Elegic acid

A special problem arises in the preparation of secondary amines. These compounds are highly nucleophilic, and alkylation of an amine with alkyl halides cannot be expected to stop at any specifle stage. Secondary amides, however, can be monoalkylated and lydrolyzed or be reduced to secondary amines (p. 11 If.). In the elegant synthesis of phenyl- phrine an intermediate -hydroxy isocyanate (from a hydrazide and nitrous acid) cyclizes to pve an oxazolidinone which is monomethylated. Treatment with strong acid cleaves the cyclic irethan. 

A technique based on ozonation, in contrast, provides information on the stmcture of the lignin side chain by degrading the aromatic rings (33). Thus the side chain of the dominant stmcture ia all native lignins, the arylglycerol—P-aryl ether moiety, can be obtained ia the form of erythronic and threonic acids. Ozonation proves to be an elegant method for determination of the stereospecificity ia lignin. 

The elegant genetic studies by the group of Charles Yanofsky at Stanford University, conducted before the crystal structure was known, confirm this mechanism. The side chain of Ala 77, which is in the loop region of the helix-turn-helix motif, faces the cavity where tryptophan binds. When this side chain is replaced by the bulkier side chain of Val, the mutant repressor does not require tryptophan to be able to bind specifically to the operator DNA. The presence of a bulkier valine side chain at position 77 maintains the heads in an active conformation even in the absence of bound tryptophan. The crystal structure of this mutant repressor, in the absence of tryptophan, is basically the same as that of the wild-type repressor with tryptophan. This is an excellent example of how ligand-induced conformational changes can be mimicked by amino acid substitutions in the protein. 

During the preparation of the dihalo-(usually dibromo) 20-ketopregnanes, other reactive sites must be protected (e.g., addition of bromine to the A -double bond, ketal formation with a 3-ketone). An elegant method which avoids such problems has been devised by the Upjohn group in their studies on the conversion of 11-ketoprogesterone to hydrocortisone. The former is reacted with ethyl oxalate at C-2 and C-21, then addition of three moles of bromine gives a 2,21,21-tribromide. Alkaline rearrangement produces the side chain unsaturated acid, and the bromine at C-2 is subsequently removed with zinc. 

The reaction of 2-(a-pyridyl)alkylmalonic acid with J -piperideine leading to formation of 3-((x-pyridyl)quinolizidine-l-carboxylic acid on decarboxylation, has been used by Van Tamelen and Foltz (316) for the syntheis of the alkaloid lupanine (Scheme 20). A very elegant synthesis of matrine has been accomplished by Bohlmann et al. (317). 

The whole sequence of reactions represents a tour de force in the elegant manipulation of extremely reactive compounds. F3CIO2 is a violent oxidizing reagent but forms stable adducts by fluoride ion transfer to Lewis acids such as BF3, AsF5 and PtFe. The structures of F3CIO2 and [F2C102] have C2v symmetry as expected (Fig. 17.26e and i). 

An elegant synthesis of (5f(, 65, 8/f -6-( C(-hytltQxyethyl -2-rhytltQxymethyl penem-3-cdr-boxylic acid has been accomplished by the strategy based on the Michael adthdon and Nef reacdon CScheme 4.9)/ ... 

When the Woodward-Eschenmoser synthesis began, it was known from the work of Bernhauer et al.5 that cobyric acid (4), a naturally occurring substance, could be converted directly into vitamin B12. Thus, the synthetic problem was reduced to the preparation of cobyric acid, a molecule whose seventh side chain terminates in a carboxylic acid group and is different from the other side chains. Two strategically distinct and elegant syntheses of the cobyric acid molecule evolved from the combined efforts of the Woodward and Eschenmoser groups and both will be presented. Although there is naturally some overlap, the two variants differ principally in the way in which the corrin nucleus is assembled. 

Stork s elegant use of a protected cyanohydrin function in the synthesis of PGF2a (2) is also noteworthy. The electron-withdrawing cyano substituent in intermediate 21 (Scheme 7) confers nucleophilic potential to C-9 and permits the construction of the saturated cyclopentane nucleus of PGF2a (2) through intramolecular alkylation. In addition, the C-9 cyanohydrin function contained within 40 is stable under the acidic conditions used to accomplish the conversion of 39 to 40 (see Scheme 7), and it thus provides suitable protection for an otherwise labile /J-hydroxy ketone. 

You will note that the oxygen atoms attached to carbons 5 and 12 in 43 reside in proximity to the C-9 ketone carbonyl. Under sufficiently acidic conditions, it is conceivable that removal of the triethylsilyl protecting groups would be attended by a thermodynamically controlled spiroketalization reaction.30 Indeed, after hydro-genolysis of the C-26 benzyl ether in 43, subjection of the organic residue to the action of para-toluenesulfonic acid in a mixture of methylene chloride, ether, and water accomplishes the desired processes outlined above and provides monensin methyl ester. Finally, saponification of the methyl ester with aqueous sodium hydroxide in methanol furnishes the sodium salt of (+)-monensin [(+)-1], Still s elegant synthesis of monensin is now complete.13... 

The noteworthy successes of a relevant model study12 provided the foundation for Merck s thienamycin syntheses. In the first approach (see Schemes 2 and 3), the journey to the natural product commences from a readily available derivative of aspartic acid this route furnishes thienamycin in its naturally occurring enantiomeric form, and is noted for its convergency. During the course of this elegant synthesis, an equally impressive path to thienamycin was under parallel development (see Schemes 4 and 5). This operationally simple route is very efficient (>10% overall yield), and is well suited for the production of racemic thienamycin on a commercial scale.. x... 

The general features of this elegant and efficient synthesis are illustrated, in retrosynthetic format, in Scheme 4. Asteltoxin s structure presents several options for retrosynthetic simplification. Disassembly of asteltoxin in the manner illustrated in Scheme 4 furnishes intermediates 2-4. In the synthetic direction, attack on the aldehyde carbonyl in 2 by anion 3 (or its synthetic equivalent) would be expected to afford a secondary alcohol. After acid-catalyzed skeletal reorganization, the aldehydic function that terminates the doubly unsaturated side chain could then serve as the electrophile for an intermolecular aldol condensation with a-pyrone 4. Subsequent dehydration of the aldol adduct would then afford asteltoxin (1). 

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