Synthesis of Helical Indolophenanthridines Showing Aggregation-Induced Emission.

Helical indolo[2,3-k]- and [3,2-a]phenanthridines were synthesized from amines by amide formation and Morgan-Walls cyclization. The synthetic routes offer the advantage of late-stage derivatization and do not require protecting groups, which makes the compounds directly suitable for further functionalization. The compounds exhibit remarkable acid-dependent bathochromic shifts of the luminescence, solvatochromism, and aggregation-induced emission (AIE) behavior, which make them especially interesting candidates for studies toward optoelectronic applications.

Benzo[j]fluoranthene-Derived Natural Products.

In this overview the literature on benzo[j]fluoranthene-derived toxins produced by fungi is discussed with a view on isolation, structure, biological activities, biosynthesis, and total syntheses of the natural products. This class of compounds consists until now of 33 naturally occurring compounds, where 25 are chiral and eight contain no stereogenic centers. The relative configuration of xylarenol was clarified by comparison of experimental and calculated ECD spectra, and absolute configurations of four toxins were corrected. The compounds show various biological activities including antibiotic and cytotoxic properties.

Cyclopenta-fused polyaromatic hydrocarbons: synthesis and characterisation of a stable, carbon-centred helical radical.

An air- and moisture-stable helical radical with seven six- and five-membered rings arranged alternately was synthesized by cyclizations in a suitably ortho,ortho'-substituted terphenyl and re-establishment of its conjugation. Mesityl groups at the five-membered rings prevent radical reactions. This cyclopenta-fused polyaromatic hydrocarbon (CP-PAH) was characterized by X-ray crystallographic analysis, EPR and UV/Vis spectroscopy, and by cyclic voltammetry. Further properties and spectra were determined by quantum chemical calculation (spin densities, orbital energies, UV/Vis/NIR and ECD spectra). It turned out that this radical is best described with its radical centre being in the outer five-membered rings, which allows for the largest number of fully intact benzene rings. Its triradical character is rather small and can be neglected. The five-membered rings show significant antiaromatic character, which is highest in the central ring.

Total synthesis of decarboxyaltenusin.

The total synthesis of decarboxyaltenusin (5'-methoxy-6-methyl-[1,1'-biphenyl]-3,3',4-triol), a toxin produced by various mold fungi, has been achieved in seven steps in a yield of 31% starting from 4-methylcatechol and 1-bromo-3,5-dimethoxybenzene, where the longest linear sequence consists of five steps. The key reaction was a palladium-catalyzed Suzuki coupling of an aromatic boronate with a brominated resorcin derivative.

Development of a Robust Protocol for the Determination of Weak Acids' pKa Values in DMSO.

Two methods for the determination of pKa values of weak acids are described, a direct titration with dimsyl potassium in the presence of an indicator and a back-titration in which an analyte/indicator mixture is deprotonated and then titrated with ammonium chloride. Both methods have been validated by measuring pKa values of compounds, for which values had been determined previously. The back-titration method was applied to measure pKa values of two 1,3-dithiane-derived bissulfoxides and a monosulfone.

DNA reactivity of altertoxin II: Identification of two covalent guanine adducts formed under cell-free conditions.

Fungi of the genus Alternaria infest many agricultural crops and produce numerous mycotoxins, of which altertoxin II (ATX II) is one of the most mutagenic metabolites. ATX II carries an epoxide group but the formation of DNA adducts has not been demonstrated to date. We report now that ATX II gives rise to two covalent adducts with guanine when incubated with DNA under cell-free conditions. These adducts were demonstrated by LC-high resolution MS after enzymatic degradation of the incubated DNA to deoxynucleosides. The major adduct results from the covalent binding of ATX II, presumably through the epoxide group, to guanine, whereas the minor guanine adduct is derived from the major one by the elimination of two equivalents of water. In addition, a third adduct was detected, formed through covalent binding of ATX II to cytosine followed by the loss of two equivalents of water. The direct DNA reactivity of ATX II may explain its high mutagenicity.

Stereoelectronic Effects: The γ-Gauche Effect in Sulfoxides.

Reasons for the 13C NMR γ-gauche effect in sulfoxides, i.e., the distinct shielding of a carbon ß to a gauche-oriented sulfoxide group were investigated. Several calculated and measured 13C NMR data of open chain or thiane-derived sulfoxides revealed that an upfield shift is only observed for that γ-gauche position, in which the respective carbon is anti to the sulfoxide's sulfur lone pair. Carbons in γ-gauche position, which are synclinal to the lone pair, are not affected. The magnetic anisotropy of the S═O group was examined by generation of iso-chemical-shielding surfaces (ICSSs) and magnetically induced current maps. Stereoelectronic interactions were determined with natural bond orbital (NBO) and natural chemical shielding (NCS) analyses. The γ-gauche effect is best described by stereoelectronic interactions, especially those of the sulfur's lone pair with antibonding orbitals to a ß-carbon in antiperiplanar orientation. An explanation based on steric interactions, which has frequently been referred to, is not suitable to describe the observed shielding effects. Furthermore, a description of the bonding situation in the S═O group is given. It can be understood as S-O triple bond, where the bond order is significantly reduced by antibonding contributions in some of the occupied molecular orbitals.

Tracking emerging mycotoxins in food: development of an LC-MS/MS method for free and modified Alternaria toxins.

Mycotoxins produced by Alternaria fungi are ubiquitous food contaminants, but analytical methods for generating comprehensive exposure data are rare. We describe the development of an LC-MS/MS method covering 17 toxins for investigating the natural occurrence of free and modified Alternaria toxins in tomato sauce, sunflower seed oil, and wheat flour. Target analytes included alternariol (AOH), AOH-3-glucoside, AOH-9-glucoside, AOH-3-sulfate, alternariol monomethyl ether (AME), AME-3-glucoside, AME-3-sulfate, altenuene, isoaltenuene, tenuazonic acid (TeA), tentoxin (TEN), altertoxin I and II, alterperylenol, stemphyltoxin III, altenusin, and altenuic acid III. Extensive optimization resulted in a time- and cost-effective sample preparation protocol and a chromatographic baseline separation of included isomers. Overall, adequate limits of detection (0.03-9 ng/g) and quantitation (0.6-18 ng/g), intermediate precision (9-44%), and relative recovery values (75-100%) were achieved. However, stemphyltoxin III, AOH-3-sulfate, AME-3-sulfate, altenusin, and altenuic acid III showed recoveries in wheat flour below 70%, while their performance was stable and reproducible. Our pilot study with samples from the Austrian retail market demonstrated that tomato sauces (n = 12) contained AOH, AME, TeA, and TEN in concentrations up to 20, 4, 322, and 0.6 ng/g, while sunflower seed oil (n = 7) and wheat flour samples (n = 9) were contaminated at comparatively lower levels. Interestingly and of relevance for risk assessment, AOH-9-glucoside, discovered for the first time in naturally contaminated food items, and AME-3-sulfate were found in concentrations similar to their parent toxins. In conclusion, the established multi-analyte method proved to be fit for purpose for generating comprehensive Alternaria toxin occurrence data in different food matrices. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Determination of the absolute configuration of perylene quinone-derived mycotoxins by measurement and calculation of electronic circular dichroism spectra and specific rotations.

Altertoxins I-III, alterlosins I and II, alteichin (alterperylenol), stemphyltoxins I-IV, stemphyperylenol, stemphytriol, 7-epi-8-hydroxyaltertoxin I, and 6-epi-stemphytriol are mycotoxins derived from perylene quinone, for which the absolute configuration was not known. Electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra were calculated for these compounds and compared with measured spectra of altertoxins I-III, alteichin, and stemphyltoxin III and with reported Cotton effects. Specific rotations were calculated and compared with reported specific rotations. The absolute configuration of all the toxins, except for stemphyltoxin IV, could thus be determined. The validity of the assignment was high whenever reported ECD data were available for comparison, and the validity was lower when the assignment was based only on the comparison of calculated and reported specific rotations. ECD spectra are intrinsically different for toxins with a biphenyl substructure and for toxins derived from dihydroanthracene.

Epoxide reduction to an alcohol: a novel metabolic pathway for perylene quinone-type alternaria mycotoxins in mammalian cells.

The group of perylene quinone-type Alternaria toxins contains several congeners with epoxide groups, for example, altertoxin II (ATX II) and stemphyltoxin III (STTX III). Recent studies in our laboratory have disclosed that the epoxide moieties of ATX II and STTX III are reduced to alcohols in human colon Caco-2 cells, thereby resulting in the formation of altertoxin I (ATX I) and alteichin, respectively. In the present study, this pathway was demonstrated for ATX II in three other mammalian cell lines. Furthermore, the chemical reaction of this toxin with monothiols like glutathione could be shown, and the structures of the reaction products were tentatively elucidated by UV and mass spectrometry. Chemical reaction of ATX II with dithiols capable of forming five- and six-membered rings gave rise to ATX I, thus providing a clue for the molecular mechanism of the epoxide reduction pathway of ATX II. Both epoxide reduction and glutathione conjugation appear to attenuate, but not completely abolish, the genotoxicity of ATX II.

A Lewis acid-promoted Pinner reaction.

Carbonitriles and alcohols react in a Lewis acid-promoted Pinner reaction to carboxylic esters. Best results are obtained with two equivalents of trimethylsilyl triflate as Lewis acid. Good yields are achieved with primary alcohols and aliphatic or benzylic carbonitriles, but the straightforward synthesis of acrylates and benzoates starting with acrylonitrile and benzonitrile, respectively, is similarly possible. Phenols are not acylated under these reaction conditions. The method has been used for the first total synthesis of the natural product monaspilosin. In the reaction of benzyl alcohols variable amounts of amides are formed in a Ritter-type side reaction.

Structure confirmation of altertenuol.

Comparison of an authentic sample of altertenuol with altenuisol obtained by total synthesis and analysis of nuclear magnetic resonance spectra unambiguously revealed that altertenuol and altenuisol are identical compounds.

Identification of a polyketide synthase required for alternariol (AOH) and alternariol-9-methyl ether (AME) formation in Alternaria alternata.

Alternaria alternata produces more than 60 secondary metabolites, among which alternariol (AOH) and alternariol-9-methyl ether (AME) are important mycotoxins. Whereas the toxicology of these two polyketide-based compounds has been studied, nothing is known about the genetics of their biosynthesis. One of the postulated core enzymes in the biosynthesis of AOH and AME is polyketide synthase (PKS). In a draft genome sequence of A. alternata we identified 10 putative PKS-encoding genes. The timing of the expression of two PKS genes, pksJ and pksH, correlated with the production of AOH and AME. The PksJ and PksH proteins are predicted to be 2222 and 2821 amino acids in length, respectively. They are both iterative type I reducing polyketide synthases. PksJ harbors a peroxisomal targeting sequence at the C-terminus, suggesting that the biosynthesis occurs at least partly in these organelles. In the vicinity of pksJ we found a transcriptional regulator, altR, involved in pksJ induction and a putative methyl transferase, possibly responsible for AME formation. Downregulation of pksJ and altR caused a large decrease of alternariol formation, suggesting that PksJ is the polyketide synthase required for the postulated Claisen condensations during the biosynthesis. No other enzymes appeared to be required. PksH downregulation affected pksJ expression and thus caused an indirect effect on AOH production.

Stereoelectronic effects in alpha-carbanions of conformationally constrained sulfides, sulfoxides, and sulfones.

Stabilizing effects in oxygenated thiane- and 1,3-dithiane-derived alpha-carbanions were investigated computationally. All isomers bearing sulfide, sulfoxide, and sulfone functional groups and combinations thereof were investigated by DFT calculations and NBO analyses. Their stabilities and the stereoelectronic effects present in these compounds were compared. Stabilizing effects of the respective functional groups were further estimated by calculation of isodesmic reactions. It turned out that n(C) --> sigma*(S-O) interactions, where both the n(C) and the S=O bond are in an antiperiplanar conformation, have the highest stabilizing effects. Similar stabilizing interactions are effective in carbanions with an equatorial lone pair at the carbon; here a productive n(C) --> sigma*(S-C) interaction is possible. n(C) --> sigma*(S-O) interactions, where the S=O bond is part of a sulfoxide are significantly more effective than in sulfones. Calculations of isodesmic reactions show similar trends but suggest the presence of additional electrostatic effects and possibly, to some extent, steric effects.

Stereoelectronic effects in vinyl sulfoxides.

Though vinyl sulfoxides behave in some respects like alpha,beta-unsaturated carbonyl compounds, the mode of stabilization is significantly different. Interaction of the C=C double bond (acting as a donor) with the electron-withdrawing S=O bond is only possible when the p orbitals of the double bond are collinear with the S-O sigma* orbital. The maximum UV absorbance wavelengths in conformationally constrained substrates bearing an S=O bond collinear with the p orbitals of a C=C double bond are 2-14 nm higher than those in analogous compounds with a roughly orthogonal sulfoxide moiety. Similarly, a lone pair evolving during nucleophilic attack on vinyl sulfoxides is stabilized only if it is oriented anti to a S=O bond, which has significant impact on the stereoselectivities and reaction rates for nucleophilic attack on vinyl sulfoxides. The differing reaction rates of differently configured vinyl sulfoxides were measured in a competition experiment.

Total synthesis of dehydroaltenuene A. Revision of the structure and total synthesis of dihydroaltenuene B.

Total synthesis of alternaria toxins starting from previously synthesized altenuene (3) and isoaltenuene (4) is described. Dihydroaltenuene B (9) was prepared by hydrogenation of 3, and the non-natural epimer 3-epi-dihydroaltenuene A was obtained analogously from 4. Inspection of the spectroscopic data for 9 revealed that the originally proposed structure was in error. A revised structure (11), unambiguously proven by total synthesis, is reported herein. Oxidation of 4 with oxygen in the presence of palladium(II) acetate as catalyst led to the formation of dehydroaltenuene A (8), while oxidation of 3 using identical conditions yielded ent-dehydroaltenuene B (ent-9). Oxidation of 4 with manganese(IV) oxide furnished dehydroaltenusin (12), although only impure material was obtained in low yield.

Alternariol acts as a topoisomerase poison, preferentially affecting the IIalpha isoform.

Alternariol (AOH), a mycotoxin formed by Alternaria alternata, has been reported to possess genotoxic properties. However, the underlying mechanism of action is unclear. Here, we tested the hypothesis that interactions with DNA-topoisomerases play a role in the DNA-damaging properties of AOH. First we compared DNA-damaging properties of AOH with other Alternaria mycotoxins such as AOH monomethyl ether (AME), altenuene and isoaltenuene. AOH and AME significantly increased the rate of DNA strand breaks in human carcinoma cells (HT29, A431) at micromolar concentrations, whereas altenuene and isoaltenuene did not affect DNA integrity up to 100 microM. Next, we selected AOH as the most DNA-damaging Alternaria metabolite for further studies of interactions with DNA topoisomerases. In cell-free assays, AOH potently inhibited DNA relaxation and stimulated DNA cleavage activities of topoisomerase I, IIalpha and IIbeta. Stabilisation of covalent topoisomerase II-DNA intermediates by AOH was also detectable in cell culture, and here, the IIalpha isoform was preferentially targeted. AOH is thus characterised as a poison of topoisomerase I and II with a certain selectivity for the IIalpha isoform. Since topoisomerase poisoning and DNA strand breakage occurred within the same concentration range, poisoning of topoisomerase I and II might at least contribute to the genotoxic properties of AOH.

Oxidative in vitro metabolism of the Alternaria toxins altenuene and isoaltenuene.

The mycotoxins altenuene (ALT) and isoaltenuene (iALT) frequently occur in food and feed items infested by fungi of the genus Alternaria, but nothing is known about their oxidative metabolism in mammals. We have therefore incubated ALT and iALT with microsomes from rat liver in the presence of a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH)-generating system and analyzed the extracted metabolites with HPLC and GC-MS after trimethylsilylation. Both toxins formed a major metabolite, which was tentatively identified as the 8-hydroxylation product by GC-MS analysis and by its methylation by the enzyme catechol-O-methyltransferase. Three minor metabolites were tentatively identified as 10-hydroxy- and two stereoisomers of 4-hydroxy-ALT and -iALT. The same metabolic pattern was observed in microsomes from different rat strains and from pigs and humans. Moreover, incubation of ALT with rat liver slices provided evidence that the same oxidative metabolites were formed under in vivo-like conditions. Thus, ALT and iALT exhibit a considerable propensity for undergoing metabolic hydroxylation reactions, and the toxicological properties of the oxidative metabolites should now be studied.

Nucleophilic additions to alkylidene bis(sulfoxides): stereoelectronic effects in vinyl sulfoxides.

Conjugate additions of nucleophiles (e.g. enolates, amines and malonate anions) to bis(p-tolylsulfinyl)alkenes, alkylidene-1,3-dithiane-1,3-dioxides and alkylidene-1,3-dithiolane-1,3-dioxides have recently been published. Reasons for different selectivities and reaction rates will be discussed by consideration of steric and electronic effects. The preferred mode of attack can be explained by stereoelectronic effects (hyperconjugation) in the primarily carbanion, which is stabilized by n-->S-O-sigma* interaction with an antiperiplanar S=O group. Calculation of the transition states [BP86/aug-TZVP] for the addition of acetone enolate to the dithiane-derived alkylidene bis(sulfoxide) revealed that 6.6-7.3 kJ mol(-1) more energy is needed for an attack leading to a less-stabilized carbanion. Two axial S=O groups in dithiolane-derived alkylidene bis(sulfoxides) lead to a higher reactivity towards nucleophiles.