Homophenylalanine

An approach to the construction of Fe(II)-binding agent pyrimine 40, isolated from Pseudomonas species, employed the bis-homophenylalanine 38. Initiation of the Boekelheide reaction with TFAA and hydrolysis gave the advanced intermediate 39 that provided access to the natural product. 

A formal Pictet-Spengler condensation to give 2,3-dihydro-lH-2-benzazepine-3-carboxylic acid 36 was achieved in quantitative yield via a sigmatropic rearrangement of ci5-2,3-methanophenylalanine 35 in the presence of paraformaldehyde and hydrochloric acid at room temperature. It is interesting to note that homophenylalanine 38 did not cyclize to give 37, even under vigorous reaction conditions. 

Many reports confirm notable reductions in reaction times when carrying out reactions under micro flow conditions. Concerning p-dipeptide synthesis, for example, a comparison between batch and micro-reactor processing was made for the reaction of Dmab-P-alanine and Fmoc-i-P-homophenylalanine [158]. While the micro reactor gave a 100% yield in 20 min, only about 5% was reached with the batch method. Even after 400 h, only 70% conversion was achieved. 

Oi anic synthesis IS [OS 18] Dipeptide from Fmoc-L-y homophenylalanine... 

Dmab- alanine and Fmoc-L-y9-homophenylalanine were reacted to give the dipeptide [5],... 

Figure 9 Backbone (Ca, C, N) trace from residues 83 to 250 of 30 conformers of inhibited sfSTR. Residues 251 to 255 are disordered and are not included. All the heavy atoms of the inhibitor are shown. The family of structures are viewed along the long axis of the catalytic helix B. The inhibitor (I) binds to the protein in a well-defined cleft and runs antiparallel to the outer strand of the p-sheet with the ring of Pf homophenylalanine (hP) buried in a bottomless S/ subsite and the 2 arginine (R) is exposed to the solvent. 

Figure 11 Potential hydrogen bond partners to the backbone atoms of the inhibitor and the residues of the S/ subsite that are in intermolecular contact with the Pi homophenylalanine.

J. K., Thornberry N.A., Weber, A.E. and Parmee, E.R. (2004) Discovery of potent and selective P-homophenylalanine based dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitors. Bioorganic el Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 14, 4759-4762. 

Hsu et have cloned two enzymes from Deimcoccus radiodurans for overexpression in E. coli in order to carry out a dynamic kinetic resolution to obtain L-homophenylalanine, frequently required for pharmaceutical synthesis. The starting material is the racemic mixture of A acetylated homophenylalanine, and the two enzymes are an amino acid A -acylase, which specifically removes the acetyl group from the L-enantiomer, and a racemase, which interconverts the D- and L-forms of the A acyl amino acids. The resolution was carried out successfully using whole-cell biocatalysts, with the two enzymes either expressed in separate E. coli strains or coexpressed in the same cells. 

A/-Carbamoylase Combined with Af-Acyl Amino Acid Racemase to Produce L-Homophenylalanine... 

In Section 5.03.6.2, a stereoselective synthesis of L-homophenylalanine from the racemic AAacetylated amino acid is described. The authors, however, found that substrate solubility limited the utility of this procedure. Having found an L-N-carbamoylase in Bacillus kaustophilus, they introduced the gene for this enzyme together with that for the N-acyl amino acid racemase from D. radiodurans into E. coli for coexpression. These cells, permeabilized with 0.5% toluene, were able to deliver L-homophenylalanine in 99% yield and were able to be used for multiple reaction cycles. 

Scheme 10.8 outlines the application of rhodium-catalyzed allyhc amination to the preparation of (il)-homophenylalanine (J )-38, a component of numerous biologically active agents [36]. The enantiospecific rhodium-catalyzed allylic amination of (l )-35 with the lithium anion of N-benzyl-2-nitrobenzenesulfonamide furmshed aUylamine (R)-36 in 87% yield (2° 1° = 55 1 >99% cee) [37]. The N-2-nitrobenzenesulfonamide was employed to facilitate its removal under mild reaction conditions. Hence, oxidative cleavage of the alkene (R)-36 followed by deprotection furnished the amino ester R)-37 [37, 38]. Hydrogenation of the hydrochloride salt of (l )-37 followed by acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of the ester afforded (i )-homophenylalanine (R)-3S in 97% overall yield. 

Although this enzymatic process fills only a niche in the L-lysine market, it is a successful example of a general method for amino acid resolution. It has some superior features compared to the Tanabe L-aminoacylase approach. The L-lysine can be extended to non-protein amino acids such as the use of P. putida aminopeptidase to resolve DL-homophenylalanine to produce precursors for the anti-hypertensive dmg Enalapril. A similar approach has also been used for the production of L-cysteine from DL-2-amino-A2-thiazohne-4-caiboxylate using Sarcina lucea, which is remarkable in that both isomers form L-cysteine. 

In the mid to late 1980s, many research groups focused on methods and processes to prepare L-phenylalanine (Chapter 3). This was a direct result of the demand for the synthetic, artificial sweetener aspartame. One of the many routes studied was the use of phenylalanine dH (Scheme 19.4, R = C6H5CH2) with phenylpyruvate (PPA) as substrate.57-58 This enzyme from Bacillus sphaericus shows a broad substrate specificity and, thus, has been used to prepare a number of derivatives of L-phenylalanine.59 A phenylalanine dH isolated from a Rhodococcus strain M4 has been used to make L-homophenylalanine (.S )-2-amino-4-pheny I butanoic acid], a key, chiral component in many angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors.40 More recently, that same phenylalanine dH has been used to synthesize a number of other unnatural amino acids (UAAs) that do not contain an aromatic sidechain.43... 

In the active site of the enzyme PLP forms an internal aldimine (Schiff base) with Lys-270 (Fig. 9.13,1). When the substrate is bound at the active site, its a-amino group attacks the C-4 atom of the coenzyme and replaces the -amino group of Lys-270 from its bond with PLP. This transaldimination reaction probably proceeds via a tetrahedral intermediate (a gem-diamine). Spectral evidence for formation of a gem-diamine in this step has recently been obtained in studies of the reaction of tryptophanase with L-homophenylalanine.41 The gem-diamine is subsequently converted to an external, PLP-substrate aldimine, and the -amino group of Lys-270 is released (Fig. 9.13, II). The equilibrium constant of this step with L-tryptophan is determined to be 11.6 mM.78 ... 

Similarly, attempts to generate the azaallyl complex 401 from N-TMS phenyl propyl amine result in formation of the aromatic metallation product 43 after only 45 min at 65 °C (Scheme 14). Interception of the intermediate 21 with (rac)-DPEC gives the homophenylalanine ester 381 in 96% de and 53% yield [24]. 

---