Nucleoside 5′- C-phosphonates: reactivity of the α-hydroxyphosphonate moiety

Abstract

We found that various dialkyl phosphites, dialkyl trimethylsilyl phosphites, and tris-trimethylsilyl phosphite reacted smoothly with nucleoside 5′-aldehydes to afford epimeric nucleoside 5′- C-phosphonates in high yields. A number of these compounds in both the 2′-deoxyribo and ribo series were prepared. In the case of 2′-deoxythymidine-5′-aldehyde, a thorough study was made on the influence of the 3′-hydroxyl protecting group, type of phosphite, base, and solvent, on the yield and epimeric ratio of the resulting 5′-hydroxyphosphonates. Partial stereoselectivity in favour of either R or S epimers was observed. An attempt to transform the α-hydroxyl of the phosphonate moiety into a halo or azido moiety was not successful. Only intramolecular substitution reaction of the mesyloxy group for an alkoxy residue of the 2-hydroxyethyl ester took place in a low yield.