A Photochemical Entry to Depsides: Synthesis of Gustastatin

Intramolecular transesterification of depsides yields fluorescent 1H-isochromen-1-ones: Application as a chemical probe for lichen determination

The reactivity of eight purified depsides obtained from six european lichens and that display as 2-oxoalkyl chain in ortho-position of the ester bond was explored. These depsides were found to lead to 1H-Isochromen-1-ones, which exhibit a distinctive blue fluorescence at 365 nm, in the presence of a 10% aqueous solution of KOH. A mechanistic explanation, involving the formation of an enolate intermediate and intramolecular transesterification, was proposed and validated by DFT. By exploiting this fluorescent phenomenon, we conceived a chemical probe (the KUV probe) that is useful for lichen determination, as exemplified on a selection of European Porpidia species.

Concise Syntheses of Violaceoids A and C

The concise syntheses of two alkylated hydroquinone natural products, violaceoids A and C, were accomplished by a protecting-group-free method employing the commercially available 2,5-dihydroxybenzaldehyde as the starting material. The key strategy of the syntheses is the utilization of alkenylboronic acid as both the coupling and temporary protective reagents to efficiently introduce the requisite alkenyl side chain of violaceoid A. Moreover, the synthesis of violaceoid C is reported here for the first time.

A convergent approach toward fidaxomicin: Syntheses of the fully glycosylated northern and southern fragments

Efficient approaches that enable the synthesis of analogs of natural product antibiotics are needed to keep up with the emergence of multiply-resistant strains of pathogenic organisms. One promising candidate in this area is fidaxomicin, which boasts impressive in vitro anti-tubercular activity but has poor systemic bioavailability. We designed a flexible synthetic route to this target to enable the exploration of new chemical space and the future development of analogs with superior pharmacokinetics. We developed a robust approach to each of the key macrocyclic and sugar fragments, their union via stereoselective glycosylation, and a convergent late-stage macrolide formation with fully glycosylated fragments. Although we were able to demonstrate that the final Suzuki cross-coupling and ring-closing metathesis steps enabled macrocycle formation in the presence of the northern resorcylic rhamnoside and southern novioside sugars, these final steps were hampered by poor yields and the formation of the unwanted Z-macrocycle as the major stereoisomer.

The oxazolomycin family: a review of current knowledge

Oxazolomycin A and neooxazolomycin were firstly isolated in 1985 by the group of Uemura et al. from the Streptomyces sp. bacteria.

A biosynthetically inspired synthesis of (-)-berkelic acid and analogs

We describe a complete account of our total synthesis and biological evaluation of (-)-berkelic acid and analogs. We delineate a synthetic strategy inspired by a potentially biomimetic union between the natural products spicifernin and pulvilloric acid. After defining optimal parameters, we executed a one-pot silver-mediated in situ dehydration of an isochroman lactol to methyl pulvillorate, the cycloisomerization of a spicifernin-like alkynol to the corresponding exocyclic enol ether, and a subsequent cycloaddition to deliver the tetracyclic core of berkelic acid. Our studies confirm that the original assigned berkelic acid structure is not stable and equilibrates into a mixture of 4 diastereomers, fully characterized by X-ray crystallography. In addition to berkelic acid, C22-epi-berkelic acid, and nor-berkelic acids, we synthesized C26-oxoberkelic acid analogs that were evaluated against human cancer cell lines. In contrast to data reported for natural berkelic acid, our synthetic material and analogs were found to be devoid of activity.

Combining benzoxazine and ketene chemistries for self-healing of high performance thermoset surfaces

The use of oxoketene chemistry for self-healable polybenzoxazines is described.

Stereoselective Total Syntheses of (3R,5R)-Sonnerlactone and (3R,5S)-Sonnerlactone

A highly convergent and concise total syntheses of (3 R,5 R)-Sonnerlactone and (3 R,5 S) Sonnerlactone from a readily available L-malic acid is described. The following series of reactions such as Barbier allylation, photochemical esterification and Ring Closing Metathesis (RCM) are utilized as key steps to accomplish their syntheses.

Oxidative cyclization of alkenoic acids promoted by AgOAc

Alkenoic acids derived from salicylic acid and analogues undergo an unexpected oxidative cyclization process triggered by AgOAc leading to 4H-benzo[d][1,3]dioxin-4-ones. The process is affected by the substitution on the aryl and the allyl units.

A catalyst-free, facile and efficient approach to cyclic esters: synthesis of 4H-benzo[d][1,3]dioxin-4-ones

A metal and additive free base-mediated method for the formation of 4H-benzo[d][1,3]dioxin-4-one and its derivatives, from salicylic acids and dichloromethane, was developed using dichloromethane (DCM) and 1,1-dichloroethane (1,1-DCE) as the C1 source.

Palladium(0)-catalyzed suzuki-miyaura cross-coupling reactions of potassium aryl- and heteroaryltrifluoroborates with alkenyl bromides

Efficient palladium(0)-catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura cross-couplings are described. The reactions involving potassium aryl- and heteroaryltrifluoroborates with alkenyl bromides can generally be carried out using < or =2 mol % of palladium catalyst and 3 equiv of base in toluene/H2O. When stereodefined alkenyl bromides are employed, the resulting styrene derivatives are accessed stereospecifically. A variety of functional groups are tolerated in both coupling partners.

Organotrifluoroborates: protected boronic acids that expand the versatility of the Suzuki coupling reaction

Organotrifluoroborates represent an alternative to boronic acids, boronate esters, and organoboranes for use in Suzuki-Miyaura and other transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. The trifluoroborate moiety is stable toward numerous reagents that are often problematic for other boron species. Consequently, remote functional groups within the organotrifluoroborates can be manipulated, while retaining the valuable carbon-boron bond.

Synthesis of functionalized organotrifluoroborates via the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azides

[reaction: see text] We have successfully prepared potassium azidoalkyltrifluoroborates from the corresponding halogen compounds in 94-98% yields through a nucleophilic substitution reaction with NaN(3). In the presence of various alkynes and Cu(I) as a catalyst, these azidotrifluoroborates easily formed 1,4-disubstituted organo-[1,2,3]-triazol-1-yl-trifluoroborates in 85-98% yields. This method was then developed into a facile one-pot synthesis for the preparation of various organo-[1,2,3]-triazol-1-yl-trifluoroborates using haloalkyltrifluoroborates as the starting materials.

A Concise Synthesis of (+)-SCH 351448

[structure: see text] We describe a highly convergent synthetic approach to the natural product (+)-SCH 351448 (1)-a hexane-soluble heptacoordinate monosodium salt of a C(2)-symmetrical macrocyclic dilactone. Our approach implements a photochemical acylation as the key step to combine two nearly identical but orthogonal C1-C29 fragments, followed by a base-induced intramolecular acylation and deprotection to yield the natural product.