Polycyclic Ring Formation Using Bis-diazolactams for Cascade Stitching.

The chemoselective reaction of donor/acceptor (D/A) and acceptor/acceptor (A/A) diazo moieties in the same molecule was examined using 3-diazo-1-(ethyl 2-diazomalonyl)indolin-2-one under rhodium(II) catalysis. The metallo carbenoid derived from the D/A diazo group is preferentially formed and undergoes selective CH, NH, and OH insertion reactions, cyclopropanation, cyclopropenation, sulfur ylide formation/2,3-sigmatropic rearrangement, as well as nitrogen ylide formation followed by azetidine ring expansion. The initial reaction can be paired with a subsequent tandem cascade sequence involving dipole formation/cycloaddition in either an intra- or intermolecular sense to generate polycyclic N-heterocycles in one pot, with the formation up to three new rings in a single operation. Excellent diastereoselectivity was observed in the intramolecular cycloaddition reaction producing 5 to 7-membered rings.

Model studies directed toward the alkaloid mersicarpine utilizing a Rh(II)-catalyzed insertion/cycloaddition sequence.

Model studies dealing with the rhodium(II)-catalyzed carbenoid insertion/cyclization/cycloaddition cascade of several α-diazo dihydroindolinones have been carried out as an approach to the alkaloid mersicarpine. The cascade reaction of α-diazo dihydroindolinone 21 proceeded in high yield with excellent diastereoselectivity to give cycloadduct 22, which possesses the required stereochemistry of the two adjacent quaternary carbon centers present in mersicarpine. The overall reaction enabled the rapid assemblage of a polycyclic ring system that contains three new stereocenters and three continuous quaternary carbons in a single operation in high yield with excellent diastereoselectivity. The 3-indolinone derivative 36 was eventually formed from cycloadduct 22 by an acid-induced hydrolysis of 22 to give 23, which was subsequently converted in several steps to 36. The synthesis of this compound constitutes a successful construction of the tricyclic core of mersicarpine. Reduction of the nitrile group of 36 followed by a subsequent reductive cyclization/ring-opening aromatization cascade, as was found to occur with the related compound 29, will be employed for an eventual synthesis of demethylmersicarpine.

Thioredoxin system from Deinococcus radiodurans.

This paper describes the cloning, purification, and characterization of thioredoxin (Trx) and thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) and the structure determination of TrxR from the ionizing radiation-tolerant bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans strain R1. The genes from D. radiodurans encoding Trx and TrxR were amplified by PCR, inserted into a pET expression vector, and overexpressed in Escherichia coli. The overexpressed proteins were purified by metal affinity chromatography, and their activity was demonstrated using well-established assays of insulin precipitation (for Trx), 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) reduction, and insulin reduction (for TrxR). In addition, the crystal structure of oxidized TrxR was determined at 1.9-A resolution. The overall structure was found to be very similar to that of E. coli TrxR and homodimeric with both NADPH- and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD)-binding domains containing variants of the canonical nucleotide binding fold, the Rossmann fold. The K(m) (5.7 muM) of D. radiodurans TrxR for D. radiodurans Trx was determined and is about twofold higher than that of the E. coli thioredoxin system. However, D. radiodurans TrxR has a much lower affinity for E. coli Trx (K(m), 44.4 muM). Subtle differences in the surface charge and shape of the Trx binding site on TrxR may account for the differences in recognition. Because it has been suggested that TrxR from D. radiodurans may have dual cofactor specificity (can utilize both NADH and NADPH), D. radiodurans TrxR was tested for its ability to utilize NADH as well. Our results show that D. radiodurans TrxR can utilize only NADPH for activity.

Expression, purification and preliminary X-ray crystallographic analysis of UDP-galactopyranose mutase from Deinococcus radiodurans.

UDP-galactopyranose mutase (UGM) catalyzes the interconversion of UDP-galactopyranose and UDP-galactofuranose. A UGM-substrate complex from Deinococccus radiodurans has been expressed, purified and crystallized. Crystals were obtained by the microbatch-under-oil method at room temperature. The crystals diffracted to 2.36 A resolution at the Canadian Light Source. The space group was found to be P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 134.0, b = 176.6, c = 221.6 A. The initial structure solution was determined by molecular replacement using UGM from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (PDB code 1v0j) as a template model.

Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray crystallographic studies of Deinococcus radiodurans thioredoxin reductase.

Deinococcus radiodurans, a Gram-positive bacterium capable of withstanding extreme ionizing radiation, contains two thioredoxins (Trx and Trx1) and a single thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) as part of its response to oxidative stress. Thioredoxin reductase is a member of the family of pyridine nucleotide-disulfide oxidoreductase flavoenzymes. Recombinant D. radiodurans TrxR with a His tag at the N-terminus was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified by metal-affinity chromatography. The protein was crystallized using the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion method in the presence of 35% PEG 4000, 0.2 M ammonium acetate and citric acid buffer pH 5.1 at 293 K. X-ray diffraction data were collected on a cryocooled crystal to a resolution of 1.9 angstroms using a synchrotron-radiation source. The space group was determined to be P3(2)21, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 84.33, c = 159.88 angstroms. The structure of the enzyme has been solved by molecular-replacement methods and structure refinement is in progress.

Rh(II)-catalyzed reactions of differentially substituted bis(diazo) functionalities.

The chemoselective reaction of donor/acceptor (D/A) and acceptor/acceptor (A/A) diazo moieties in the same molecule was examined using 3-diazo-1-(ethyl 2-diazomalonyl)indolin-2-one under rhodium(II) catalysis. The D/A diazo group undergoes selective cyclopropanation as well as XH-insertion, leaving behind the second diazo group for a further intramolecular dipolar cycloaddition reaction.

Nazarov reactions of vinyl cyclopropylamines: an approach to the imino-Nazarov problem.

Dichlorocyclopropanation of 2-amino-1,3-dienes affords 1-alkenyl-1-amino-2,2-dichlorocyclopropanes which undergo silver-assisted 2-π electrocyclic opening to furnish 3-aminopentadienyl cations. Nazarov-type cyclization of these intermediates leads to cyclopentenone iminium salts, which provide allylic amines upon reduction. This process, the imino version of the traditional Nazarov reaction, can also be combined with an interrupted Nazarov domino process to give polycyclic amines.