Influence of remote carbamate protective groups on the ß-selectivity in rhamnosylations.

In this work, we present the synthesis of a series of L-thiorhamnosyl donors containing O-carbamate protective groups and the study of their influence on the selectivity in rhamnosylations. It is found that a carbamate on the C-4 position increased the ß selectivity compared with carbamates on the C2 or C3 positions, respectively, and when no carbamate group was installed. In addition it is found that the observed ß selectivity was greater when the 4-O carbamate had less electron withdrawing groups on the nitrogen. The influence of using triflic acid catalysis was studied as well and it was found to lower the ß-selectivity. In addition a new efficient one step synthesis of selectively 2,4-O-benzylated rhamnosides was established using phase transfer catalysis.

Silylene acetals from cheap reagents: synthesis and regioselective opening.

In this communication, a practical method for using cheap and easily available silylene chlorides for diol protection is presented. The method is based on activation of the reagents using Finkelstein-like conditions. Silylene acetals of carbohydrates are synthesized, and it is furthermore shown how these can be regioselectively opened using Grignard reagents.

CO2 complexation with cyclodextrins.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from industrial processes, power generation, and transportation contribute significantly to global warming and climate change. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies are essential to reduce these emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change. Cyclodextrins (CDs), cyclic oligosaccharides, are studied as potential CO2 capture agents due to their unique molecular structures and high selectivity towards CO2. In this paper we have investigated binding efficiency of a number of cyclodextrins towards CO2. It is found that the crystal structure of α-cyclodextrin with CO2 has a 1:1 stoichioimetry and that a number of simple and modified cyclodextrins bind CO2 in water with a Kg of 0.18-1.2 bar-1 (7-35 M-1) with per-O-methyl α-cyclodextrin having the highest CO2 affinity.

Glycosyl Formates: Glycosylations with Neighboring-Group Participation.

Protected 2-O-benzyolated glycosyl formates were synthesized in one-step from the corresponding orthoester using formic acid as the sole reagent. Glucopyranosyl, mannopyranosyl and galactopyranosyl donors were synthesized and their glycosylation properties studied using model glycosyl acceptors of varied steric bulk and reactivity. Bismuth triflate was the preferred catalyst and KPF6 was used as an additive. The 1,2-trans-selectivities resulting from neighboring-group participation were excellent and the glycosylations were generally high-yielding.

Stereoselective O-Glycosylations by Pyrylium Salt Organocatalysis.

Despite many years of invention, the field of carbohydrate chemistry remains rather inaccessible to non-specialists, which limits the scientific impact and reach of the discoveries made in the field. Aiming to increase the availability of stereoselective glycosylation chemistry for non-specialists, we have discovered that several commercially available pyrylium salts catalyze stereoselective O-glycosylations of a wide range of phenols and alkyl alcohols. This catalytic reaction utilizes trichloroacetimidates, an easily accessible and synthetically proven electrophile, takes place under air and only initiates when all three reagents are mixed, which should provide better reproducibility by non-specialists. The reaction exhibits varying degrees of stereospecificity, resulting in ß-selective glycosylations from α-trichloroacetimidates, whilst an α-selective glycosylation proceeds from ß-trichloroacetimidates. A mechanistic study revealed that the reaction likely proceeds via an SN 2-like substitution on the protonated electrophile.

Carbohydrate-Derived Metal-Chelator-Triggered Lipids for Liposomal Drug Delivery.

Liposomes are versatile three-dimensional, biomaterial-based frameworks that can spatially enclose a variety of organic and inorganic biomaterials for advanced targeted-delivery applications. Implementation of external-stimuli-controlled release of their cargo will significantly augment their wide application for liposomal drug delivery. This paper presents the synthesis of a carbohydrate-derived lipid, capable of changing its conformation depending on the presence of Zn2+ : an active state in the presence of Zn2+ ions and back to an inactive state in the absence of Zn2+ or when exposed to Na2 EDTA, a metal chelator with high affinity for Zn2+ ions. This is the first report of a lipid triggered by the presence of a metal chelator. Total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy and a single-liposome study showed that it indeed was possible for the lipid to be incorporated into the bilayer of stable liposomes that remained leakage-free for the fluorescent cargo of the liposomes. On addition of EDTA to the liposomes, their fluorescent cargo could be released as a result of the membrane-incorporated lipids undergoing a conformational change.

Reactivity, Selectivity, and Synthesis of 4-C-Silylated Glycosyl Donors and 4-Deoxy Analogues.

A method for introducing dimethylphenylsilyl at the 4-position in carbohydrates has been developed. Two C-silylated glycosyl donors were prepared via levoglucosenone, starting from cellulose. The glycosylation properties were studied using three glucoside acceptors, a 3-OH, 4-OH, and 6-OH. Compared with the 4-deoxy variant, it was found that the anomeric selectivity was influenced more by the C-2 substituents orientation than the silyl in the 4-position. In general, the reactivity of these donors was higher than the corresponding 4-deoxy-analogue, albeit a competition experiment showed that the introduction of a C-Si increases the relative reactivity by a modest factor of around two.

α-Selective glycosylations using glycosyl N-(ortho-methoxyphenyl)trifluoroacetimidates.

Six N-(o-methoxyphenyl)trifluoroacetimidate glycosyl donors have been synthesized and their role as glycosyl donors has been investigated. The donors were synthesized with complete ß-selectivity, except in one case, and were found to be stable. When Bi(OTf)3, Fe(OTf)2, and Zn(OTf)2 were employed as catalysts, the glycosylations were found to be highly α-selective in Et2O. The selectivity and reaction rate changed with a change in the acceptor reactivity.

Catalytic Glycosylations in Oligosaccharide Synthesis.

Catalytic glycosylation has been a central reaction in carbohydrate chemistry since its introduction by Fischer 125 years ago, but it is only in the past three to four decades that catalytic methods for synthesizing oligosaccharides have appeared. Despite the development of numerous elegant and ingenious catalytic glycosylation methods, only a few are in general use. This review covers all methods of catalytic glycosylation with the focus on the development and application in oligosaccharide synthesis and provide an overview of the scope and limitations of these. The review also includes relevant mechanistic studies of catalytic glycosylations. The future of catalytic glycosylation chemistry is discussed, including specific, upcoming methods and possible directions for the field of research in general.

Easy access to a carbohydrate-based template for stimuli-responsive surfactants.

In this paper we describe the synthesis of a new carbohydrate-based building block functionalized with azido or amino groups on the 2 and 4 positions. The building block can be synthesized in anomerically pure form in only five scalable steps starting from commercially available levoglucosan. It was shown that the building block could undergo alkylations under strongly basic conditions. The building block with azido groups could furthermore take part in CuAAC reactions, generating derivatives with ester or carboxylic acid functionalities. In addition, the anomeric mixture of the building block was used for the synthesis of a molecule that could act as an emulsifier only in the presence of Zn2+ ions.

Conformationally Switchable Glycosyl Donors.

Glycosyl donors functionalized with 2,2'-bipyridine moieties on the 3-OH and 6-OH or the 2-OH and 4-OH undergo a conformational change when forming 1:1 complexes with Zn2+ ions. The pyranoside ring of the zinc complexes adopted axial-rich skew boat conformations. The reactivities of the two glycosyl donors were investigated by performing a series of glycosylations in the presence or absence of Zn2+ ions. These glycosylations suggested a decrease in reactivity when binding Zn2+. The conformational effect of binding Zn2+ was therefore studied using a third glycosyl donor, unable to undergo conformational changes when binding Zn2+. From competition experiments, it was observed that the binding-induced conformational change increased the reactivity slightly compared to the glycosyl donor unable to undergo a conformational change.

Synthesis of α-D-GalpN3-(1-3)-D-GalpN3: α- and 3-O-selectivity using 3,4-diol acceptors.

The motif α-D-GalpNAc-(1-3)-D-GalpNAc is very common in Nature and hence its synthesis highly relevant. The synthesis of its azido precursor has been studied and optimized in terms of steps, yields and selectivity. It has been found that glycosylation of the 3,4-diol acceptor is an advantage over the use of a 4-O-protected acceptor and that both regio- and anomeric selectivity is enhanced by bulky 6-O-protective groups. The acceptors and donors are made from common building blocks, limiting protective manipulations, and in this context, unavoidable side reactions.

On the nature of the electronic effect of multiple hydroxyl groups in the 6-membered ring - the effects are additive but steric hindrance plays a role too.

Research during the last two decades has shown a remarkable directional component of the substituent effects of hydroxy groups, which has a profound effect on the properties of hydroxylated compounds such as carbohydrates. While the epimerisation of a single hydroxyl function is well studied the consequence of multiple epimerisations is more speculative. In this work the effect of three epimerisations was investigated. To this end epimeric 2-phenyl iminoxylitols that have a phenyl group as a conformational anchor and thus hydroxyl groups in the axial or equatorial position, respectively, were synthesized and their pKa and conformation were studied. The results show that the large difference in the electronic effect between the axial and equatorial hydroxyls is partially cancelled by counteracting steric hindrance from 1,3-diaxial interactions. Hydrogen bonding does not appear to play any role in the electronic influence of the hydroxyl groups.

Silyl-protective groups influencing the reactivity and selectivity in glycosylations.

Silyl groups such as TBDPS, TBDMS, TIPS or TMS are well-known and widely used alcohol protective groups in organic chemistry. Cyclic silylene protective groups are also becoming increasingly popular. In carbohydrate chemistry silyl protective groups have frequently been used primarily as an orthogonal protective group to the more commonly used acyl and benzyl protective groups. However, silyl protective groups have significantly different electronic and steric requirements than acyl and alkyl protective groups, which particularly becomes important when two or more neighboring alcohols are silyl protected. Within the last decade polysilylated glycosyl donors have been found to have unusual properties such as high (or low) reactivity or high stereoselectivity. This mini review will summarize these findings.

A fluorescence study of isofagomine protonation in ß-glucosidase.

N-(10-Chloro-9-anthracenemethyl)isofagomine 5 and N-(10-chloro-9-anthracenemethyl)-1-deoxynojirimycin 6 were prepared, and their inhibition of almond ß-glucosidase was measured. The isofagomine derivative 5 was found to be a potent inhibitor, while the 1-deoxynojirimycin derivative 6 displayed no inhibition at the concentrations investigated. Fluorescence spectroscopy of 5 with almond ß-glucosidase at different pH values showed that the inhibitor nitrogen is not protonated when bound to the enzyme. Analysis of pH inhibition data confirmed that 5 binds as the amine to the enzyme's unprotonated dicarboxylate form. This is a radically different binding mode than has been observed with isofagomine and other iminosugars in the literature.

Glucosamine condensation catalyzed by 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate: mechanistic insight from NMR spectroscopy.

The basic ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([C2C1Im][OAc]) could efficiently catalyze the conversion of 2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose (GlcNH2) into deoxyfructosazine (DOF) and fructosazine (FZ). Mechanistic investigation by NMR studies disclosed that [C2C1Im][OAc], exhibiting strong hydrogen bonding basicity, could coordinate with the hydroxyl and amino groups of GlcNH2via the promotion of hydrogen bonding in bifunctional activation of substrates and further catalyzing product formation, based on which a plausible reaction pathway involved in this homogeneous base-catalyzed reaction was proposed. Hydrogen bonding as an activation force, therefore, is responsible for the remarkable selectivity and rate enhancement observed.

Total Synthesis of Five Lipoteichoic acids of Clostridium difficile.

The emergence of hypervirulent resistant strains have made Clostridium difficile a notorious nosocomial pathogen and has resulted in a renewed interest in preventive strategies, such as vaccines based on (synthetic) cell wall antigens. Recently, the structure of the lipoteichoic acid (LTA) of this species has been elucidated. Additionally, this LTA was found to induce the formation of protective antibodies against C. difficile in rabbits and mice. The LTA from C. difficile is isolated as a microheterogenous mixture, differing in size and composition, impeding any structure-activity relationship studies. To ensure reliable biological results, pure and well-defined synthetic samples are required. In this work the total synthesis of LTAs from C. difficile with defined chain length is described and the initial biological results are presented.

Synthesis of all eight L-glycopyranosyl donors using C-H activation.

The synthesis of all eight rare, but biologically important L-hexoses as the according thioglycosyl donors was achieved through a procedure involving the C-H activation of their corresponding 6-deoxy-L-hexoses. The key steps of the procedure were the silylation of the OH group at C4 followed by an intramolecular C-H activation of the methyl group in γ-position; both steps were catalyzed by iridium. The following Fleming-Tamao oxidation and acetylation gave the suitably protected L-hexoses. This is the first general method for the preparation of all eight L-hexoses as their thioglycosyl donors ready for glycosylation and the first example of an iridium-catalyzed C(sp(3))-H activation on sulfide-containing compounds.

Conformationally armed 3,6-tethered glycosyl donors: synthesis, conformation, reactivity, and selectivity.

The reactivity and selectivity of 3,6-tethered glycosyl donors have been studied using acceptors with different steric and electronic characteristics. Eight (four anomeric pairs) 3,6-bridged-glycosyl donors were synthesized in high yields from their common parent sugars. The glycosylation properties were tested using at least three different acceptors and several promoter systems. Thiophenyl 2,4-di-O-benzyl-3,6-O-(di-tert-butylsilylene)-α-D-glucopyranoside gave α/ß mixtures with standard NIS/TfOH mediated activation, whereas the corresponding fluoride was found to be highly ß-selective, when using SnCl2/AgB(C6F5)4 as the promoter system. Mannosyl donors were highly α-selective despite the altered conformation. Galactosylations using NIS/TfOH were generally α-selective, but more ß-selective using the galactosyl fluoride and depending on the acceptor used. Thiophenyl 2-azido-2-deoxy-4-O-benzyl-3,6-O-(di-tert-butylsilylene)-α-D-glucopyranoside was found to be α-selective. The reactivity of the donors was investigated using competition experiments, and some but not all were found to be highly reactive. Generally it was found that the α-thioglycosides were significantly more reactive than the ß; this difference in reactivity was not found for 3,6-anhydro-, armed-(benzylated), or the classic super armed (silylated) donors. A mechanism supporting the unusual observations has been suggested.

Influence of O6 in mannosylations using benzylidene protected donors: stereoelectronic or conformational effects?

The stereoselective synthesis of ß-mannosides and the underlying reaction mechanism have been thoroughly studied, and especially the benzylidene-protected mannosides have gained a lot of attention since the corresponding mannosyl triflates often give excellent selectivity. The hypothesis for the enhanced stereoselectivity has been that the benzylidene locks the molecule in a less reactive conformation with the O6 trans to the ring oxygen (O5), which would stabilize the formed α-triflate and subsequent give ß-selectivity. In this work, the hypothesis is challenged by using the carbon analogue (C7) of the benzylidene-protected mannosyl donor, which is investigated in terms of diastereoselectivity and reactivity and by low-temperature NMR. In terms of diastereoselectivity, the C-7-analogue behaves similarly to the benzylidene-protected donor, but its low-temperature NMR reveals the formation of several reactive intermediate. One of the intermediates was found to be the ß-oxosulfonium ion. The reactivity of the donor was found to be in between that of the "torsional" disarmed and an armed donor.