Synthesis chiral drugs

Organic chemists often use enantiomerically homogeneous starting materials for the synthesis of complex molecules (see Chiral Drugs, p. 296). A novel preparation of the S enantiomer of compound B has been described using a bacterial cyclohexanone monooxygenase enzyme system. 

Asymmetric synthesis is a stimulating academic challenge, but since it has become clear that most chiral drugs can be administered safely only in the enantiomerically pure form, the industrial need for asymmetric methods has made research in asymmetric synthesis absolutely necessary [5]. This has driven a renaissance in the discipline of organic chemistry, because all of the old-established reactions need to be reinvestigated for their application in asymmetric synthesis [6]. This has also applied... 

When chiral, drugs and other molecules obtained from natural sources or by semisynthesis usually contain one of the possible enantiomeric forms. However, those obtained by total synthesis often consist of mixtures of both enantiomers. In order to develop commercially the isolated enantiomers, two alternative approaches can be considered (i) enantioselective synthesis of the desired enantiomer or (ii) separation of both isomers from a racemic mixture. The separation can be performed on the target molecule or on one of its chemical precursors obtained from conventional synthetic procedures. Both strategies have their advantages and drawbacks. 

A different approach to making chiral drugs is asymmetric synthesis. An optically inactive precursor is converted to the drug by a reaction that uses a special catalyst, usually an enzyme (Chapter 11). If all goes well, the product is a single enantiomer with the desired physiological effect In 2001, William S. Knowles, Ryogi Noyori, and K. Barry Sharpless won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for work in this area. 

Chapters 5-8 are directed to emerging enzymes, which include oxynitrilases, aldolases, ketoreductases, oxidases, nitrile hydratases, and nitrilases, and their recent applications especially in synthesis of chiral drugs and intermediates. 

Patel, R.N. (2001) Biocatalytic synthesis of intermediates for the synthesis of chiral drug substances. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 12 (6), 587-604. 

The development of chiral phosphorus ligands has made undoubtedly significant impact on the asymmetric hydrogenation. Transition metal catalysts with efficient chiral phosphorus ligands have enabled the synthesis of a variety of chiral products from prochiral olefins, ketones, and imines in a very efficient manner, and many practical hydrogenation processes have been exploited in industry for the synthesis of chiral drugs and fine chemicals. 

The enantioseiective hydrogenation of a-amino ketones has been applied extensively to the synthesis of chiral drugs such as the / -agonist SR 58611 (Sanofi Cie). m-Chlorstyreneoxide was obtained via carbene-induced ring closure of the amino alcohol. Epoxide-opening by a chiral amine obtained via a ruthenium-catalyzed hydrogenation of an enamide has led to the desired compound where... 

Separations of enantiomers can be achieved by chiral chromatography. Even, when the enantioselective synthesis of drugs and pharmaceuticals is possible, a major part of chiral compounds is still produced as a racemate and needs to be separated into the enantiomers by chiral high performance liquid chromatography. 

The first edition of Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis, published in the fall of 1993, was very warmly received by research communities in academia and industries from graduate students, research associates, faculty, staff, senior researchers, and others. The book was published at the very moment that the Food Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States clarified the situation in Chiral Drugs, the word chirotechnology was created, and chirotechnology industries were spawning in the United States and Britain. 

AL Margolin. Enzymes in the synthesis of chiral drugs. Enzyme Microb Technol... 

Enzymes often prove to be the catalyst of choice for numerous transformations, and their prowess is particularly noteworthy for the synthesis of chiral molecules. The ability of biocatalysts to impart chirality through conversion of prochiral molecules or by transformation of only one stereoisomer of a racemic mixture stems from the inherent chirality of enzymes. As noted in the introduction to this book (Chapter 1), the chiral drug market is increasing, partly as a result of the need to produce single enantiomers as advocated by the U.S. Food and Drag Administration.1 The ability to extend the patent life of a drug through a racemic switch also plays a role in this increase. An example of a racemic switch is Astra Zeneca s Esomeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor (see Chapter 31).2... 

Only a small number of examples of chiral compounds that are produced at high volume have been given in this chapter. The comparison to the first edition s top ten pharmaceutical list shows that asymmetric synthesis is now beginning to play an important role in the synthesis of drugs. Although fermentation and resolution approaches are still in abundance, the drugs that are prepared by these methods are mature and nearing the end of their patent lives. There is no reason to doubt that... 

---