A 2-alkyl substituted 2,3,1-benzodiazaborine

Design, development, synthesis, and crystal structure of the prototype of a new class of deep blue-fluorescing boron heterocycle estrogen mimics

To further the development of boron heterocyclic compounds that are useful to medicinal chemistry, we demonstrate how the class of compounds known as the diazaborines can be elaborated to produce an exceptionally close structural mimic of a natural estrogen. After building progressively closer models, a benzyloxy-substituted formylphenylboronic acid was ultimately condensed with a hydroxymethylated β-hydrazinocyclopentenone to give, after debenzylation, an isosteric mimic (diazaborine 1) of the naturally-occurring estrogen equilenin and the prototype of a new class of boron heterocycle estrogen mimics. X-ray crystallography revealed the prototype to be planar, with a transmolecular interoxygen distance virtually identical to that found in equilenin and with a strong hydrogen-bond-donating hydroxyl group. From this it can be anticipated that members of this unique class of boron heterocycle estrogen mimics will be found to possess useful biological properties. Furthermore, the prototype was found to fluoresce in the deep blue region of the visible spectrum, and so the development of members serving as light-emitting probes in biochemical and biological studies can also be anticipated.

Preliminary investigations into the synthesis and antimicrobial activities of boron-containing capsaicinoids

This preliminary study reports on the synthesis of two new boron-capsaicin derivatives containing either a short or long chain aliphatic tail group using an iridium catalyzed hydroboration reaction with pinacolborane. The boronate ester groups reside on the terminal position of the tail group and are necessary for the bioactivity of these compounds. Indeed, both compounds showed considerable activity against two Gram-positive bacteria, including Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus. Vancomycin is considered the last resort medication for the treatment of septicemia, and new antibacterial agents that can treat sepsis are of paramount importance. The more lipophilic boron compound with the longer aliphatic chain also showed antifungal activity against Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Synthesis, reactivity, and antimicrobial properties of boron-containing 4-ethyl-3-thiosemicarbazide derivatives

The addition of 4-ethyl-3-thiosemicarbazide to benzaldehyde and boronic acid containing derivatives afforded the corresponding thiosemicarbazones (1–3) or benzodiazaborines (4–6) depending on the position of the boronic acid within the ring. All compounds have been characterized fully including an X-ray diffraction study of the methoxy-containing benzodiazaborine 6. Attempts to coordinate thiosemicarbazones 2 and 3 to palladium(II) acetate were unsuccessful; however, addition of the non-boron-containing derivative 1 to palladium afforded complex 7 whose molecular structure was determined by an X-ray diffraction study. The initial bioactivities of compounds 1–7 were examined against two fungi, Aspergillus niger and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and two bacteria, Bacillus cereus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Comparison of boron-assisted oxime and hydrazone formations leads to the discovery of a fluorogenic variant

We use kinetic data, photophysical properties, and mechanistic analyses to compare recently developed high-rate constant oxime and hydrazone formations. We show that when Schiff base formation between aldehydes and arylhydrazines is carried out with an appropriately positioned boron atom, then aromatic B-N heterocycles form irreversibly. These consist of an extended aromatic structure amenable to the tailoring of specific properties such as reaction rate and fluorescence. The reactions work best in neutral aqueous buffer and can be designed to be fluorogenic - properties which are particularly interesting in bioconjugation.

A zwitterion produced by a strong intramolecular N→B interaction in 1-hydroxy-2-(pyridin-2-ylcarbonyl)benzo[d][1,2,3]diazaborinine

2-Acylated 2,3,1-benzodiazaborines can display unusual structures and reactivities. The crystal structure analysis of the boron heterocycle obtained by condensing 2-formylphenylboronic acid and picolinohydrazide reveals it to be an N→B-chelated zwitterionic tetracycle (systematic name: 1-hydroxy-11-oxo-9,10,17λ5-triaza-1λ4-boratetracyclo[8.7.0.02,7.012,17]heptadeca-3,5,7,12,14,16-hexaen-17-ylium-1-uide), C13H10BN3O2, produced by the intramolecular addition of the Lewis basic picolinoyl N atom of 1-hydroxy-2-(pyridin-2-ylcarbonyl)benzo[d][1,2,3]diazaborinine to the boron heterocycle B atom acting as a Lewis acid. Neither of the other two pyridinylcarbonyl isomers (viz. nicotinoyl and isonicotinoyl) are able to adopt such a structure for geometric reasons. A favored yet reversible chelation equilibrium provides an explanation for the slow D2O exchange observed for the OH resonance in the1H NMR spectrum, as well as for its unusual upfield chemical shift. Deuterium exchange may take place solely in the minor open (unchelated) species present in solution.

Synthesis, characterization, and antibacterial activity of structurally complex 2-acylated 2,3,1-benzodiazaborines and related compounds

A set of 2-acylated 2,3,1-benzodiazaborines and some related boron heterocycles were synthesized, characterized, and tested for antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Mycobacterium smegmatis. By high-field solution NMR, the heretofore unknown class of 2-acyl-1-hydroxy-2,3,1-diazaborines has been found to be able to exist in several interconvertable structural forms along a continuum comprised of an open hydrazone a, a monomeric B-hydroxy diazaborine b, and an anhydro dimer c. X-Ray crystallography of one of the anhydro dimers, 17c, revealed it to have an unprecedented structure featuring a double intramolecular O→B chelation. The crystal structure of another compound, 37, showed it to be based on a new pentacyclic B heterocycle framework. Nine compounds were found to possess activities against E. coli, and two others were active against M. smegmatis. The finding that these two contain isoniazid covalently embedded in their structures suggests that they might possibly be acting as prodrugs of this well-known antituberculosis agent in vivo.

1-Hydroxy-1H-benzo[d][1,2,6]oxazaborinin-4(3H)-one

The structure of the title compound, C(7)H(6)BNO(3), a new boron heterocycle, prepared by the condensation of (2-ethoxycarbonylphenyl)boronic acid and hydroxylamine, reveals the specific mode of intramolecular condensation between a phenylboronic acid and an ortho hydroxamic acid substituent. The crystal structure shows that dehydration occurs to form a planar oxazaborinine ring possessing both phenol-like B-O-H and lactam functional groups. In the extended structure, intermolecular hydrogen bonding generates a 14-membered ring. To our knowledge, this is the first crystal structure determination involving a six-membered ring that exhibits consecutive B-OH, O, NH, and C=O functional groups.

Synthesis, characterization, and antifungal activity of boron-containing thiosemicarbazones

Addition of thiosemicarbazide, 4-allylthiosemicarbazide, and 4-phenylthiosemicarbazide to (formylphenyl)boronic acids affords a series of thiosemicarbazones containing boronic acids. Addition of 2-formylphenylboronic acid to the thiosemicarbazides gave the corresponding cyclic 2,3,1-benzodiazaborines. All new compounds have been investigated for potential antifungal activity.

B-N as a C-C substitute in aromatic systems

The substitution of isoelectronic B–N units for C–C units in aromatic hydrocarbons produces novel heterocycles with structural similarities to the all-carbon frameworks, but with fundamentally altered electronic properties and chemistry. Since the pioneering work of Dewar some 50 years ago, the relationship between B–N and C–C and the wealth of parent all-carbon aromatics has captured the imagination of organic, inorganic, materials, and computational chemists alike, particularly in recent years. New applications in biological chemistry, new materials, and novel ligands for transition-metal complexes have emerged from these studies. This review is aimed at surveying activity in the area in the past couple of decades. Its organization is based on ring size and type of the all-carbon or heterocyclic subunit that the B–N analog is derived from. Structural aspects pertaining to the retention of aromaticity are emphasized, along with delineation of significant differences in physical properties of the B–N compound as compared to the C–C parent.Key words: boron-nitrogen heterocycles, aromaticity, organic materials, main-group chemistry.

The Structural Basis for Hydrolysis Resistance in the Esters of (2-Formylphenyl)boronic Acid 2,4-Dinitrophenylhydrazones

Under conditions that typically afford bicyclic boron heterocycles directly, (2-formylphenyl)boronic acids react with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine in ethanol to give highly waterresistant diethyl boronate esters. Two such 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazones were prepared and their X-ray crystal structures determined. Contrary to a previous suggestion that their unusual stability is due to an intramolecular N→B coordination giving a six-membered BN2C3 ring system based on a (Z)-hydrazone, these compounds instead were found to be (E)-hydrazones internally stabilized by a weak intramolecular interaction between nitrogen and boron from within a five-membered ring. Further study revealed that the electron deficiency of the starting hydrazine reagent plays a key role in determining the structure of the hydrazone isolated, and that the water-resistant boronate esters can be hydrolyzed under forcing conditions to the boronic acids.