Cholesterol reactions

Cholesterol The end point for the cholesterol reaction can be determined by following dye formation. Additionally, the amount of oxygen consumed can be measured amperometricaHy by an oxygen-sensing electrode (see Electro analytical techniques). The H2O2 produced by cholesterol oxidase requires phenol to produce dye. 

Fig. 6. SCPj translocates cholesterol from the outer to the inner membrane in adrenal mitochondria. Reaction 1, transmembrane translocation of cholesterol reaction 2, interaction of cholesterol with cytochrome reaction 3, removal of pregnenolone. C, cholesterol AG, aminoglutethimide.

Trautwein and co-workers described an efficient method for the solid-phase s thesis of TV-substituted pyrroles, including tetrasubstituted pyrroles. Highly substituted pyrroles are functional components of compounds such as atorvastatin (Lipitor), an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor used for lowering cholesterol. Reaction of p-ketoamides 29, prepared from polymer bound acetoacetamide using a series of primary amines in trimethylorthoformate (not shown), with a-bromoketone derivatives 30 in the presence of 2,6-di-tertbutylpyridine (DTBP) and DMF yielded pyrroles 31 with diverse functionality in high purity. The authors found that polystyrene Rink amide resin was the best solid support because it was able to withstand the acetoacetylation conditions required to produce the polymer bound acetoacetamide. 

The reaction is illustrated by the preparation of cholestenone from cholesterol the double bond migrates from the Py to the ap position during the oxidation ... 

The most abundant natural steroid is cholesterol. It can be obtained in large quantides from wool fat (15%) or from brain or spinal chord tissues of fat stock (2-4%) by extraction with chlorinated hydrocarbons. Its saturated side-chain can be removed by chromium trioxide oxidation, but the yield of such reactions could never be raised above 8% (see page 118f.). 

The intermediate m hydrogenation formed by reaction of the unsaturated ester with the hydrogenated surface of the metal catalyst not only can proceed to the saturated fatty acid ester but also can dissociate to the original ester having a cis double bond or to its trans stereoisomer Unlike polyunsaturated vegetable oils which tend to reduce serum cholesterol levels the trans fats produced by partial hydrogenation have cholesterol raising effects similar to those of saturated fats... 

Some of the most effective cholesterol lowering drugs act by inhibiting the enzyme that catalyzes this reaction... 

Once formed cholesterol undergoes a number of biochemical transformations A very common one is acylation of its C 3 hydroxyl group by reaction with coenzyme A derivatives of fatty acids Other processes convert cholesterol to the biologically impor tant steroids described m the following sections... 

A steroid very closely related structurally to cholesterol is its 7 dehydro derivative 7 Dehydrocholesterol is formed by enzymatic oxidation of cholesterol and has a conju gated diene unit m its B ring 7 Dehydrocholesterol is present m the tissues of the skin where it is transformed to vitamin D3 by a sunlight induced photochemical reaction... 

Heterogeneous reaction (Section 6 1) A reaction involving two or more substances present in different phases Hydro genation of alkenes is a heterogeneous reaction that takes place on the surface of an insoluble metal catalyst Heterolytic cleavage (Section 4 16) Dissociation of a two electron covalent bond in such a way that both electrons are retained by one of the initially bonded atoms Hexose (Section 25 4) A carbohydrate with six carbon atoms High density lipoprotein (HDL) (Section 26 11) A protein that carries cholesterol from the tissues to the liver where it is metabolized HDL is often called good cholesterol Histones (Section 28 9) Proteins that are associated with DNA in nucleosomes... 

In the enzymatic assays of cholesterol, glucose, and urea, oxygen is used and H2O2 is formed. The reaction for uric acid [69-93-2] is... 

Dry chemistry tests are used for the assay of metaboHtes by concentration or by activity in a biological matrix. In general, reactive components are present in amounts in excess of the analyte being deterrnined to make sure that the reactions go to completion quickly. Other enzymes or reagents are used to drive the reactions in the desired direction (25). Glucose and cholesterol are the analytes most commonly measured. 

Squalene is also an intermediate in the synthesis of cholesterol. StmcturaHy, chemically, and biogeneticaHy, many of the triterpenes have much in common with steroids (203). It has been verified experimentally that squalene is the precursor in the biosynthesis of all triterpenes through a series of cyclization and rearrangement reactions (203,204). Squalene is not used much in cosmetics and perfumery formulations because of its light, heat, and oxidative instabiUty however, its hydrogenated derivative, squalane, has a wide use as a fixative, a skin lubricant, and a carrier of Hpid-soluble dmgs. 

L-Tyrosine metabohsm and catecholamine biosynthesis occur largely in the brain, central nervous tissue, and endocrine system, which have large pools of L-ascorbic acid (128). Catecholamine, a neurotransmitter, is the precursor in the formation of dopamine, which is converted to noradrenaline and adrenaline. The precise role of ascorbic acid has not been completely understood. Ascorbic acid has important biochemical functions with various hydroxylase enzymes in steroid, dmg, andhpid metabohsm. The cytochrome P-450 oxidase catalyzes the conversion of cholesterol to bUe acids and the detoxification process of aromatic dmgs and other xenobiotics, eg, carcinogens, poUutants, and pesticides, in the body (129). The effects of L-ascorbic acid on histamine metabohsm related to scurvy and anaphylactic shock have been investigated (130). Another ceUular reaction involving ascorbic acid is the conversion of folate to tetrahydrofolate. Ascorbic acid has many biochemical functions which affect the immune system of the body (131). 

Another appHcation of 4-chlorophenol is in the synthesis of a dmg, ethyl a, a-dimethyl-4-chlorophenoxy acetate [637-07-0] (60), used as a cholesterol-reducing agent. This synthesis involves reaction with acetone and chloroform, followed by ethanol esterification. 

The catalyst sometimes loses its activity when about half of the theoretical amount of hydrogen has been absorbed, probably because of the poisoning action of impurities not removed from the commercial cholesterol. In such a case the addition of one or two 0.2-g. portions of catalyst usually sufiices to bring the reaction practically to completion. 

Colour Reactions. Rochelmeyer (1939) has provided a list of colour reactions given by solasodine and solasodiene (solanosodine), with reagents usually applied to the sterols, and Briggs et al. have found that when concentrated sulphuric acid (1 mil) is carefully added to a solution of solasonine or solasodine in hot alcohol (1 mil) a characteristic, intense, greenish-yellow fluorescence is produced, a reaction which is not given by solanine or solanidine. They have also found that intense colours are formed when solasonine or solasodine is mixed with resorcinol, or one of a variety of aldehydes, and boiled with concentrated hydrochloric acid. Colours are also produced with this test by cholesterol, digitonin, jacobine carbazole, pyrrole, or nicotine, the most intense colours being formed with p-hydroxybenzaldehyde or anisaldehyde. 

The earliest attempts to prepare deuterated steroids were carried out by exchange reactions of aliphatic hydrogens with deuterium in the presence of a surface catalyst. Cholesterol, for example, has been treated with platinum in a mixture of deuterium oxide and acetic acid-OD, and was found to yield... 

The preparation of 7,7-d2-cholesterol in 1950 was the first example of deuterium incorporation into steroids via desulfurization of mercaptals with deuterated Raney nickel. A substantially modified version of this reaction subsequently became the first widely used method for site-specific insertion of two deuteriums in place of a carbonyl oxygen. This conversion consists of the preparation of a mercapto derivative (84 85), which usually... 

A solution of hydrazoic acid (prepared from about 30 g sodium azide) in ca. 200 ml chloroform is prepared in a well-ventilated hood. Cholesterol (15 g) is dissolved in the hydrazoic acid solution and 3.5 ml of triethylamine is added. The reaction mixture is then stirred at room temperature while 7 g of A-chlorosuccinimide is added. The reaction mixture is allowed to stand overnight and then the chloroform solution is washed successively with dilute sodium bisulfite, dilute soldium bicarbonate solutions and finally with water. The chloroform extract is then dried (Na2S04) and the solvent removed in vacuo. The residue is crystallized from ethanol to yield ca. 8.5 g of (101) in colorless needles mp 138-139°. The chloro azide is reduced to the aziridine by lithium aluminum hydride according to the foregoing procedure. 

Sorm" " found that when cholesterol acetate (67) is oxidized by chromic acid in acetic acid-water at 55°, crystalline keto seco-acid (69) is obtained in 25-30 % yield from the mother liquors after removal of successive crops of 7-ketocholesterol acetate (68). Reaction of keto acid (69) with benzoyl chloride in pyridine gives a dehydration product, shown" to be the )5-lactone... 

Acid (69)." To a well-stirred mixture of 108 g (0.232 mole) of cholesterol acetate and 1.2 liters of glacial acetic acid is added over a period of 2 hr, a solution of 70 g of chromium trioxide in 200 ml of 50 % glacial acetic acid. The reaction mixture is maintained at a temperature of 55°. Upon completion of the addition, the mixture is stirred for an additional 2 hr at 55°. Excess chromic acid is destroyed by addition of 60 ml of methanol, and then 800 ml of acetic acid is removed by distillation under reduced pressure at a bath temperature of 40°. The remaining liquid is diluted with 50 ml of water and allowed to stand for 12 hr. The crystalline 7-ketocholesterol acetate which separates is removed by filtration and washed with 80 % acetic acid to yield 33.3 g (35%) of (68) mp 149-152°. 

Ozonization of A -steroids usually gives complex mixtures (however, see ref. 48). Ozonolysis became a practical step in the general synthesis of B-norsteroids with the discovery that added methanol" (or formaldehyde ) improves yields significantly. Thus, Tanabe and Morisawa prepared 5/ -hydroxy-6/ -formyl-B-norsteroids (74) from cholesterol acetate, dehydroepiandrosterone acetate and pregnenolone acetate in overall yields of 64-74% by the reaction sequence represented below. 

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