1,2.3,4-tetrahydro-p-carbolines

This reaction is also a key method for the formation of tetrahydro-P-carbolines 5 from indole bases 4 and aldehydes, ketones, or 1,2-di carbonyl compounds 2. These reactions are similarly acid-catalyzed or thermally-induced and have been utilized in the synthesis of numerous indole alkaloids. 

A few years later, Tatsui developed this process for use with indole bases and prepared l-methyl-l,2,3,4-tetrahydro-P-carboline 11 from tryptamine 9 and acetaldehyde 10 under acid catalysis. ... 

Several factors influence the diastereoselectivity of the Pictet-Spengler condensation to form 1,3-disubstituted and 1,2,3-trisubstituted tetrahydro-P-carbolines (39 and 40, respectively). The presence or absence of an alkyl substituent on the nitrogen of tryptophan has a large influence on the relative stereochemistry of the tetrahydro-P-carboline products formed from a condensation reaction with an aldehyde under various reaction conditions. 

For the kinetically controlled formation of 1,3-disubstituted tetrahydro-P-carbolines, placing both substituents in equatorial positions to reduce 1,3-diaxial interactions resulted in the cw-selectivity usually observed in these reactions." Condensation reactions carried out at or below room temperature in the presence of an acid catalyst gave the kinetic product distribution with the cw-diastereomer being the major product observed, as illustrated by the condensation of L-tryptophan methyl ester 41 with benzaldehyde. At higher reaction temperatures, the condensation reaction was reversible and a thermodynamic product distribution was observed. Cis and trans diastereomers were often obtained in nearly equal amounts suggesting that they have similar energies."... 

Conversely, when A-alkyl tryptophan methyl esters were condensed with aldehydes, the trans diastereomers were observed as the major products." X-ray-crystal structures of 1,2,3-trisubstituted tetrahydro-P-carbolines revealed that the Cl substituent preferentially adopted a pseudo-axial position, forcing the C3 substituent into a pseudo-equatorial orientation to give the kinetically and thermodynamically preferred trans isomer." As the steric size of the Cl and N2 substituents increased, the selectivity for the trans isomer became greater. A-alkyl-L-tryptophan methyl ester 42 was condensed with various aliphatic aldehydes in the presence of trifluoroacetic acid to give predominantly the trans isomers. ... 

A -sulfinyl chiral auxiliaries have been used to prepare enantiopure tetrahydro-P-carbolines and tetrahydroisoquinolines in good yields under mild reaction conditions. Both enantiomers of V-p-toluenesulfinyltryptamine 46 could be readily prepared from the commercially available Andersen reagents.Compound 46 reacted with various aliphatic aldehydes in the presence of camphorsulfonic acid at -78 °C to give the A-sulfinyl tetrahydro-P-carbolines 47 in good yields. The major diastereomers were obtained after a single crystallization. Removal of the sulfinyl auxiliaries under mildly acidic conditions produced the tetrahydro-P-carbolines 48 as single enantiomers. 

The nitrone 394, prepared from -hy droxytry p tarn i ne 392 and A -BOC- -methyl-D-cysteine 393 <2000JCS(P1)4570>, was treated with trifluoroacetic acid at room temperature to yield the corresponding tetracycle 47 along with the tetrahydro-P-carboline (Scheme 86) <2000J(P1)3487>. 

A few intriguing developments in the area of tetrahydro-P-carboline synthetic methodology include the report of a catalytic asymmetric Pictet-Spengler reaction <06JACS1086> and an enantioselective Pd-catalyzed intramolecular allylic alkylation of indoles <06JACS1424>. A one-step synthesis of 1-substituted-P-carbolines from L-tryptophan has appeared that bypassed the tetrahydro intermediate <06T10900>. 

Tietze adopted a somewhat more indirect route to enantiopure tetrahydro-p-carbolines 166. This approach begins with P-S reaction of tryptamine with aldehydes or a-keto acids to yield the carbolines 163, which upon oxidation to the corresponding imines 164 subsequently undergo enantioselective hydrogenation with the catalyst 165 in a 5 2 formic acid/triethylamine mixture in acetonitrile <00EJO2247>. 

DehydrogenationThe tetrahydro-P-carboline 2 can be dehydrogenated directly to the dihydro-p-carboline 4 by two equiv. of 1, but the conversion is effected... 

The Pictet-Spengler reaction is the method of choice for the preparation of tetrahydro-P-carbolines, which represent structural elements of several natural products such as biologically active alkaloids. It proceeds via a condensation of a carbonyl compound with a tryptamine followed by a Friedel-Crafts-type cyclization. In 2004, Jacobsen et al. reported the first catalytic asymmetric variant [25]. This acyl-Pictet-Spengler reaction involves an N-acyliminium ion as intermediate and is promoted by a chiral thiourea (general Brpnsted acid catalysis). 

The Reissert reaction of 3,4-dihydro-p-carboline (213) has also been studied 47,48). It has been shown that 3,4-dihydro-p-carboline (213) afforded 1-cyano-2,9-dibenzoyl-l,2,3,4-tetrahydro-P-carboline (214) with a phase-transfer catalyst and trimethylsilyl cyanide (Scheme 27). However, the normal Reissert product 2-benzoyl-l-cyano-l,2,3,4-tetrahydro-p-carboline (215) was obtained when a catalytic amount of anhydrous aluminum chloride was used in addition to the trimethylsilyl cyanide reagent. Reaction of 214 with sodium... 

In 2004, Taylor and Jacobsen suggested a procedure for the enantioselective acetyl-Pictet-Spengler reaction, that is the cyclization of electron-rich aryl or heteroaryl groups onto N-acyliminium ion enabling access to substituted tetrahydro-P-carbolines and tetrahydroisoquinolines that are core structure elements in natural and synthetic organic compounds [202, 203]. Screening various thiourea catalyst candidates such as 47 in the formation of model product Np-acetyl-... 

Scheme 6.50 Typical tetrahydro-P-carbolines prepared with the 52-catalyzed enantioselective acetyl-Pictet-Spengler reaction.

Likewise, a wide range of complex polycyclic systems was constructed from suitable precursors. Compounds 269 and 270 were synthesized in 79% yield in a 1.6 1 ratio from tetrahydroisoquinoline-1-carboxylic acid, while 271 was obtained as a single stereoisomer in 87% yield from tetrahydro-p-carboline-l-carboxylic acid (Scheme 3.91). 

The direct condensation of unsaturated oxazolones with tryptamine in hydrochloric acid is an important and interesting case that deserves special attention. The reaction occurs via in situ hydrolysis of the oxazolone to a keto acid followed by a Pictet-Spengler-like reaction with tryptamine. This protocol affords a tetrahydro-p-carboline wherein the oxazolone is the synthetic equivalent of an arylacetalde-hyde. The reaction has been extended to substituted tryptamines 500 thus, allowing access to 1,3,4-trisubstituted tetrahydro-p-carbolines 501 as shown in Scheme 7.159. Some of these compounds have shown promising central nervous system activity. 

Elaeagnus pungens Thunb. E. umbellata Thunb. Hu Tin Chi (root, leaf, fruit) Harman, tetrahydroharman, dihydroharman, 2-methyl-l,2,3, 4-tetrahydro-P-carboline, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, catechin, neochlorogenic acid, epicatechin.48 Treat coughs, watery diarrhea, an astringent in hemoptysis. 

In connection with the preparation of (+)- and (-)-tetrahydroharmine (compounds 39 and 40 in Fig. (10), respectively) the racemization of these compounds was studied by Chnsey and Brossi [34]. They demonstrated that, under acidic conditions, the pure enantiomers racemized with relative ease, and suggested that the racemization resembled epimerization of reserpine (1) and 1,3-disubstituted tetrahydro-P-carbolines. Therefore, the mechanism responsible for the racemization would be one of those mentioned above. 

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