Swainsonine enantioselective synthesis

As an example of the usefulness of the Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation the enantioselective synthesis of (-)-swainsonine and an early note by Nicolaou on the stereocontrolled synthesis of 1, 3, 5...(2n + 1) polyols, undertaken in connection with a programme directed towards the total synthesis of polyene macrolide antibiotics, such as amphotericin B and nystatin Aj, will be discussed. 

Cha and co-workers (50) reported a short enantioselective synthesis of the indo-lizidine alkaloid, (—)-swainsonine (247) involving an intramolecular cycloaddition... 

It is well known that alkyl azides also behave as 1,3-dipoles in intramolecular thermal cycloaddition reactions. The formation of two carbon-nitrogen bonds leads to triazolines, which are usually not stable. They decompose after the loss of nitrogen to aziridines, diazo compounds, and heterocyclic imines. There are a limited number of examples reported in which the triazoline was isolated [15]. The dipolar cycloaddition methodology has been extremely useful for the synthesis of many natural products with interesting biological activities [16], In recent years, the cycloaddition approach has allowed many successful syntheses of complex molecules which would be difficult to obtain by different routes. For instance, Cha and co-workers developed a general approach to functionalized indolizidine and pyrrolizidine alkaloids such as (-i-)-crotanecine [17] and (-)-slaframine [18]. The key step of the enantioselective synthesis of (-)-swainsonine (41), starting from 36, involves the construction of the bicyclic imine 38 by an intramolecular 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of an azide derived from tosylate 36, as shown in Scheme 6 [ 19). 

Trost has reported enhanced enantioselectivity in the desymmetrization of mero-biscarbamates in the presence of triethylamine. Under these conditions, high yields (>80%) and enantiomeric excesses (93-99% ee) are obtained. This methodology has been applied to the synthesis of (—)-swainsonine. a-Amino esters have been used as nucleophiles in the reaction with acyclic allylic esters and isoprene monoepoxide, providing access to diastereoselective N-alkylated a-amino esters. By employing the feature ligand, asymmetric palladium(0)-catalyzed cychzation of 2-(tosylamino)phenol with ( -l,4-bis[(methoxycarbonyl)oxy]but-2-ene provides 2-vinylbenzomorpholine in 79% ee. A number of alternative diphosphine ligands were studied and found to be inferior. 

An inventive synthesis of (—)-swainsonine (378) by Trost and Patterson took advantage of the enantioselective desymmetrization of the mese-bis (carbamate) 514 with tris(dibenzylideneacetone)bis(palladium) in the presence of the chiral bis (phosphine) ligand (i .,J )-515 in order to achieve the... 

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