Discovery and Structural Elucidation

The term simple pyrrolidines is chosen here for those alkaloids whose structure is characterized by one or two isolated pyrrolidine rings without any other heterocycUc moiety. This restriction separates them from the biogenetically closely related nicotinoids and tropanes, respectively. Shortly after the discovery of the famous tropane alkaloid cocaine (Niemann 1860) a second alkaloid, hygrine , was discovered in the leaves of Erythroxylum coca Lam., Erythroxylaceae (Wohler and 

Occurrence in Non-solanaceous/Non-convolvulaceous Taxa. Later it was reported that hygrine and/or closely related derivatives are also constituents of different unrelated families found throughout the plant kingdom. Such sporadic occurrence was discovered - besides the Erythroxylaceae (see above) - for certain Sedum spp. (Crassulaceae) (Stevens et al. 1992 Kim et al. 1996), Carallia brachiata (Lour.) Merr. (Rhizophoraceae), Cochlearia arctica Slecht (Brassicaceae), as well as for Dendrobium chrysanthum Wall. (Orchidaceae) (Massiot and Delaude 1986 and references therein) and Picea breweriana S.Watson, Pinaceae (Schneider et al. 1995). 

5-(2-Oxopropyl)hygrine 5-(2-Hydroxypropyl)hygrine 5-(2-Hydroxypropyl)hygroline Fig. 3.3 Simple pyrrolidine alkalaids of the hygrine and hygroUne type 

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With the discovery and structure elucidation of bonellin (1) and factor I (2), both naturally occurring chlorins. the systematic investigation of total synthetic approaches leading to these natural products and other chlorins was induced.4... 

The discovery and structural elucidation of ferrocene in 1951 and the subsequent development of metal-cyclopentadienyl chemistry started a new era in organometallic chemistry . 

Me Alpine JB, et al. Microbial genomics as a guide to drug discovery and structural elucidation ECO-02301, a novel antifungal agent, as an example. J. Nat. Prod. 2005 68 493 96. 

When the previous chapter (i) on the quinoline alkaloids was completed in 1957, the chemistry of the dictamnine group of alkoxyfuro-quinolines was already well established. The present account records the isolation of already known alkaloids of this group from a much larger number of plant sources and the discovery and structural elucidation of... 

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