Copper-Nitrene-Catalyzed Desymmetric Oxaziridination/1,2-Alkyl Rearrangement of 1,3-Diketones toward Bicyclic Lactams.

Although copper-nitrene has been extensively studied as a versatile active species in various transformations, asymmetric reactions involving copper-nitrene have been limited to the aziridination of olefins. Herein, we report the novel copper-nitrene-catalyzed desymmetric oxaziridination reaction of cyclic diketones with alkyl azides and the subsequent rearrangement of the resulting highly active intermediate, which produces a synthetically challenging chiral bicyclic lactam containing a quaternary carbon center. This procedure not only enriches the copper-nitrene-catalyzed asymmetric reactions, but also provides an alternative strategy to address the inherent challenges of catalytic asymmetric Schmidt reactions. This unique reaction could inspire the investigation of novel copper-nitrene-catalyzed asymmetric transformations and their reaction mechanisms.

Gold and Carbene Relay Catalytic Enantioselective Cycloisomerization/Cyclization Reactions of Ynamides and Enals.

The combined use of gold as transition metal catalyst and N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) as organic catalyst in the same solution for relay catalytic reactions was disclosed. The ynamide substrate was activated by gold catalyst to form unsaturated ketimine intermediate that subsequently reacted with the enals (via azolium enolate intermediate generated with NHC) effectively to form bicyclic lactam products with excellent diastereo- and enantio-selectivities. The gold and NHC coordination and dissociation can be dynamic and tunable events, and thus allow the co-existence of both active metal and carbene organic catalysts in appreciable concentrations, for the dual catalytic reaction to proceed.

Inhibition of poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase using quinazolinone nucleus.

Poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase (PARP) is a group of enzymes with several subtypes and it manages various ailment such as cancer, inflammatory disorders, diabetes mellitus, neuronal injury, HIV infection, Parkinsonism, aging, and ischemia-reperfusion injury. Various PARP inhibitors share a common property of bicyclic lactam in its main structural frame. The core moiety containing bicyclic lactam rings are isoquinolinones, dihydroisoquinolinones, quinazolinediones, phthalazinones, quinazolinones, and phenanthridones. The quinazolinone with diverse substituents displayed low nanomolar inhibition. Quinazolinone is an important and vital molecule in the field of medicinal chemistry possessing multitude pharmacological actions. Though the chemistry of quinazolinones has been discussed through centuries, its concise role on PARP inhibition needed a special consideration. The aim of this review is to discover the effect of quinazolinone substitutents and its role in PARP inhibition. This precise review will discuss the effect of quinazolinones on PARP subtypes such as PARP-1, PARP-2, PARP-5a, and PARP-5b. In addition to its pharmacological actions, PARP inhibitors can also act as a chemosensitizing agent, and it is used in combination with the other anticancer agents. This summarization will definitely be a supportive report for the scientist working toward the novelty in the quinazolinone nucleus and its role in PARP inhibition.

Simple access to highly functional bicyclic γ- and δ-lactams: origins of chirality transfer to contiguous tertiary/quaternary stereocenters assessed by DFT.

This paper describes the synthesis of both polysubstituted oxazolo-pyrrolidinones and -piperidinones by a domino process. The methodology is based on the reaction between hydroxyl halogenoamides and Michael acceptors, which leads efficiently to bicyclic lactams. The process is compatible with unsymmetrical electron-withdrawing groups on the Michael acceptor, which allows the formation of two contiguous and fully controlled tertiary and quaternary stereocenters. In the case of tetrasubstituted Michael acceptors, two adjacent quaternary stereocenters are formed in good yield. Starting from (R)-phenylglycinol derived amides results in the formation of enantioenriched bicyclic lactams in low to good yields and with high levels of stereoselectivity, thus greatly increasing the scope and interest of this strategy. The origins of chirality transfer and diastereoselectivity were studied by DFT calculations and have been attributed to a kinetic control in one of the last two steps of the reaction sequence. This selectivity is dependent upon both the substituents on the Michael acceptor and the sodium cation chelation.

Synthesis of fluorinated δ-lactams via cycloisomerization of gem-difluoropropargyl amides.

gem-Difluoro-1,7-enyne amides are suitable building blocks for the synthesis of difluorodihydropyridinones via a ring-closing metathesis reaction, and of 4,4-difluoro-3-oxoisoquinolines through a ring-closing metathesis-enyne metathesis tandem reaction. These products, in turn, undergo a Diels-Alder reaction to yield heterotricyclic systems in moderate to good yields.

Optimization of Bicyclic Lactam Derivatives as NMDA Receptor Antagonists.

N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are fundamental for the normal function of the central nervous system (CNS), and play an important role in memory and learning. Over-activation of these receptors leads to neuronal loss associated with major neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, and epilepsy. In this study, 22 novel enantiopure bicyclic lactams were designed, synthesized, and evaluated as NMDA receptor antagonists. Most of the new compounds displayed NMDA receptor antagonism, and the most promising compound showed an IC50 value on the same order of magnitude as that of memantine, an NMDA receptor antagonist in clinical use for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Further biological evaluation indicated that this compound is brain permeable (determined by an in vitro assay) and non-hepatotoxic. All these results indicate that (3S,7aS)-7a-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(4-hydroxybenzyl)tetrahydropyrrolo[2,1-b]oxazol-5(6H)-one (compound 5 b) is a potential candidate for the treatment of pathologies associated with the over-activation of NMDA receptors.