Protecting moieties phthaloyl

The statine-like moiety in one of the first drugs, saquinovir (23-8), comprises a transition state mimic for the cleavage of phenylalanylprolyl and tyrosylprolyl sequences. Constmction starts with the protection of the amino group of phenylalanine as its phthaloyl derivative (Phth) by reaction with phthalic anhydride this is then converted to acid chloride. The chain is then extended by one carbon using a Friedel-Crafts-like reaction. The required reagent (21-2) is prepared by reaction of the enolate obtained from the /7A-silyl ether (21-3) of glyoxylic acid and lithio... 

Melphalan and the racemic analog have been prepared by two general routes (Scheme I). In Approach (A) the amino acid function is protected, and the nitrogen mustard moiety is prepared by conventional methods from aromatic nitro-derivatives. Thus, the ethyl ester of N-phthaloyl-phenylalanine was nitrated and reduced catalytically to amine I. Compound I was reacted with ethylene oxide to form the corresponding bis(2-hydroxyethyl)amino derivative II, which was then treated with phosphorus oxychloride or thionyl chloride. The blocking groups were removed by acidic hydrolysis. Melphalan was precipitated by addition of sodium acetate and was recrystallized from methanol. No racemization was detected [10,28—30]. The hydrochloride was obtained in pure form from the final hydrolysis mixture by partial neutralization to pH 0.5 [31]. Variants of this approach, used for the preparation of the racemic compound, followed the same route via the a-acylamino-a-p-aminobenzyl malonic ester III [10,28—30,32,33] or the hydantoin IV [12]. 

Within A -Phth-protected amino acid derivatives the C—N bond is extremely susceptible to basic and nucleophilic conditions, thus, leading to unwanted base-catalyzed side reactions of the Phth derivatives in the course of synthetic steps. The applicability of the phthalimido chemistry has been extended by converting the phthalimido moiety into the corresponding 2-(pyrrolidinocarbonyl)benzamide derivative 81, thereby eliminating the base- and nucleophile-sensitivity of the parent phthaloyl derivative (Scheme... 

---