcaligenes , the genus Acromobacter or the genus Bacillus .

Inventors: SUGAHARA TSUTOMU, TAKANO SEIICHI, SUGAHARA, TSUTOMU, TAKANO, SEIICHI
Applicants: NISSAN CHEMICAL IND LTD, NISSAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES LTD.
Application year: 1992
Main classification: C12P41
IPC codes: C12P17, C07D307, C12P41