Carbodiimides, hemiacetal activation

In an extension beyond hetaryl onium salt promoted hemiacetal activation, Ishido and coworkers have reported the carbodiimide activation of hemiacetals [141]. In the method (Scheme 3.13), the hemiacetal donor 1 is treated with a carbodiimide electrophile 83 and copper(I) chloride to provide glycosyl isourea intermediate 85. Highly susceptible to hydrolysis, the isourea 85 was not isolated but could be detected by 13C NMR and IR spectroscopy [142,143], Accordingly, the reaction between intermediate 85 and the glycosyl acceptor (NuH) provides glycoside product 3, along with urea by-product 84. 

A typical procedure calls for reaction of the hemiacetal donor with dicydohexyl carbodiimide and copper(I) chloride (0.1 equiv) at 80 °C, followed by an addition of the acceptor and continued heating. As an early demonstration of this protocol, oc-riboside 86 was prepared in moderate yield but with exclusive stereoselectivity [141]. Further measures were required for the glycosylation of monosaccharide acceptors, such as addition of p-toluenesulfonic add (0.1 equiv) to promote the formation of disaccharide 87 [144]. The method was more suitably applied to the synthesis of O-acyl glycopeptides, as evidenced by the formation of 88 in 60% yield [143,144]. Various peptides with non-nudeophilic side chains were found to be amenable to this stereoselective reaction. The [3-selectivity was suggested to arise from a preponderance of the a-isourea intermediate 85 in the activation step. 

Hemiacetals can be activated for glycosylations by reaction with carbodiimides via glycosyl isourea intermediates and different aryl glycosides were prepared this way [432]. 

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