Acyloin Research Articles

Catalytic Asymmetric Acyloin Rearrangements of α-Ketols, α-Hydroxy Aldehydes, and α-Iminols by N,N'-Dioxide-Metal Complexes.

A highly enantioselective acyloin rearrangement of cyclic α-ketols has been developed with a chiral Al(III)-N,N'-dioxide complex as catalyst. This strategy provided an array of optically active 2-acyl-2-hydroxy cyclohexanones in moderate to good yields with high enantioselectivities. The asymmetric isomerizations of acyclic α-hydroxy aldehydes and α-iminols were achieved as well under modified conditions, affording the corresponding chiral α-hydroxy ketones and α-amino ketones in moderate results. Moreover, further transformations of product to enantioenriched diols were carried out.

CO2-Promoted Hydration of Propargylic Alcohols: Green Synthesis of α-Hydroxy Ketones by an Efficient and Recyclable AgOAc/Ionic Liquid System

α-Hydroxy ketones are a series of biologically active fragments in nature as well as important synthons for organic chemistry. Herein, an AgOAc/1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ionic liquid syst...

Synthesis of α-hydroxy ketones and vicinal (R,R)-diols by Bacillus clausii DSM 8716T butanediol dehydrogenase.

α-hydroxy ketones (HK) and 1,2-diols are important building blocks for fine chemical synthesis. Here, we describe the R-selective 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase from B. clausii DSM 8716T (BcBDH) that belongs to the metal-dependent medium chain dehydrogenases/reductases family (MDR) and catalyzes the selective asymmetric reduction of prochiral 1,2-diketones to the corresponding HK and, in some cases, the reduction of the same to the corresponding 1,2-diols. Aliphatic diketones, like 2,3-pentanedione, 2,3-hexanedione, 5-methyl-2,3-hexanedione, 3,4-hexanedione and 2,3-heptanedione are well transformed. In addition, surprisingly alkyl phenyl dicarbonyls, like 2-hydroxy-1-phenylpropan-1-one and phenylglyoxal are accepted, whereas their derivatives with two phenyl groups are not substrates. Supplementation of Mn2+ (1 mM) increases BcBDH's activity in biotransformations. Furthermore, the biocatalytic reduction of 5-methyl-2,3-hexanedione to mainly 5-methyl-3-hydroxy-2-hexanone with only small amounts of 5-methyl-2-hydroxy-3-hexanone within an enzyme membrane reactor is demonstrated.

Enantioselective Synthesis of Chiral Vicinal Amino Alcohols Using Amine Dehydrogenases

Chiral vicinal amino alcohols are an important motif found in many biologically active molecules. In this study, biocatalytic reductive amination of α-hydroxy ketones with ammonia was investigated ...

Improving l-phenylacetylcarbinol production in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by in silico aided metabolic engineering

L-Phenylacetylcarbinol (L-PAC) which is used as a precursor for the production of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine is the first reported biologically produced α-hydroxy ketone compound. l-PAC is commercially produced by the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Yeast cells transform exogenously added benzaldehyde into l-PAC by using the action of pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) enzyme. In this work, genome-scale model and flux balance analysis were used to identify novel target genes for the enhancement of l-PAC production in yeast. The effect of gene deletions on the flux distributions in the metabolic model of S. cerevisiae was assessed using OptGene and minimization of metabolic adjustments. Six single gene deletion strains, namely Δrpe1, Δpda1, Δadh3, Δadh1, Δzwf1 and Δpdc1, were predicted in silico and further tested in vivo by using knock-out strains cultivated semi-anaerobically on glucose and benzaldehyde as substrates. Δzwf1 mutant exhibited the highest l-PAC formation (2.48 g/L) by using 2 g/L of benzaldehyde which is equivalent to 88 % of the theoretical yield.

Bioinspired iron(II)-β-diketonate and iron(II)-α-hydroxy ketone complexes of a carbanionic N3C ligand: Oxidation of metal center vs C[sbnd]C bond cleavage of co-ligand with dioxygen

Two bioinspired low-spin iron(II)-β-diketonate complexes, [(L1)FeII(BA)] (2) and [(L1)FeII(DBM)] (3), and an iron(II)-α-hydroxy ketone complex [(L1)FeII(HAP)] (4) (L1 = tris(2-pyridylthio)methanido anion, BA = monoanionic benzoylacetone, DBM = monoanionic dibenzoylmethane and HAP = monoanionic 2-hydroxyacetophenone) of a tripodal carbanionic ligand were prepared from an iron(II) precursor complex [(L1)FeII(CH3CN)2](ClO4) (1). The dioxygen reactivity of the complexes (2, 3 and 4) was investigated to evaluate the effect of ligand geometry and of the spin state of iron on the CC bond cleavage of the co-ligands. Complexes 2 and 3 react with dioxygen to yield benzoic acid as a minor product. The major pathway involves the formation of the corresponding iron(III)-β-diketonate complexes, [(L1)FeIII(BA)](ClO4) (2ox-ClO4) and [(L1)FeIII(DBM)](ClO4) (3ox-ClO4). Complex 4, however, undergoes the CC bond cleavage of the iron-coodinated HAP to form benzoic acid as the major product. In the reaction, phenylglyoxal is formed as the minor product with concomitant generation of an iron-oxygen oxidant. The oxidant is able to transfer an oxygen atom to thioanisole and can exchange its oxygen atom with water. The reactivity patterns of the low-spin iron(II) complexes reported here are distinctly different from that of the corresponding high-spin complexes supported by a monoanionic facial N3 ligand. The results emphasize the role of spin-state of iron, the denticity of the supporting ligand, and the nature of co-ligand in affecting the CC bond cleavage reaction.

Rearrangement of N-tert-Butanesulfinyl Enamines for Synthesis of Enantioenriched α-Hydroxy Ketone Derivatives.

Treating chiral N-tert-butanesulfinyl ketimines with potassium hexamethyldisilazide (or potassium tert-butoxide) and methyl triflate gives N-methylated N-tert-butanesulfinyl enamine intermediates that undergo stereoselective [2,3]-rearrangement to afford α-sulfenyloxy ketones with excellent enantiopurities. This cascade of enamination-N-methylation-rearrangement was even used to generate acyclic tertiary α-hydroxy ketones bearing two α-substituents showing negligible differences in bulkiness, such as methyl and ethyl groups.

Basolites: A type of Metal Organic Frameworks highly efficient in the one-pot synthesis of quinoxalines from α-hydroxy ketones under aerobic conditions

Abstract We report here efficient synthesis of quinoxalines from o-phenylendiamine and α-hydroxy ketones over commercial Basolites. The concentration and type of acid centres, as CUS sites, together with the porosity of the samples strongly influence the resulting conversion and selectivity. Our results indicate that the formation of quinoxalines preferentially follows a new route, in which tautomerization reactions are also involved.

Synthesis of α-hydroxy ketones by copper(I)-catalyzed hydration of propargylic alcohols: CO2 as a cocatalyst under atmospheric pressure

Inexpensive and efficient Cu(I) catalysis is reported for the synthesis of α-hydroxy ketones from propargylic alcohols, CO 2 , and water via tandem carboxylative cyclization and nucleophilic addition reaction. Notably, hydration of propargylic alcohols can be carried out smoothly under atmospheric CO 2 pressure, generating a series of α-hydroxy ketones efficiently and selectively. This strategy shows great potential for the preparation of valuable α-hydroxy ketones by using CO 2 as a crucial cocatalyst under mild conditions. Efficient and inexpensive copper(I) catalysis was realized for the synthesis of α-hydroxy ketones via the hydration of propargylic alcohols by using CO 2 as a cocatalyst under atmospheric pressure.

Optimal Synthesis of Substituted and Branched Pyrazines via Reaction of Alpha Hydroxy Ketones with Selected Nitrogen Sources

Summary Employment of 1-hydroxy-acetone as a carbon source and NH4OH as a source of base and nitrogen, has enabled arrays of pyrazines to be synthesized. Reaction conditions such as temperature, time, carbon/nitrogen mole ratios and pH were optimized to maximize the quantity of pyrazines, thereby providing the synthesis of at least 19–20 structurally different pyrazines. Addition of amino acids, selected aldehydes, and hydrolyzed tobacco-derived F1 protein has positively impacted the array of pyrazines from both qualitative and quantitative aspects. Results further showed that by changing the carbon source from 1-hydroxy-acetone to 1-hydroxy-2-butanone and/or 2-hydroxy-3-butanone, control of the type of pyrazines being synthesized could be realized in that the qualitative and quantitative distributions of the pyrazine array were shifted to higher molecular weight derivatives. A relatively large scale reaction (1.5 L) employing optimized parameters yielded > 2 g of a diverse array of pyrazines dominated by multiple dimethylpyrazine derivatives. While systematically varying reaction conditions and reagent mole ratios can predictably alter the distribution and yield of pyrazines, the two most overwhelmingly significant factors governing these two pyrazine product characteristics included the structure of the carbon source and the presence or absence of aldehydes and free amino acids.

2,3]-Wittig Rearrangement as a Formal Asymmetric Alkylation of α-Branched Ketones.

The enantioselective [2,3]-Wittig rearrangement of cinnamyloxycyclopentanone derivatives was performed in the presence of a Cinchona-based primary amine. The described method provides synthetically valuable α-hydroxy ketones with quaternary stereogenic centers in excellent enantiomeric purities. Relying on the X-ray crystal structure of the product and the DFT calculations, we propose that the rearrangement is promoted by an intramolecular hydrogen bond between the substrate and the catalyst.

Thermodynamic favorable CO2 conversion via vicinal diols and propargylic alcohols: A metal-free catalytic method

Organocatalysis represents a promising field in chemical fixation of CO2. Herein, a facile metal-free strategy was reported for the one-pot preparation of cyclic carbonates and α-hydroxy ketones from vicinal diols, propargylic alcohols and CO2. Wide scope of vicinal diols and propargylic alcohols was demonstrated to be efficient under the DBU-catalyzed conditions. A plausible mechanism was proposed, which included detailed main and side reactions under the metal-free conditions.

Design and application of \u03b1-ketothioesters as 1,2-dicarbonyl-forming reagents

The 1,2-dicarbonyl motif is vital to biomolecules, especially natural products and pharmaceuticals. Conventionally, 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds are prepared via an α-keto acyl chloride. Based on the methods used in nature, a transition-metal-free approach for the synthesis of an α-ketothioester reagent via the combination of an α-hydroxyl ketone, elemental sulfur and a benzyl halide is reported. Mechanistic studies demonstrate that the trisulfur radical anion and the α-carbon radical of the α-hydroxy ketone are involved in this transformation. The dicarbonylation of a broad range of amines and amino acids, and importantly, cross couplings with aryl borates to construct dicarbonyl-carbon bonds are realized under mild conditions by employing this stable and convenient α-ketothioester as a 1,2-dicarbonyl reagent. The dicarbonyl-containing drug indibulin and the natural product polyandrocarpamide C, which possess multiple heteroatoms and active hydrogen functional groups, can be efficiently prepared using the designed 1,2-dicarbonyl reagent.

NBS-assisted an efficient conversion of styrenes to α-hydroxy ketones in water

An expedient, mild and environmentally benign method for the oxidation of styrenes to α-hydroxy ketones has been developed. This conversion has been achieved by employing water as a solvent as well as an oxygen source. This facile and efficient tandem process provides α-hydroxy ketones in moderate to good yields from easily accessible styrenes.

Magnesium Aldimines Prepared by Addition of Organomagnesium Halides to 2,4,6-Trichlorophenyl Isocyanide: Synthesis of 1,2-Dicarbonyl Derivatives.

The selective addition of organomagnesium reagents to 2,4,6-trichlorophenyl isocyanide leading to magnesiated aldimines is reported. These aldimines react with Weinreb amides, ketones, or carbonates to provide the corresponding carbonyl derivatives after acidic cleavage. This allows for an efficient synthesis of 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds and α-hydroxy ketones.

Solvent-Free Synthesis of α-Amino Ketones from α-Hydroxyl Ketones via A Novel Tandem Reaction Sequence Based on Heyns Rearrangement

Heyns rearrangement have been famous for carbohydrate chemists for several decades. However, this reaction was underrated as a useful method for synthetic chemists due to preparative shortcomings. Herein we developed an efficient method for the synthesis of pharmaceutically important α-amino ketones from readily available α-hydroxy ketones and secondary amines through a tandem reaction sequence based on Heyns rearrangement. The reaction smoothly proceeded by using catalytic PTSA as catalyst without solvent. Primary and secondary α-hydroxy ketones were readily used and regioselectively afforded the correspondingly α-amino ketones with moderate yield.

Expedient Synthesis of Alphitolic Acid and Its Naturally Occurring 2- O-Ester Derivatives.

The expedient synthesis of alphitolic acid (1) as well as its natural C-3-epimer and 2- O-ester derivatives was accomplished in a few steps from the readily commercially available betulin (9). A Rubottom oxidation delivered an α-hydroxy group in a stereo- and chemoselective manner. The diastereoselective reduction of the α-hydroxy ketone was key to accessing the 1,2-diol moiety of this class of natural products. Our concise and stereoselective synthetic protocol allowed the gram-scale synthesis of these natural products, which will facilitate future biological evaluations.

Oxidative Esterification of α-Hydroxy Ketones on a Bimetallic Cu–Mn Catalyst

Oxidative Esterification of α-Hydroxy Ketones on a Bimetallic Cu–Mn Catalyst

Synthesis of α-heterosubstituted ketones through sulfur mediated difunctionalization of internal alkynes.

Synthesis of α-heterosubstituted ketones was achieved through sulfur mediated difunctionalization of internal alkynes in one pot. The reaction design involves: phenyl substituted internal alkyne attacking triflic anhydride activated diphenyl sulfoxide to give a sulfonium vinyl triflate intermediate, hydrolysis to give an α-sulfonium ketone, and then substitution with various nucleophiles. This method provides a unified route to access α-amino ketones, α-acyloxy ketones, α-thio ketones, α-halo ketones, α-hydroxy ketones, and related heterocyclic structures, in a rapid fashion.

Enantioselective synthesis of enantiopure β-amino alcohols via kinetic resolution and asymmetric reductive amination by a robust transaminase from Mycobacterium vanbaalenii

Chiral β-amino alcohols are very important chiral building block for preparing bioactive compounds for use in pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries. Synthesis of chiral β-amino alcohols by transaminase is big challenging due to the strict substrate specificities and very low activity of the enzyme. In this work, a (R)-selective ω-transaminase (MVTA) from Mycobacterium vanbaalenii was employed as a biocatalyst for the first time for the synthesis of chiral β-amino alcohol via kinetic resolution and asymmetric reductive amination. The enzyme was purified and characterized. Kinetic resolution of a set of racemic β-amino alcohols including two cyclic β-amino alcohols by MVTA was demonstrated, affording (R)-β-amino alcohols, (1S, 2S)-trans-2-aminocyclopentanol and (1R, 2S)-cis-1-amino-2-indanols in >99% ee and 50–62% conversion. Asymmetric reductive amination of three α-hydroxy ketones (10–300 mM) by MVTA was conducted, (S)-β-amino alcohols were obtained with >99% ee and 80–99% conversion. Preparation experiment for the reductive amination of 200 mM 2-hydroxyacetophenone by the resting cells of recombinant E. coli (MVTA) was proceeded smoothly and product (S)-2-amino-2-phenylethanol was obtained with 71% isolated yield, >99% ee and 68.6 g/L/d volumetric productivity. The current research proved that the MVTA is a robust enzyme for the preparation of chiral β-amino alcohol with high volumetric productivity.