The Cyclic Imine Core Common to the Marine Macrocyclic Toxins Is Sufficient to Dictate Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Antagonism.

Macrocyclic imine phycotoxins are an emerging class of chemical compounds associated with harmful algal blooms and shellfish toxicity. Earlier binding and electrophysiology experiments on nAChR subtypes and their soluble AChBP surrogates evidenced common trends for substantial antagonism, binding affinities, and receptor-subtype selectivity. Earlier, complementary crystal structures of AChBP complexes showed that common determinants within the binding nest at each subunit interface confer high-affinity toxin binding, while distinctive determinants from the flexible loop C, and either capping the nest or extending toward peripheral subsites, dictate broad versus narrow receptor subtype selectivity. From these data, small spiroimine enantiomers mimicking the functional core motif of phycotoxins were chemically synthesized and characterized. Voltage-clamp analyses involving three nAChR subtypes revealed preserved antagonism for both enantiomers, despite lower subtype specificity and binding affinities associated with faster reversibility compared with their macrocyclic relatives. Binding and structural analyses involving two AChBPs pointed to modest affinities and positional variability of the spiroimines, along with a range of AChBP loop-C conformations denoting a prevalence of antagonistic properties. These data highlight the major contribution of the spiroimine core to binding within the nAChR nest and confirm the need for an extended interaction network as established by the macrocyclic toxins to define high affinities and marked subtype specificity. This study identifies a minimal set of functional pharmacophores and binding determinants as templates for designing new antagonists targeting disease-associated nAChR subtypes.

Synthesis of Tertiary Fluorides through an Acid-Mediated Deoxyfluorination of Tertiary Alcohols.

The combination of methanesulfonic acid and potassium bifluoride is reported for the deoxyfluorination of tertiary alcohols. Under metal-free conditions that use readily available, cheap, and easy-to-handle reagents, a range of tertiary alcohols could be converted into the corresponding fluorides in excellent yields (average yields of 85% for 23 examples). Mechanistic investigation showed that the reaction proceeds at 0 °C, in part, through an elimination/hydrofluorination pathway, but no residual alkenes are observed. The application of these conditions for the fluorination of ether and ester is also demonstrated.

Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Borinic Acid Derivatives.

Borinic acids [R2B(OH)] and their chelate derivatives are a subclass of organoborane compounds used in cross-coupling reactions, catalysis, medicinal chemistry, polymer or optoelectronics materials. In this paper, we review the recent advances in the synthesis of diarylborinic acids and their four-coordinated analogs. The main strategies to build up borinic acids rely either on the addition of organometallic reagents to boranes (B(OR)3, BX3, aminoborane, arylboronic esters) or the reaction of triarylboranes with a ligand (diol, amino alcohol, etc.). After general practical considerations of borinic acids, an overview of the main synthetic methods, their scope and limitations is provided. We also discuss some mechanistic aspects.

In situ generation of radical initiators using amine-borane complexes for carbohalogenation of alkenes.

Atom transfer radical addition of alkyl halides to alkenes was developed using a low amount of a stable initiator, amine borane complexes. Thanks to a slow hydroboration step, the overall carbohalogenation process leads to good isolated yields.

Correction: Amine-borane complex-initiated SF5Cl radical addition on alkenes and alkynes.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3762/bjoc.16.256.].

Hydrofluorination of Alkenes: A Review.

In this minireview, we explore the different approaches used to perform the hydrofluorination reaction of alkenes. Contrary to other hydrohalogenation reactions, the hydrofluorination requires specific conditions due to the lower reactivity of HF. Over the years, many different approaches have been explored among which the use of HF complexes has particularly proved to be useful as these reagents are easier to handle. The enantioselective hydrofluorination has been demonstrated using electrophilic sources of fluorine, while radical fluorination proved compatible with a vast range of functional groups that are generally problematic with strong acids and some fluoride sources. This review will cover the different conditions developed through the years, starting with the first reported addition using gaseous HF, up to the most recent method described in October 2020.

Non-biaryl atropisomerism at the C-B bond in sterically hindered aminoarylboranes.

Sterically hindered aminoarylboranes featuring atropisomerism about the C-B bond were prepared by addition of organomagnesium species onto readily accessible dialkylamine-borane complexes. Some of these aminoarylboranes, isosteres of vinyl styrene derivatives, were resolved by HPLC on the chiral stationary phase. They are the first examples of a non-biaryl type system which display slow rotation about a C-B bond.

Zirconium-Catalyzed Synthesis of Alkenylaminoboranes: From a Reliable Preparation of Alkenylboronates to a Direct Stereodivergent Access to Alkenyl Bromides.

A simple procedure has been optimized for the preparation of alkenylaminoborane from alkynes using diisopropylaminoborane and HZrCp2Cl. Coupled with a magnesium-catalyzed dehydrogenation, it allowed for the use of air- and moisture-stable diisopropylamine. This synthesis has been extended to a one-pot sequence leading directly to bromoalkenes with controlled stereochemistry. As such, it provides an easy, scalable, cheap process to access alkenylboronates and both (E)- and (Z)-bromoalkenes from commercially available alkynes.

Magnesium-Catalyzed Tandem Dehydrogenation-Dehydrocoupling: An Atom Economical Access to Alkynylboranes.

Owing to the unusual reactivity of sterically hindered amine-borane complexes, a catalytic system based on magnesium salts was designed to perform a tandem dehydrogenation-dehydrocoupling between terminal alkynes and boranes. The reaction is providing pure alkynylboranes within few minutes at room temperature, with only two molecules of hydrogen as a byproduct.

Amine-borane complex-initiated SF5Cl radical addition on alkenes and alkynes.

The SF5Cl radical addition on unsaturated compounds was performed using an air-stable amine-borane complex as the radical initiator. This method showed to be complementary to the classic Et3B-mediated SF5Cl addition on alkenes and alkynes. A total of seven alkene and three alkyne derivatives were tested in the reaction, with yields ranging from 3% to 85%.

Mild rhodium(iii)-catalyzed intramolecular annulation of benzamides with allylic alcohols to access azepinone derivatives.

Azepinone derivatives are important frameworks of several natural products and bioactive compounds. They are synthetized using a Rh(iii)-catalyzed intramolecular annulation of benzamide-tethered allylic alcohols. The reaction requires mild conditions at room temperature and affords diversely substituted azepinones bearing a quaternary carbon.

Rhodium(III)-Catalyzed Synthesis of Spiropiperidine Derivatives via C-H Activation.

Spiropiperidine derivatives, an important class of bioactive molecules, were synthesized under mild conditions by rhodium(III)-catalyzed intramolecular ArC-H activation. This reaction provides a novel route to highly substituted tricyclic spiropiperidines in good to excellent yields. Under acidic conditions the resulting enamines reacted with pendant amides to afford spiropiperidines derivatives possessing an original tetracyclic structure.

Hypervalent iodine-mediated oxidative cyclisation of p-hydroxy acetanilides to 1,2-dispirodienones.

1,2-Dispirodienones were synthesized by hypervalent iodine-mediated phenolic oxidation of p-hydroxy acetanilides. The reaction is compatible with several substituted anilides and affords a new class of 1,2-dispirodienones that are remarkably stable under thermal or acidic conditions.

Catalytic enantioselective vinylogous Mukaiyama-Michael addition of 2-silyloxyfurans to cyclic unsaturated oxo esters.

The copper-catalyzed asymmetric addition of 2-silyloxyfurans to cyclic unsaturated oxo esters is reported. The reaction proceeds with excellent diastereocontrol (usually dr 99:1) and modest to high enantioselectivity, depending on the nature of the ester group and the substitution of the cyclic oxo ester. We have shown that these substrates can be transformed into a variety of building blocks bearing a γ-butenolide or γ-lactone connected to a cycloalkane or cycoalkene moiety.

Benefit of 13-desmethyl spirolide C treatment in triple transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer disease: beta-amyloid and neuronal markers improvement.

Spirolides are marine toxins that are not currently in the routine monitoring assays. Nicotinic receptors seem to be the target of these compounds making them a promising pharmacological tool for related diseases as dementias as previously shown in vitro. In the present work, the bioavailability of 13-desMethyl spirolide C (13-desMeC) in the brain and in vivo effects were tested. Bioavailability was studied by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and its effect over Alzheimer hallmarks was studied by Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) and western blot. Only 2 minutes after its intraperitoneal injection it is found in brain and remains detectable even 24 hours post administration. Based on previous works that showed beneficial effects in an in vitro model of Alzheimer's disease (AD), we studied the effect in the same mice, 3xTg-AD, in vivo. We found that 13-desMeC (11.9 ug/kg, i.p.) induced positive effects on AD markers with an increase in N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) levels. These results were supported by an increase in synaptophysin levels and also a decrease in the intracellular amyloid beta levels in the hippocampus of treated 3xTg- AD versus non treated mice remarking the positive effects of this molecule in a well known model of AD. These data indicate for the first time that 13-desMeC cross the blood brain barrier and shows in vivo beneficial effects against AD after administration of low intraperitoneal doses of this marine toxin. This toxin may inspire a novel medical treatment of age-related diseases.

6,6-Spiroimine analogs of (-)-gymnodimine A: synthesis and biological evaluation on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

Simple models of the spiroimine core of (-)-gymnodimine A have been synthesized in racemic and optically active forms. The quaternary carbon of the racemic spiroimines was created by Michael addition of a ß-ketoester to acrolein, whereas the asymmetric allylic alkylation of the same ß-ketoester was used to access the spiroimines in an enantioselective fashion. Both racemic and enantio-enriched mixtures were tested for their biological activities on Xenopus oocytes either expressing (human α4ß2) or having incorporated (Torpedoα1(2)ßγδ) nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). These spiroimine analogs of (-)-gymnodimine A inhibited acetylcholine-evoked nicotinic currents, but were less active than the phycotoxin. Our results reveal that the 6,6-spiroimine moiety is important for the blockade of nAChRs and support the hypothesis that it is one of the pharmacophores of this group of toxins.

Carboazidation of chiral allylsilanes: experimental and theoretical investigations.

The carboazidation of chiral allylsilanes has been investigated by varying the nature of the substituents at the silicon center and on the carbon framework. The influence of temperature and the nature of the sulfonyl azide, as well as the stereochemistry of the remote stereogenic center, on the 1,2-diastereocontrol of the process were considered. Good to excellent levels of diastereocontrol were generally observed, with the syn-beta-azidosilane always being formed as the major isomer. An illustration of the value of this methodology has been provided with a short and efficient synthesis of an analogue of castanospermine. EPR spectroscopy was carried out on various beta-silyl radicals providing useful information about their conformations in the ground state. Based on this experimental evidence and DFT calculations, reactant-like transition state models were finally proposed that rationalize the observed 1,2-stereoinduction.

Total synthesis of hyacinthacine A1 and 3-epi-hyacinthacine A1.

[reaction: see text] Total synthesis of hyacinthacine A(1) and its epimer at C3 is described. The synthesis includes a stereocontrolled carboazidation of a chiral allylsilane as a key step. C-Si bond oxidation and reduction of the azide, with ring-closure, complete the total synthesis, which establishes the absolute configuration of 3.

Radical amination with sulfonyl azides: a powerful method for the formation of C-N bonds.

A novel reaction for the introduction of an azide moiety by means of a mild radical process is currently under development. Sulfonyl azides are suitable azidating agents for nucleophilic radicals, such as secondary and tertiary alkyl radicals. More electrophilic radicals, such as enolate radicals, do not react with sulfonyl azides. This feature allowed the development of efficient intra- and intermolecular carboazidations of olefins. Due to the versatility of the azido group, this reaction has an important synthetic potential, as already demonstrated by the preparation of the core of several alkaloids, particularly those containing an amino-substituted quaternary carbon center, such as FR901483.

Stereoselective intermolecular carboazidation of chiral allylsilanes.

[reaction: see text] Easily available chiral allylsilanes were used as substrate for carboazidation reactions. For the first time, a substantial control of the stereochemistry of the azidation of acyclic nonconjugated radicals was achieved.