bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reductions
Authors: Bandar Jeffrey S.
Published: November 2020

Manfred T. Reetz at the Max-Planck-Institut Mülheim and Philipps-Universität Marburg developed (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 1665) a mutated Thermoethanolicus brockii alcohol dehydrogenase for the enantioselective reduc­tion of 4-alkylidene cyclohexanone 1. Using a new C₂-symmetic chiral bisphos­phine ligand (Wingphos, 5), Wenjun Tang at the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 4235) the rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of β-aryl enamide 3. Qi-Lin Zhou of Nankai University utilized chiral spirophosphine oxazoline iridium complexes 8a and 8b for the asymmetric hydrogenation of unsaturated piperidine carboxylic acid 6 (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 6072) and 1,1-diarylethylene 9 (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 1556) with excellent selectivities. The iron- catalyzed chemoselective hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated aldehyde 11 was demonstrated (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 5120) by Matthias Beller at the University of Rostock. Jeffrey S. Johnson at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill showed (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 594) that asymmetric trans­fer hydrogenation of racemic acyl phosphonate 14 yielded β-stereogenic α- hydroxy phosphonate 16, a reversal in diastereoselectivity observed in the case of α-keto ester analogues. Gojko Lalic of the University of Washington developed (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 1112) a monophasic copper catalyst system for the selective semireduction of terminal alkyne 17. Alois Fürstner and coworkers at Max-Planck-Institut Mülheim reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 355) the ruthenium-catalyzed trans- selective hydro­genation of alkyne 19. Macrocyclic alkynes could also be selectively hydrogenated to E- alkenes using this methodology. Bernhard Breit at the University of Freiburg found (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 2231) that a bimetallic Pd/ Re/ graphite catalyst system was highly active for the hydrogenation of tertiary amide 21 to amine 22. Professor Beller also discovered (Chem. Eur. J. 2013, 19, 4437) that a commercially available ruthenium complex allowed for the effective transfer hydrogenation of aromatic nitrile 23 to benzyl amine 24. Notably, no reductive amination side products were observed. Maurice Brookhart at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill used (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 496) tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane as a highly active catalyst for the selective reduction of carboxylic acid 25 to aldehyde 26 with triethylsilane as a hydride source.
Organic Functional Group Protection
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Dithianes such as 1 are readily prepared, from the corresponding ketone or by alkyl­ation. Masayuki Kirihara of the Shizuoka Institute of Science and Technology devel­oped (Tetrahedron Lett. 2013, 54, 5477) an oxidative method for the deprotection of 1 to 2. Konrad Tiefenbacher of the Technische Universität München devised (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 16213) a hexameric resorcinarene capsule that selectively catalyzed the hydrolysis of the smaller acetal 3 to 4 in the presence of a longer chain acetal. David J. Gorin of Smith College reported (J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 11606) the methylation of an acid 5 to 6 using dimethyl carbonate as the donor. Two peroxide-based methods (J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 9898; Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 3326) for carboxylic acid methylation (not illustrated) were also recently described. Hisashi Yamamoto of the University of Chicago showed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 7198) that the “supersilyl” ester 8, prepared from 7, was stable enough to be deprotonated and alkyl­ated, but was easily removed. Michal Szostak and David J. Procter of the University of Manchester uncovered (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 7237) the remarkable cleavage of a C–N bond in an amide 9, leading to the secondary amide 10. This could offer an alternative strategy for difficult-to-hydrolyze amides. Richard B. Silverman of Northwestern University described (J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 10931) improved protocols for the formation and removal of the N-protecting 2,5-dimethylpyrrole 11 to give 12. Huanfeng Jiang of the South China University of Technology showed (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 6102) that an arenesulfonamide 14 can be prepared by oxidation of the corresponding sodium arenesulfinate 13. Douglas A. Klumpp of Northern Illinois University prepared (Tetrahedron Lett. 2013, 54, 5945) sul­fonamides (not illustrated) by combining a sulfonyl fluoride with a silyl amine. K. Rajender Reddy of the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology developed (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 6686) a new route to a urea 17, by oxidative coupling of an amine 15 with a formamide 16.
Organic Functional Group Protection and Deprotection
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Martin Oestreich of the Technische Universität Berlin developed (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2014, 2077) the Birch reduction product 2 as a donor for the silylation of an alco­hol 1 to give 3. Atahualpa Pinto of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry devised (Tetrahedron Lett. 2014, 55, 2600) conditions for the monosilylation of the diol 4 to give 5. Quanxuan Zhang of Michigan State University reported (Tetrahedron Lett. 2014, 55, 3384) the preparation (not illustrated) of the mono-THP ethers of symmetrical diols. The product from the Mitsunobu cou­pling of an acid with an alcohol 6 can be difficult to purify. Takashi Sugimura of the University of Hyogo showed (Synthesis 2013, 45, 931) that the oxidation product from 7 and the reduction product from 8 could both be removed from the product 9 by simple extraction. David Milstein of the Weizmann Institute of Science found (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 4685) that an Fe catalyst could be used to reduce the trifluoroacetate 10 to 11. Jean-Michel Vatèle of the Université Lyon 1 oxidized (Synlett 2014, 25, 115) the benzylidene acetal 12 selectively to the monobenzoate 13. Xinyu Liu of the University of Pittsburgh organized (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 3155) a family of acid-sensitive esters that can be selectively removed in the presence of other esters, as exemplified by the conversion of 14 to 15. Ryo Yazaki and Takashi Ohshima of Kyushu University observed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 1611) that an amine would add spontaneously to acrylonitrile 17 to give 18. In the presence of a Cu catalyst, alcohols added to 17 even more readily, allowing the preparation of 18 from 16. Diego Gamba-Sánchez of the Universidad de los Andes used (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 4544) simple Fe catalysts to activate a wide range of amides, including 20, to become acylating agents, converting 19 to 21. 1,2-Addition to t-butylsulfanylimines is widely used to construct aminated stereo­genic centers. Xiaodong Yang and Hongbin Zhang of Yunnan University established (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 6259) a general protocol for cleaving the N–S bond in the product 22 to give the desired free amine 23.
Flow Chemistry: The Direct Production of Drug Metabolites
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Several overviews of flow chemistry appeared recently. Katherine S. Elvira and Andrew J. deMello of ETH Zürich wrote (Nature Chem. 2013, 5, 905) on micro­fluidic reactor technology. D. Tyler McQuade of Florida State University and the Max Planck Institute Mühlenberg reviewed (J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 6384) applications and equipment. Jun-ichi Yoshida of Kyoto University focused (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 9896) on transformations that cannot be effected under batch condi­tions. Detlev Belder of the Universität Leipzig reported (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 11644) flow reactions coupled to subsequent micropreparative separations. Leroy Cronin of the University of Glasgow described (Chem. Sci. 2013, 4, 3099) combin­ing 3D printing of an apparatus and liquid handling for convenient chemical synthe­sis and purification. Many of the reactions of organic synthesis have now been adapted to flow con­ditions. We will highlight those transformations that incorporate particularly useful features. One of those is convenient handling of gaseous reagents. C. Oliver Kappe of the Karl-Franzens-University Graz generated (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 10241) diimide in situ to reduce 1 to 2. David J. Cole-Hamilton immobilized (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 9805) Ru DuPHOS on a heteropoly acid support, allowing the flow hydrogenation of neat 3 to 4 in high ee. Steven V. Ley of the University of Cambridge added (Org. Process Res. Dev. 2013, 17, 1183) ammonia to 5 to give the thiourea 6. Alain Favre-Réguillon of the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers used (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 5978) oxygen to directly oxidize the aldehyde 7 to the car­boxylic acid 8. Professor Kappe showed (J. Org. Chem. 2013, 78, 10567) that supercritical ace­tonitrile directly converted an acid 9 to the nitrile 10. Hisao Yoshida of Nagoya University added (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 3793) acetonitrile to nitrobenzene 11 to give the para isomer 12 with high regioselectively. Kristin E. Price of Pfizer Groton coupled (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4342) 13 to 14 to give 15 with very low loading of the Pd catalyst. Andrew Livingston of Imperial College demonstrated (Org. Process Res. Dev. 2013, 17, 967) the utility of nanofiltration under flow conditions to minimize Pd levels in a Heck product.
C–C Bond Construction: The Kingsbury Synthesis of (−)-Dihydrocuscohygrine
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Akio Baba of Osaka University combined (Chem. Lett. 2013, 42, 1551) reduction of the acid 1 with subsequent condensation with the ketene silyl acetal 2 to directly give the coupled product 3. Song-Lin Zhang of Soochow University showed (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 10635) that the allyl Sm reagent 5 could be added to an aldehyde 4 under reducing conditions, leading to the alkene 6. In a related development, Patrick Perlmutter of Monash University reduced (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4327) the interme­diate lactol from addition of the alkyl lithium reagent 8 to the lactone 7, to give the alcohol 9. Yoshihiro Miyake, now at Nagoya University, and Yoshiaki Nishibayashi of the University of Tokyo added (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 7854) the benzyl radical from the decarboxylation of 10 to the acceptor 11 to give 12. Yasuharu Yoshimi of the University of Fukui (Tetrahedron Lett. 2013, 54, 4324) and Larry E. Overman of the University of California, Irvine (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 15342) reported related results. David Milstein of the Weizmann Institute of Science developed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 14131) an Fe catalyst for the hydrogenation of an alkyne 13 to the E-alkene 14. Zhi-Xiang Yu of Peking University showed (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4634) that kinetic isomerization of the alkene 15 led selectively to the Z-alkene 16. Umasish Jama of Jadavpur University prepared (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2013, 4823) the nitroalkene 18 by condensing nitromethane with the aldehyde 17. Vladimir A. D’yakonov of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ufa described (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 8401; Tetrahedron 2013, 69, 8516) the remarkably selective coupling of the allene 19 with the allene 20 to give the Z,Z-diene 21. Sang-Hyeup Lee of the Catholic University of Daegu assembled (Synlett 2013, 24, 1953) the ketone 24 by coupling the alkynyl aluminum 23 with the nitrile 22. Jean-Marc Weibel and Patrick Pale of the Université de Strasbourg showed (Chem. Eur. J. 2013, 19, 8765) that the alkenyl nosylate (p-nitrobenzenesulfonate) 25 coupled smoothly with 26, leading to the enyne 27. Reinhold Zimmer and Hans-Ulrich Reissig of the Freie Universität Berlin described (Synthesis 2013, 45, 2752) similar results with alkenyl nonaflates.
Reactions of Alkenes
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The catalytic reduction of the alkene 1 gave the cis-fused product (not illustrated), by kinetic H₂ addition to the less congested face of the alkene. Ryan A. Shenvi of Scripps La Jolla found (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 1300) conditions for stepwise HAT, con­verting 1 to the thermodynamically-favored trans-fused ketone 2. Seth B. Herzon of Yale University devised (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 6884) a protocol for the reduc­tion, mediated by 4, of the double bond of a haloalkene 3 to give the saturated halide 5. The Shenvi conditions also reduced a haloalkene to the saturated halide. Daniel J. Weix of the University of Rochester and Patrick L. Holland, also of Yale University, established (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 945) conditions for the kinetic isomerization of a terminal alkene 6 to the Z internal alkene 7. Christoforos G. Kokotos of the University of Athens showed (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 4270) that the ketone 9, used catalytically, markedly accelerated the Payne epoxidation of 8 to 10. Note that Helena M. C. Ferraz of the Universidade of São Paulo reported (Tetrahedron Lett. 2000, 41, 5021) several years ago that alkene epoxidation was also easily carried out with DMDO generated in situ from acetone and oxone. Theodore A. Betley of Harvard University prepared (Chem. Sci. 2014, 5, 1526) the allylic amine 12 by reacting the alkene 11 with 1-azidoadamantane in the presence of an iron catalyst. Rodney A. Fernandes of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay developed (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 5787) efficient conditions for the Wacker oxida­tion of a terminal alkene 6 to the methyl ketone 13. Yong-Qiang Wang of Northwest University oxidized (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 1610) the alkene 6 to the enone 14. Peili Teo of the National University of Singapore devised (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 2608) conditions for the Markovnikov hydration of the alkene 6 to the alcohol 15. Internal alkenes were inert under these conditions, but Yoshikazo Kitano of the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology effected (Synthesis 2014, 46, 1455) the Markovnikov amination (not illustrated) of more highly substituted alkenes.
Construction of Single Stereocenters
Authors: Lambert Tristan H.
Published: November 2020

Haifeng Du at the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 6810) the borane-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of imine 1 to 2 using the diene 3 as a chiral ligand for boron. A single-enzyme cascade for the reductive transam­ination of acetophenone 4 with amine 5 to produce enantiopure sec-phenethylamine 6 was developed (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 161) by Per Berglund at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. A group at Boehringer Ingelheim in Ridgefield, Connecticut, led by Jonathan T. Reeves, disclosed (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 5565) a procedure for the addition of DMF anion to N-sulfinyl imine 7 to furnish tert-leucine amide 8 with high diastereoselectivity. The tertiary carbinamine 10 was synthesized (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 34) via the carbolithiation/rearrangement of vinyl­urea 9 as reported by Jonathan Clayden at the University of Manchester. Gregory C. Fu at Caltech reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 2525) that the chiral phosphine 12 catalyzed the enantioselective addition of trifluoroacetamide to allene 11 to produce γ-amino ester 13 in enantioenriched form. Adeline Vallribera at the Autonomous University of Barcelona found (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 1448) that a euro­pium pybox complex effected the highly enantioselective α-amination of β-ketoester 14 to generate 15 on the way to the Parkinson’s disease co-drug L-carbidopa. Hisashi Yamamoto at the University of Chicago and Chubu University reported (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 3411) that a halfnium(IV) complex of the bishydroxamic acid 17 catalyzed the enantioselective epoxidation of the tertiary homoallylic alcohol 16 to 18. The rearrangement of the allylic carbonate 19 to produce allyl ether 21 with high ee under iridium catalysis in the presence of ligand 20 was disclosed (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 512) by Hyunsoo Han at the University of Texas, San Antonio. The asymmetric vinylogous aldol reaction of 3-methyl-2-cyclohexen-1-one 22 and α-keto ester 23 to furnish tertiary carbinol 25 using the bifunctional catalyst 24 was developed (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 220) by Paolo Melchiorre at ICREA and ICIQ in Spain.
C–O Ring Construction: The Martín and Martín Synthesis of Teurilene
Authors: Lambert Tristan H.
Published: November 2020

Benjamin List at the Max-Planck-Institute in Mülheim reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 3490) that the chiral phosphoric acid TRIP catalyzed the asymmet­ric SN2-type intramolecular etherification of 1 to produce tetrahydrofuran 2 with a selectivity factor of 82. The coupling of alkenol 3 with 4 to give the α-arylated tetra­hydropyran 5 via a method that combined gold catalysis and photoredox catalysis was disclosed (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 5505) by Frank Glorius at Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster. Mark Lautens at the University of Toronto reported (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 1148) the conversion of cyclohexanedione 6 and phenylboronic acid to bicyclic ether 8 using rhodium catalysis in the presence of dienyl ligand 7. Propargylic ether 9 was found (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 2926) by John P. Wolfe at the University of Michigan to undergo conversion to furanone 10 upon treatment with dibutylboron triflate and Hünig’s base followed by oxidation with hydrogen peroxide. Tomislav Rovis at Colorado State University demonstrated (Chem. Sci. 2013, 4, 1668) that the spirocyclic compound 13 could be prepared in enantioenriched form from 11 by a photoisomerization- coupled Stetter reaction using carbene catalyst 12. Antonio C. B. Burtoloso at the University of São Paulo reported (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 2434) the conversion of ketone 14 to lactone 15 using samarium(II) iodide and methyl acrylate. The merger of diketone 16 and pyrone 17 in the presence of Amberlyst-15 to pro­duce (−)- tenuipyrone 18 was disclosed (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 6) by Rongbiao Tong at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Joanne E. Harvey at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand found (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 2430) that tricy­clic ether 20 could be generated efficiently from dihydropyran 19 and pyrone 17 via a palladium-catalyzed double allylic alkylation cascade. Two rings and four stereocenters were generated in the construction of bicyclic ether 23 from dienol 21 and acetal 22 via a Lewis acid-mediated cascade, as reported (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 2046) by Christine L. Willis at the University of Bristol.
C–O Ring Construction: The Tong Synthesis of (−)-Aculeatin A
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Oxetanes are both interesting structural elements and activated leaving groups. James A. Bull of Imperial College London cyclized (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 5203) the tosylate 1 to the oxetane with LiHMDS, then alkylated the product using the same base to give 2. J. S. Yadav of CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology estab­lished (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 836) conditions for the cyclization of 3 to 4. Hiroaki Sasai of Osaka University used (Chem. Commun. 2013, 49, 11224) a Pd(II)–Pd(IV) cycle to convert 5 to 6. Lauri Vares of the University of Tartu dem­onstrated (Tetrahedron Lett. 2014, 55, 3569) that the racemic epoxide 7, a mixture of diastereomers, could be cyclized to 8 as a single diastereomer in high ee. Alistair Boyer of the University of Glasgow converted (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 1660) the tria­zole 9, prepared from the corresponding alkyne, to the intermediate 10, that could be hydrolyzed to the ketone or reduced to the amine. Subhas Chandra Roy of the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science devised (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2014, 2980) a Ti(III)- mediated cascade conjugate addition–cyclization for the assembly of 12 from 11. Paul E. Floreancig of the University of Pittsburgh reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 4926) the highly diastereoselective reductive cyclization of 13 to 14. Arun K. Ghosh of Purdue University prepared (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 5697) the ketone 16 from the enantiomerically-pure alcohol 15. Professor Ghosh also described (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 3154) a complementary approach to tetrahydropyrans based on the hetero Diels–Alder addition of the alkynyl aldehyde 18 to the diene 17 to give 19. Xin-Shan Ye of Peking University found (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 4676) that the alcohol 20 could be cyclized to 21 with NBS, and to the diastereomer with PhSeCl. Jiyong Hong of Duke University showed (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 2406) that an organo­catalyst could be used to mediate the cyclization of 22 to the oxepane 23. Mingji Dai, also of Purdue University, reported (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 6519) the car­bonylative macrocyclization of the diol 24 to the lactone 25.
C–O Ring-Containing Natural Products: (+)-Isatisine A (Panek), Cephalasporolide E (Sartillo-Piscil), (+)-Xestodecalactone ( Jennings), Colchilomycin B (Banwell), Lactimidomycin (Georg), 5,6-Dihydrocineromycin B (Fürstner)
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

(+)-Isatisine A 4 was isolated from Isatis indigotica, long used in traditional Asian medicine for the treatment of viral diseases. James S. Panek of Boston University set the stage (J. Org. Chem. 2015, 80, 2959) for the synthesis of 4 by the addition of the allyl silane 2 to the aldehyde 1 to give the highly substituted tetrahydrofuran 3. Fernando Sartillo- Piscil of Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla devised (J. Org. Chem. 2015, 80, 2601) an H-atom abstraction/fragmentation/cyclization cascade that converted 5 into the spiroketal cephalosporolide E 7. Cephalosporolide F, the unstable kinetic product from the cyclization, could be observed in the NMR spectrum of the crude product when a base was added. (+)-Xestodecalactone A 10 was isolated from the fungus Pencillium cf. mon­tanese, that was secured from the marine sponge Xestospongia exigua. Michael P. Jennings of the University of Alabama constructed (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2015, 3303) the macrolactone of 10 by cyclizing the carboxylic acid 8 to 9 under Friedel-Crafts conditions. Colchilomycin B 13, isolated (without acetone!) from the marine fungus Cochliobolus lunatus, is a naturally occurring acetonide. Martin G. Banwell of the Australian National University showed (J. Org. Chem. 2015, 80, 460) that the Nozaki–Hiyama–Kishi cyclization of 11 to 12 proceeded with high diastereoselectivity. Lactimidomycin 16 binds to and so blocks the tRNA E-site of the 80S ribosome. Gunda I. Georg of the University of Minnesota assembled (Chem. Commun. 2015, 51, 8634) the macrolide triene of 16 by the cyclization of 14 to 15. Alois Fürstner of the Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung, who developed effective catalysts for alkyne metathesis, has been exploring (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 54, 6241) the conversion of the product cyclic alkynes to trisubstituted alkenes. In the synthesis of 5,6-dihydrocineromycin B 19, he took advantage of the directing propargylic alcohol for the conversion of 17 to 18.
Alkaloid Synthesis: (−)-L-Batzellaside A (Toyooka), Limazepine A (Zemribo), (+)-Febrifugine (Pansare), Amathaspiramide F (Tambar), Allomatrine (Brown), Lyconadine C (Waters), Tabersonine (Andrade)
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Naoki Toyooka of the University of Toyama prepared (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2013, 2841) the lactam 1 from commercial tri-O-benzyl-D-glucal. Reduction with Dibal followed by coupling of the intermediate with allyltrimethylsilane delivered the piper­idine 2, that was carried on to (−)-L-batzellaside A 3. Ronalds Zemribo of the Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis effected (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4406) Ireland–Claisen rearrangement of the lactone 4 to give the pyrroli­dine 5 with high geometric control. This was readily converted to limazepine E 6. Sunil V. Pansare of Memorial University used (Synthesis 2013, 45, 1863) an organo­catalyst to set the relative and absolute configuration in the addition of 7 to 8 to give 9. The acyclic stereogenic center of 9 was inverted twice en route to (+)-febrifugine 10. Uttam K. Tambar of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center combined (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 5138) 11 with 12 under Pd catalysis to set the rel­ative configuration of 13. Late-stage bromination completed the synthesis of amathaspiramide F 14. Richard C. D. Brown of the University of Southampton used (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4596) the sulfinylimine of 15 to direct the stereochemical sense of the addition of 16. The product 17 was carried over several steps to the tetracyclic alkaloid allomatrine 18. Stephen P. Waters of the University of Vermont devised (Org. Lett. 2013, 15, 4226) what appears to be a general route to pyridones. On warming, the acyl azide derived from the acid 19 rearranged to the isocyanate, that cyclized to the pyridone 20. Deprotection led to the Lycopodium alkaloid lyconadin C 21. Among the several creative routes to indole alkaloids that have been put forward in recent months, the synthesis of tabersonine 25 (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 13334) by Rodrigo B. Andrade of Temple University stands out. Deprotonation of 22 led to an anion that was condensed with 23 to give 24, with the relative and absolute configuration directed by the pendant sulfinylimine. In addition to tabersonine, the intermediate 24 was carried on to vincadifformine and to aspidospermidine.
Alkaloid Synthesis: Indolizidine 223AB (Cha), Lepadiformine (Kim), Kainic Acid (Fukuyama), Gephyrotoxin (Smith), Premarineosin A (Reynolds)
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Jin Kun Cha of Wayne State University prepared (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 6208) the allene 1 by SN2′ coupling of a cyclopropanol with a propargylic tosylate. Silver-mediated cyclization converted 1 into 2, that was reduced with diimide to the Dendrobates alka­loid indolizidine 223AB 3. Sanghee Kim of Seoul National University observed (Chem. Eur. J. 2014, 20, 17433) high diastereoselectivity in the Ireland–Claisen rearrangement of 4 to 5. The acid 5 was the key intermediate for the synthesis of the tunicate alkaloid lepadiformine 6. Tohru Fukuyama of Nagoya University also used (Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2014, 4823) an ester enolate Claisen rearrangement to set the relative and absolute configuration of 7. Pd-catalyzed cyclization then led to 8, that was carried on to the excitatory amino acid receptor agonist kainic acid 9. Gephyrotoxin 12 was so named because it incorporates structural elements from two different classes of the Dendrobates alkaloids. Martin D. Smith of the University of Oxford envisioned (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 13826) the cascade cyclization of deprotected 10 to give, after reduction, the ketone 11. Zhen Yang of the Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School showed (Chem. Eur. J. 2014, 20, 12881) that the Rh carbene derived from 13 readily cyclized to an imine. The facial selectivity of the addition of the Grignard reagent 14 to that imine depended on the temperature of the reaction. At room temperature, 15 was formed. At low temperature, the other diastereomer predominated. Ring-closing metathesis was used for the elaboration of 15 to the Stemona alkaloid tuberostemospiroline 16. Kevin A. Reynolds of Portland State University prepared (J. Org. Chem. 2014, 79, 11674) 19 by condensation of the pyrrole 17 with the aldehyde 18. The biosyn­thetic enzyme, that they had overexpressed, oxidized 19 to the antimalarial alkaloid permarineosin A 20.
Metal-Mediated C–C Ring Construction: The Ding Synthesis of (−)-Indoxamycin B
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Shou-Fei Zhu of Nankai University developed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 13188) an iron catalyst that effected the enantioselective cyclization of 1 to 2. Bypassing diazo precursors, Junliang Zhang of East China Normal University used (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 13751) a gold catalyst to cyclize 3 to 4. Taking advantage of energy transfer from a catalytic Ir complex, Chuo Chen of University of Texas Southwestern carried out (Science 2014, 346, 219) intramolec­ular 2+2 cycloaddition of 5, leading, after dithiane formation, to the cyclobutane 6. Intramolecular ketene cycloaddition has been limited in scope. Liming Zhang of the University of California Santa Barbara found (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 9572) that intramolecular oxidation of an intermediate Ru vinylidene led to a species that cyclized to the cyclobutanone 8. James D. White of Oregon State University devised (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 13578) an iron catalyst that mediated the enantioselective Conia-ene cyclization of 9 to 10. Xiaoming Feng of Sichuan University observed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 11579) that the Ni-catalyzed Claisen rearrangement of 11 proceeded with high diastereo- and enantiocontrol. The relative configuration of the product 12 was not reported. Robert H. Grubbs of Caltech showed (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 13029) that ring opening cross metathesis of 13 with 14 delivered the Z product 15. Mn(III) cyclization has in the past required a stoichiometric amount of inorganic oxidant. Sangho Koo of Myong Ji University found (Adv. Synth. Catal. 2014, 356, 3059) that by adding a Co co- catalyst, air could serve as the stoichiometric oxidant. Indeed, 16 could be cyclized to 17 using inexpensive Mn(II). Matthias Beller of the Leibniz-Institüt für Katalyse prepared (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 13049) the cyclohexene 20 by coupling the racemic alcohol 18 with the amine 19. Paultheo von Zezschwitz of Philipps-Universität Marburg added (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 15897) diethyl zinc in a conjugate sense to 21, then reduced the product to give 22. Depending on the reduction method, either diastereomer of the product could be made dominant. Nuno Maulide of the University of Vienna dis­placed (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 7068) the racemic chloride 23 with diethyl zinc to give 24 as a single diastereomer.
Other Methods for C–C Ring Construction: Pinolinone (Bach), Agelastatin A (Batey), Panaginsene (Lee), Salvileucalin D, Salvileucalin C (Ding), ent-Codeine (Hudlicky), Walsucochin B (Xie/Shi)
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

Thorsten Bach of the Technische Universität München used (Chem. Commun. 2014, 50, 3353) the chiral medium-mediated photochemical 2+2 cycloaddition that he devel­oped to prepare 3 by combining 1 with 2. Oxidative cleavage led to (−)-pinolinone 4. Robert A. Batey of the University of Toronto rearranged (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 10862) furfural 5 in the presence of 6 to give the enone 7. Acylation fol­lowed by intramolecular conjugate addition delivered agelastatin A 8. Hee-Yoon Lee of KAIST prepared (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 2466) the tosylhydrazone Na salt 9 from citronellal. Thermolysis led, via a dialkyl diazo intermediate, to the tricy­clic 10. Direct comparison of synthetic material with the natural product panaginsene 11 enabled the assignment of the relative configuration of the pendant methyl group. Hanfeng Ding of Zhejiang University eliminated (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 3376) HBr from 12 to give, after rearrangement, the cycloheptadiene salvileucalin D 13. Irradiation converted 13 to the cyclobutene salvileucalin C 14. In a recent chapter of his continuing work on the morphine alkaloids, Tomas Hudlicky of Brock University described (Adv. Synth. Catal. 2014, 356, 333) the intra­molecular [3+2] cycloaddition of the nitrone derived from 15 to give 16. This was readily carried on to ent-codeine 17. Xingang Xie and Xuegong She of Lanzhou University used (Org. Lett. 2014, 16, 1996) Shi epoxidation and Itsuno–Corey reduction to prepare 18 in enantiomerically-pure form. Cationic cyclization converted 18 to 19, that was oxidized to (−)-walsucochin B 20.
The Gin Synthesis of Neofinaconitine
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The hexacyclic norditerpenoid alkaloids, including neofinaconitine 4, isolated from traditional Chinese and Japanese antiarrhythmics and analgesics, have long offered a challenge to organic synthesis. The late David Y. Gin of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center envisioned (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2013, 135, 14313) an approach to 4 by way of the Diels–Alder coupling of 1 and 2. This project was completed under the supervision of his colleague Derek S. Tan. The cyclopropene 6 was prepared from the ester 5. Addition of 6 to the diene derived from 7 proceeded with modest regioselectivity to give, after enol ether hydrol­ysis, the ketone 8. After two-carbon extension of the ketone with 9 to the ester 10, ionization with HBr led to 11, that was carried on the diene 1. Opening of caprolactam 12 with ethylamine followed by oxidation delivered the aldehyde 13. Acid-mediated cyclization to the enamide followed by bromination gave 14. Carbomethoxylation followed by selenylation and oxidation completed the prep­aration of the dienophile 2. With the sterically-demanding Br blocking one face of the diene, Diels–Alder cycloaddition of 2 to 1 proceeded with high diastereocontrol, leading after hydrolysis of the intermediate silyl enol ether to the ketone 15. Oxidative cleavage of the more accessible alkene followed by elimination led to the ketone 16, that on exposure to acid underwent Mannich cyclization. Oxidation followed by elimination completed the preparation of 17. Reductive cyclization to 18 established the sixth and last ring of 4, but the tertiary alcohol was lacking. This was installed by selenylation followed by oxidation, presumably by way of the transient anti-Bredt enone. There are two classes of the norditerpenoid alkaloids, having 18 and 19 carbons respectively. The ester 19 could be a versatile precursor to both classes. For 4, the carbon had to be removed. Reduction and protection followed by oxidative cleavage gave 20, that was carried on to neofinaconitine 4.
The Baran Synthesis of Ingenol
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The early promise for the biological activity of the derivatives of ingenol 3 has been borne out by the clinical efficacy of the derived angelate, recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of actinic keratosis. Phil S. Baran of Scripps La Jolla envisioned (Science 2013, 341, 878) a route to 3 based on a rearrange­ment of 2, available by the Pauson–Khand cyclization of the allenyl alkyne 1. One of the partners for the preparation of 1 was available following the Sugai (Synlett 1997, 1297) procedure, by the Claisen rearrangement of triethyl orthopro­pionate 5 with the propargyl alcohol 4 to give 6. Reduction delivered a racemic mix­ture of alcohols. On exposure of the mixture to vinyl acetate and Pseudomonas cepacia lipase, the undesired enantiomer was selectively acetylated to 7, leaving residual 8 of high ee. IBX was found by the Scripps group to be effective at oxidizing 8 without racemization. The other component of 1 was prepared from the inexpensive (+)-3-carene 10. Chlorination followed by ozonolysis delivered 11, that was reduced to the enolate, then alkylated with methyl iodide. Exposure to LiHMDS gave a new enolate, that was added to the aldehyde 9 to give 12. Addition of ethynyl magnesium bromide to the now more open face of 12 proceeded with high diastereoselectivity. Selective silylation of the secondary alcohol followed by silylation of the tertiary alcohol set the stage for the Pauson–Khand cyclization. Following the Brummond protocol, 1 was cyclized to 2. Methyl magnesium bro­mide was added, again to the more open face of the ketone, to give a new tertiary alco­hol. Exposure to stoichiometric OsO4 converted the more available alkene to the cis diol, that was protected as its cyclic carbonate 13. A central challenge in the total synthesis of the ingenanes is the construction of the “inside–outside” skeleton. This was achieved by the pinacol rearrangement of 13 with BF3•OEt2, to give 14. All that remained to complete the synthesis was selective oxidation. Allylic oxi­dation with stoichiometric SeO2 installed the secondary alcohol, that was acety­lated to give 15. The other secondary alcohol was then freed, and dehydrated with the Martin sulfurane, to give 16. A last allylic oxidation completed the synthesis of ingenol 3.
The Fürstner Synthesis of Amphidinolide F
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The amphidinolides, having zero, one, or (as exemplified by amphidinolide F 3) two tetrahydrofuran rings, have shown interesting antineoplastic activity. It is a tribute to his development of robust Mo catalysts for alkyne metathesis that Alois Fürstner of the Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung Mülheim could with confidence design (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 9534) a route to 3 that relied on the ring-closing metathesis of 1 to 2 very late in the synthesis. Three components were prepared for the assembly of 1. Julia had already reported (J. Organomet. Chem. 1989, 379, 201) the preparation of the E bromodiene 5 from the sulfone 4. The alcohol 7 was available by the opening of the enantiomerically-pure epoxide 6 with propynyl lithium, followed by oxidation following the Pagenkopf pro­tocol. Amino alcohol-directed addition of the organozinc derived from 5 to the alde­hyde from oxidation of 7 completed the assembly of 8. Addition of the enantiomer 10 of the Marshall butynyl reagent to 9 followed by protection, oxidation to 11, and addition of, conveniently, the other Marshall enan­tiomer 12 led to the protected diol 13. Silylcupration–methylation of the free alkyne set the stage for selective desilylation and methylation of the other alkyne. Iodination then completed the trisubstituted alkene of 14. Methylation of the crystalline lactone 15, readily prepared from D-glutamic acid, led to a mixture of diastereomers. Deprotonation of that product followed by an aque­ous quench delivered 16. Reduction followed by reaction with the phosphorane 17 gave the unsaturated ester, that cyclized with TBAF to the crystalline 18. The last ste­reogenic center of 22 was established by proline-mediated aldol condensation of the aldehyde 19 with the ketone 20. To assemble the three fragments, the ketone of 21 was converted to the enol triflate and thence to the alkenyl stannane. Saponification gave the free acid 22, that was acti­vated, then esterified with the alcohol 18. Coupling of the stannane with the iodide 14 followed by removal of the TES group led to the desired diyne 1. It is noteworthy that the Mo metathesis catalyst is stable enough to tolerate the free alcohol of 1 in the cyclization to 2.
The Trost Synthesis of (−)-Lasonolide A
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

(−)-Lasonolide A 4, isolated from the Caribbean sponge Forcepia sp., showed remarkable anticancer activity in the NIH 60-cell screen. The central step in the syn­thesis of 4 reported (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 88) by Barry M. Trost of Stanford University was the remarkably selective, convergent Ru-mediated coupling of 1 with 2 to give 3. To prepare 1, the authors took advantage of the underutilized Cu-mediated addi­tion of a Grignard reagent 6 to propargyl alcohol 5, to give 7. Coupling with the ace­tonide 8 followed by deprotection led to the phosphonium salt 9. The other half of 1 was prepared from the acetonide 10 of the commodity chemical 1,1,1-tris(hydroxymethyl)ethane. Oxidation followed by Zn-catalyzed aldol addition of the ketone 11 led to the alcohol 12. Diastereoselective reduction followed by protection gave 13. Condensation with benzaldehyde proceeded with remarkable diastereoselection, setting the quaternary center of 14. Spontaneous intramolecular Michael addition proceeded under the conditions of the subse­quent Horner-Emmons reaction, leading to the aldehyde 15. Wittig reaction with the phosphonium salt 9 followed by deprotection completed the preparation of the alkyne 1. The β-ketoester 18 prepared by the addition of 17 to 16 was prone to unwanted conjugation, and the terminal alkene was easily reduced under hydrogenation con­ditions. Enzymatic conditions were found to effect dynamic kinetic resolution and reduction, to give 19. The derived ketone 21, from coupling with 20 was reduced using the Corey organocatalyst, then hydrosilated, leading to 22. Under metathesis with 23, the product unsaturated aldehyde cyclized to 24. Homologation followed by allylation then completed the construction of 2. Acetone was the solvent of choice for the coupling of 1 with 2. This led to the acetonide 3, that was hydrolyzed and protected to give 25. Yamaguchi macrolac­tonization followed by deprotection then delivered (−)-lasonolide A 4. It is instruc­tive to compare this work to the four previous total syntheses of 4, one of which (Org. Highlights November 26, 2007) we have previously highlighted.
The Smith Synthesis of (−)-Calyciphylline N
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The Daphniphyllum alkaloids are a diverse group, some of which exhibit potent bio­logical activity. Amos B. Smith III of the University of Pennsylvania envisioned (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014, 136, 870) the preparation of the bicyclo[2.2.2] core of (−)-calyciphylline N 3 by the intramolecular Diels–Alder cyclization of 1 to 2, with the silicon of 2 a surrogate for the secondary alcohol of 3. Following the precedent of Mori (Tetrahedron Asymm. 2005, 16, 685), the requi­site secondary center of 1 was set by methylation of the anion derived from the Evans acyl oxazolidinone 4. Reductive removal of the oxazolidinone led to the alcohol 5, that was reduced under Birch conditions, then isomerized with base to the desired conjugated diene 6. This was silylated with the alkenyl silane 7 to give the triene 1. Direct thermal cyclization of 1 gave a mixture of all four possible diastereomers of the cycloadduct. Fortunately, the Lewis acid-activated cyclization delivered 2 as the dominant diastereomer. To differentiate the two ends of the alkene, the ester of 2 was extended to the alco­hol 8. Epoxidation occurred from the more open face of the alkene, setting the stage for intramolecular opening and oxidation to give 9. Reduction with SmI2 and protec­tion then completed the preparation of the ketone 10. The third quaternary center of 3 was constructed by acetylation of 10 followed by Pd-catalyzed allylation, to give 11. On exposure to LDA, the derived iodide 12 smoothly cyclized to the cycloheptanone 13, the structure of which was confirmed by X-ray analysis. The alkene of 13 was converted to the primary alcohol, which was protected. The aryl lithium 14 then was used to selectively open the cyclic silyl ether, to give 15. Coupling with phthalimide followed by carbonylative vinylation of the derived vinyl triflate delivered the dienone 16. Exposure to HBF4 effected the desired Nazarov cyclization, and at the same time converted the aryl silane to the fluorosilane, set for the Tamao oxidation that revealed the secondary alcohol. The two alcohols were sequentially protected to give 17. Direct oxidation of the primary silyl ether gave the aldehyde.
The Paterson Synthesis of (−)-Leiodermatolide
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

(−)-Leiodermatolide 4, isolated from the lithistid sponge Leiodermatium sp., showed 5.0-nM activity against PANC-1 pancreatic carcinoma cells, and reduced toxicity toward normal cells. Ian Paterson of the University of Cambridge established (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2014, 53, 2692) a synthetic route to 4 based on sp2–sp2 coupling, as exemplified by the combination of 1 with 2 to give 3. Addition of the boron enolate of the enantiomerically-pure benzoate 5 to the iodoaldehyde 6 gave 7, that was silylated, reduced, and deprotected to give 1. Addition of the boron enolate of ent-5 to propanal gave 8. The α-acyloxy ketone of 8 served as a masked acylating agent. The addition of allyl magnesium bromide followed by oxidative cleavage led to the ketone 9. The preparation of 2 was com­pleted by diastereoselective Mukaiyama aldol condensation of 9 with the ketene silyl acetal 10. The intramolecular Heck coupling of 1 with 2 presumably proceeded by way of the organo-Pd intermediate 11. β-Hydride elimination could have given one or more of four possible dienes, but in fact the E,E product 3 dominated, as expected. The allylic H’s are activated for elimination, while the H’s β to the silyl ether are deacti­vated both electronically and sterically. The third component of 4 was the stannane 17. Applying the same strategy, the addition of ent-5 to the aldehyde 12 gave 13, that was protected and condensed with 14 to deliver, after oxidative cleavage, the alkynyl ketone 15. Conjugate addition of iodide proceeded with good geometric control to give 16, that was protected and stan­nylated to complete the preparation of 17. The diol 3 was oxidatively cleaved, and the resulting aldehyde was carried on to the iodide 18. This was coupled with the stannane 17 to give the diene 19. A sequence of deprotection, oxidation, and further deprotection yielded a tetraol, that was lac­tonized with high selectivity to give the 16-membered ring of (−)-leiodermatolide 4.
The Smith Synthesis of (−)-Nodulisporic Acid D
Authors: Taber Douglass F.
Published: November 2020

The nodulisporic acids, isolated from the endophytic fungus Nodulisporium sp., show promising insecticidal activity. Amos B. Smith III of the University of Pennsylvania envisioned (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2015, 137, 7095) the construction of the central indole of nodulisporic acid D 4 by the convergent coupling of the chloroaniline 1 with the enol triflate 2. The preparation of 2 began (Org. Process Res. Dev. 2007, 11, 19) with the mono­ketal 5 of the Wieland–Miescher ketone, available in enantiomerically-pure form by organocatalyzed Robinson annulation. Condensation with thiophenol and formal­dehyde gave 6, which, under dissolving metal conditions, was reduced to an enolate that was trapped as the silyl enol ether 7. Condensation again with formaldehyde gave 8, that was converted by reduction and protecting group exchange to the ketone 9. Pd-catalyzed formylation of the derived enol triflate led to 10. The Cu-meditated conjugate addition of vinyl magnesium bromide to the unsatu­rated aldehyde 10 was carefully optimized to maximize equatorial addition, away from the angular methyl group. Subsequent C-methylation of the aldehyde was achieved by generating the Li enolate and carrying out the alkylation in diglyme. With 11 in hand, the third carbocyclic ring was assembled by 1,2-addition of vinylmagnesium bromide to the aldehyde followed by ring-closing metathesis and oxidation to give 12. Hydrogenation followed by functional group interconversion then completed the assembly of the enol triflate 2. The stereogenic center of 1 was established by Enders alkylation of 13 with the iodide 14. The ketone 15 was best liberated by ozonolysis under non-epimerizing conditions. The critical Barluenga indole construction that formed 3 also required careful optimization in a model study, the key observation being the value of the Buchwald ligand RuPhos. The conditions developed were found, remarkably, to be compatible with the aldehyde functional group, so subsequent Horner–Wadsworth–Emmons condensation with 16 could be carried out directly, to complete the synthe­sis of (−)-nodulisporic acid D 4.