Α-amino Esters Research Articles

Multicomponent 1,3-Bifunctionalization of Donor-Acceptor Cyclopropanes with Arenes and Nitrosoarenes.

AlBr3-mediated multicomponent 1,3-bifunctionalization of donor-acceptor cyclopropanes using arenes and nitrosoarenes as coupling partners is presented. In the cascade, a C-C, a C-N, and a C-Br bond is formed. Reactions are easy to conduct and proceed under mild conditions. The γ,γ-disubstituted N-arylated α-amino esters obtained as products are readily further chemically modified rendering the method valuable.

A short access to 3,5-disubstituted piperazinones based on the aza-Michael addition of α-amino esters to β-substituted nitroalkenes

A simple procedure for the synthesis of chiral 3,5-disubstituted piperazinones is described. The aza-Michael addition of α-amino esters to β-substituted nitroalkenes in an organic/aqueous biphasic solvent system followed by reduction of a nitro group with zinc nanopowder in acidic media and intramolecular ester–amide exchange under heating conditions gives piperazinones in good overall yields. This novel three-step process can provide a short access to a variety of chiral 3,5-disubstituted piperazinones simply by changing the combination of starting nitroalkenes and α-amino esters. This process can be applied to the concise synthesis of the piperazinone-containing natural product 6′,6″-didebromo-cis-3,4-dihydrohamacanthin B.

N-Heteroarylation of Optically Pure α-Amino Esters using the Pd-PEPPSI-IPentCl -o-picoline Pre-Catalyst.

A robust, mild, and efficient method for the Pd-catalyzed N-heteroarylation of optically pure α-amino esters was developed. Dichloro[1,3-bis(2,6-di-3-pentylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene](o-picoline)palladium(II) (Pd-PEPPSI-IPentCl -o-picoline; PEPPSI=pyridine enhanced pre-catalyst preparation, stabilization, and initiation) was shown to effectively couple a variety of amino acids as the tert-butyl ester with heteroaryl chlorides in high yields and with excellent stereoretention of the acidic proton adjacent to the ester. Control experiments revealed that racemization is base-mediated, with no evidence of Pd-mediated β-hydride elimination when using Pd-PEPPSI-IPentCl , and that racemization occurs only after the product is formed, that is, the non-arylated starting amino ester does not deprotonate under our reaction conditions. Studies also revealed that increasing the steric bulk of the ester moiety on the amino acid (e.g., ethyl to tert-butyl) drastically slows racemization of the product.

Asymmetric Hydrogenation of α-Amino Ester Probed by FTIR Spectroscopy

Asymmetric hydrogenation reaction of dehydro-α-amino acid (i.e., α-amino ester) over cinchonidine (CD) modified Pd catalyst has been studied by an array of in situ infrared spectroscopic methods, including transmission, diffuse reflectance (DR), and attenuated total reflectance (ATR). Transmission FTIR spectra probed the hydrogenation reaction process, revealed OH–O and NH–N hydrogen bonding interactions between the adsorbed CD and during the reaction. DR and ATR spectra of the hydrogenation reaction under different conditions, which are consistent with but slightly different from the transmission spectra, evidenced the successful hydrogenation of the compound. The incorporation of DR and microfluidics flow-through design allowed us to investigate the adsorption of CD on the Pd surface efficiently. The results revealed that the N-bonded CD on Pd surface in a tilted configuration had increased abundance on the Pd surface with high coverage. These valuable insights provided an image of the reaction pathway ...

Asymmetric Cooperative Catalysis in a Three-Component Reaction: Mechanism and Origin of Enantio- and Diastereoselectivities.

Mechanistic insights gained through density functional theory (DFT M06 and B3LYP) computations on a three-component cooperative asymmetric catalytic reaction between a diazo ester, a carbamate, and an imine, catalyzed by dirhodium acetate and chiral phosphoric acid (Brønsted acid), are presented. The addition of the dirhodium-bound enol to the imine yielding an α,β-diamino ester is energetically more preferred over a potentially competitive protonation of the same enol leading to an α-amino ester.

Synthesis of Aminobenzoic Acid Derivatives via Chemoselective Carbene Insertion into the -NH Bond Catalyzed by Cu(I) Complex.

Phosphine ligand stabilized air-stable Cu(I) complexes have been successfully used to functionalize the aromatic aminobenzoic acids in a chemoselective manner without implementing protection and deprotection strategy under mild reaction conditions. This chemoselective carbene insertion into -NH bond over -COOH and -OH bonds leads to the wide range of carboxy and hydroxy functionalized α-amino esters (27 examples). All of the isolated new products have been fully characterized using standard analytical methods.

Indium-mediated diastereoselective allylation of N-tert-butanesulfinyl imines derived from α-ketoesters

The indium-mediated allylation of α-aldimino and -ketimino esters 3 with allylic bromides proceeds with high diastereoselectivity to yield homoallylic α-amino ester derivatives 5, in both THF and water as solvents. The reactions are diastereospecific, the stereochemical outcome depending on the configuration of both the sulfur atom of the sulfinyl group and the CN double bond. Of particular interest are the reaction products using ethyl bromomethylacrylate as allylating reagent because amino diesters are obtained, which can be easily transformed into enantiomerically pure α-methylidene-γ-butyrolactams 6 with an alkoxycarbonyl group on the ring bearing the nitrogen atom.

ChemInform Abstract: Development of Tetranuclear Zinc Cluster‐Catalyzed Environmentally Friendly Reactions and Mechanistic Studies

AbstractReview: 96 refs.

Synthesis of Chiral, Enantiopure Allylic Amines by the Julia Olefination of α-Amino Esters.

The four-step conversion of a series of N-Boc-protected l-amino acid methyl esters into enantiopure N-Boc allylamines by a modified Julia olefination is described. Key steps include the reaction of a lithiated phenylalkylsulfone with amino esters, giving chiral β-ketosulfones, and the reductive elimination of related α-acetoxysulfones. The overall transformation takes place under mild conditions, with good yields, and without loss of stereochemical integrity, being in this respect superior to the conventional Julia reaction of α-amino aldehydes.

Friedel-Crafts dealkylation reaction mediated by a stereoselective proton transfer in the fragmentation of protonated cyclic indolyl α-amino esters.

Chiral cyclic indolyl α-amino esters are valuable substructures of peptides and peptidomimetics. Systematically exploring the fragmentation behavior of the protonated cyclic indolyl α-amino esters by a combination of high-resolution high-energy collisional dissociation mass spectrometry, hydrogen-deuterium exchange experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations is useful for further understanding their intrinsic properties and the fragmentation mechanisms of peptidomimetics constructed with them. All high-resolution high-energy collisional dissociation tandem mass spectrometry experiments were carried out using electrospray ionization hybrid Quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometry in positive ion mode. Only the labile hydrogens were exchanged with deuterium in hydrogen-deuterium exchange experiments. Theoretical calculations were carried out by the DFT method at the B3LYP level with the 6-311G(d,p) basis set in the Gaussian 03 package of programs. In the fragmentation of protonated cyclic indolyl α-amino esters, when the two labile hydrogens on the N(8) position are successively transferred to the C(3) and C(4) positions, a Friedel-Crafts dealkylation reaction takes place spontaneously, with concomitant formation of an ion-neutral complex of [cyclic N-sulfonyl ketimino esters/protonated indoles]. Direct separation of this complex formed the protonated indoles, while a stereoselective proton transfer between the two components in the complex gave rise to protonated cyclic N-sulfonyl ketimino esters, which coincided with the hydrogen-deuterium experiments. Using H/D exchange experiments combined with theoretical calculations, a Friedel-Crafts dealkylation reaction mediated by a stereoselective proton transfer in the [cyclic N-sulfonyl ketimino esters/protonated indoles] complex was proposed for the fragmentation of protonated cyclic indolyl α-amino esters in high-energy collisional dissociation tandem mass spectrometry for the first time. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A Series of COX-2 Inhibitors Endowed with NO-Releasing Properties: Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and Docking Analysis.

Herein we report the synthesis, biological evaluation, and docking analysis of a class of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors with nitric oxide (NO)-releasing properties. In an earlier study, a number of selective COX-2 inhibitors/NO donors were developed by conjugating a diarylpyrrole scaffold endowed with selective COX-2 inhibitory properties with various nitrooxyalkyl side chains such as esters, α-amino esters, amides, α-amino amides, ethers, β-amino ethers, inverse esters, and amides. These candidates were found to have high in vitro potencies (COX-2 inhibition at 10 μm: ≥96 %), great efficacy in determining NO-vasorelaxing responses, and good antinociceptive activity in an abdominal writhing test. Among the compounds synthesized in the present work, derivative 2 b [2-(2-(1-(3-fluorophenyl)-2-methyl-5-(4-sulfamoylphenyl)-1H-pyrrol-3-yl)acetamido)ethyl nitrate] showed particularly outstanding activity, with efficacy similar to that of celecoxib even at very low concentrations.

One-pot synthesis of enantiomerically pure N-protected allylic amines from N-protected α-amino esters.

An improved protocol for the synthesis of enantiomerically pure allylic amines is reported. N-Protected α-amino esters derived from natural amino acids were submitted to a one-pot tandem reduction–olefination process. The sequential reduction with DIBAL-H at −78 °C and subsequent in situ addition of organophosphorus reagents yielded the corresponding allylic amines without the need to isolate the intermediate aldehyde. This circumvents the problem of instability of the aldehydes. The method tolerates well both Wittig and Horner–Wadsworth–Emmons organophosphorus reagents. A better Z-(dia)stereoselectivity was observed when compared to the previous one-pot method. The (dia)stereoselectivity of the process was affected neither by the reaction solvent nor by the amount of DIBAL-H employed. The method is compatible with the presence of free hydroxy groups as shown with serine and threonine derivatives.

Development of Tetranuclear Zinc Cluster-Catalyzed Environmentally Friendly Reactions and Mechanistic Studies.

Our studies on tetranuclear zinc cluster-catalyzed environmentally friendly reactions are presented here. The newly developed μ-oxo-tetranuclear zinc cluster is a highly efficient catalyst for the direct formation of oxazolines from esters, carboxylic acids, lactones, and nitriles; for the transesterification of various methyl esters including α-amino esters and β-keto esters; for the acetylation of alcohols in EtOAc; and for the deacylation of esters in MeOH. A unique hydroxy group-selective acylation in the presence of inherently much more nucleophilic amino groups was also achieved by this zinc cluster. Zinc cluster-catalyzed transesterification, in particular, was drastically accelerated by the addition of alkyl amine and N-heteroaromatic ligands, which coordinate with the metals, stabilize the clusters with lower nuclearities, and enhance catalytic activity for the transesterification. We also performed several mechanistic studies which revealed that alkoxide metal complexes are the active species in this catalytic cycle, and that the Michaelis-Menten behavior of the complexes through an ordered ternary complex mechanism is similar to that of dinuclear metalloenzymes. The deprotonation of nucleophiles was the most important step in this process, not only for achieving high catalytic activity but also for determining chemoselectivity, resulting in the chemical differentiation of alcohols and amines.

ChemInform Abstract: Highly Regio‐, Diastereo‐, and Enantioselective Mannich Reaction of Allylic Ketones and Cyclic Ketimines: Access to Chiral Benzosultam.

An organocatalytic asymmetric Mannich reaction of allylic ketones with cyclic N-sulfonyl α-iminoester has been developed. By using a saccharide-derived chiral tertiary amino-thiourea catalyst, a range of allylic ketones and N-sulfonyl ketimines reacted smoothly to afford tetrasubstituted α-amino esters in high yields with good to excellent regio-, diastero-, and enantioselectivities.

Synthesis of Oxetane- and Azetidine-Containing Spirocycles Related to the 2,5-Diketopiperazine Framework

A simple two-step sequence is used to efficiently make novel spirocyclic analogues of the diketopiperazine nucleus. Conjugate addition of chiral α-amino esters to nitroalkenes, generated from oxetan-3-one or <i>N</i>-Boc-azetidin-3-one, followed by nitro group reduction provides, after spontaneous cyclization, the spirocycles in good overall yields. These rigid scaffolds can be functionalized by selective N-alkylations as well as by carbonyl reduction to the corresponding piperazines.

Dual Catalytic Decarboxylative Allylations of α-Amino Acids and Their Divergent Mechanisms.

The room temperature radical decarboxylative allylation of N-protected α-amino acids and esters has been accomplished via a combination of palladium and photoredox catalysis to provide homoallylic amines. Mechanistic investigations revealed that the stability of the α-amino radical, which is formed by decarboxylation, dictates the predominant reaction pathway between competing mechanisms.

ChemInform Abstract: Highly Efficient Sequential N,N,C‐Trialkylation of α‐N‐Acyloxyimino Esters.

α-N-Acyloxyimino esters serve as highly efficient substrates for the N,N,C-trialkylation reaction that can introduce various patterns of nucleophiles at the imino nitrogen and carbon atoms to synthesize N,N-dialkylated and N,N,C-trialkylated α-amino esters in moderate to high yields.

Silver-catalysed multicomponent 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of 2-oxoaldehydes-derived azomethine ylides

The silver-catalysed multicomponent reaction between ethyl glyoxylate, 2,2-dimethoxyacetaldehyde, or phenylglyoxal as aldehyde components with a α-amino ester hydrochloride and a dipolarophile in the presence of triethylamine is described. This domino process takes place at room temperature by in situ liberation of the α-amino ester followed by the formation of the imino ester, which is the precursor of a metalloazomethine ylide. The cycloaddition of this species and the corresponding dipolarophile affords polysubstituted proline derivatives. Ethyl glyoxylate reacts with glycinate, alaninate, phenylalaninate and phenylglycinate at room temperature in the presence of representative dipolarophiles affording endo-2,5-cis-cycloadducts in good yields and high diastereoselection. In addition, 2,2-dimethoxyacetaldehyde is evaluated with the same amino esters and dipolarophiles, under the same mild conditions, generating the corresponding endo-2,5-cis-cycloadducts with higher diastereoselections than the obtained in the same reactions using ethyl glyoxylate. In the case of phenylglyoxal the corresponding 5-benzoyl-endo-2,5-cis cycloadducts are obtained in short reaction times and similar diasteroselection.

Synthesis, Crystal Structure and Biological Activity Screening of Novel N-(α-Bromoacyl)-α-amino Esters Containing Valyl Moiety.

Three novel N-(α-bromoacyl)-α-amino esters: methyl 2-(2-bromo-3-methylbutanamido)pentanoate (1), methyl 2-(2-bromo-3-methylbutanamido)-2-phenylacetate (2) and methyl 2-(2-bromo-3-methylbutanamido)-3-phenylpropanoate (3) were synthesized. Single crystal X-ray diffraction data are reported for compounds 1 and 2. The cytotoxicity, antiinflammatory and antibacterial activity of compounds 1-3 were investigated. Additionally, the physico-chemical properties of studied compounds were calculated and an in silico toxicological study of compounds 1-3 was performed. The low level of cytotoxicity and absence of antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activity of 1-3 in tested concentrations might be a beneficial prerequisite for their incorporation in prodrugs.

Highly Regio-, Diastereo-, and Enantioselective Mannich Reaction of Allylic Ketones and Cyclic Ketimines: Access to Chiral Benzosultam.

An organocatalytic asymmetric Mannich reaction of allylic ketones with cyclic N-sulfonyl α-iminoester has been developed. By using a saccharide-derived chiral tertiary amino-thiourea catalyst, a range of allylic ketones and N-sulfonyl ketimines reacted smoothly to afford tetrasubstituted α-amino esters in high yields with good to excellent regio-, diastero-, and enantioselectivities.