Search

Ellipticine, olivacine, and their five reduced natural variants were synthesized via a palladium-catalyzed tandem cyclization/cross-coupling reaction as the key step. In addition, a previously unknown conformer of janetine was obtained through conformational inversion of the D ring in janetine. Because there are few synthetic approaches for reduced natural variants, little is known about the biological activities of these compounds. Six synthetic natural alkaloids and five of their derivatives were evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against HCT-116 and HL-60 cells. The activities of variants with the D-reduced ring or without the C(11)-Me group were lower than those of ellipticine. The conformer of guatambuine showed higher activities than guatambuine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concise syntheses of 9-methoxyellipticine, 3,4-dihydroellipticine (µ-alkaloid D), 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroellipticine, 2-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroellipticine, olivacine, 3,4-dihydroolivacine, (±)-guatambuine, and (±)-janetine were developed starting from hexatriene intermediates readily obtained by Pd-catalyzed tandem cyclization/cross-coupling reaction of indolylborates. The route enables the facile construction of pyrido[4,3- b]carbazoles by Cu-catalyzed 6π-electrocyclization and subsequent transformation of the pyridocarbazole intermediates into pyrido[4,3- b]carbazole alkaloids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new approach to form iminoisocoumarins from readily available and stable 2-alkynylbenzamides was developed by using a tandem copper-catalyzed N-arylation and regioselective 6- endo- dig cyclization in the presence of diaryliodonium salts, a copper catalyst, and 2,6-di- tert-butylpyridine. The arylation occurred at the nitrogen atom rather than the oxygen atom of the amide group, the alkynyl carbon, or the benzene ring of the benzamide. Cyclization occurred through a preferential nucleophilic attack by the oxygen rather than the nitrogen atom of the amide group to produce iminoisocoumarin derivatives in good to moderate yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covering: 2012 to 2013. Previous review: Nat. Prod. Rep., 2013, 30, 694–752 This review covers the literature on simple indole alkaloids and those with a nonrearranged monoterpenoid unit from the beginning of 2012 up to the end of 2013, which includes newly isolated alkaloids, structure determinations, total syntheses and biological activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calothrixin B, whose structure consists of a pentacyclic indolo[3,2- j]phenanthridine framework, was originally isolated as a secondary metabolite from Calothrix cyanobacteria and was found to exhibit potent antiproliferative activity. In this study, treatment with 100 μM of calothrixin B did not inhibit the proliferation of HL-60 promyelocytic leukemia cells, the result indicated that calothrixin B could possess weaker activity against leukemia cells. In a previous study of the structure-antiproliferative activity relationships of calothrixin B analogs, the tetracyclic 5 H-pyrido[4,3- b]carbazole-4,11(6 H)-dione structure, which does not include the benzene ring found in calothrixin B, was reported to be necessary for antiproliferative activity; however, the induction of substituents on the indole nitrogen atom of calothrixin B decreased the antiproliferative activity of the compound. To develop calothrixin B analogs with good antiproliferative activity against both HL-60 and HCT-116 cells, we synthesized various N-substituted calothrixin B analogs and assessed their activity. Compared with calothrixin B, N-OMe calothrixin B displayed almost the same or slightly stronger antiproliferative activity against HCT-116 cells, whereas the N-MOM analog demonstrated slightly weaker activity against these cells. These two analogs also inhibited proliferation of HL-60 cells, whereas calothrixin B did not exhibit antiproliferative activity toward these cells. Among calothrixin B analogs, N-OMe and N-MOM calothrixins B are cytotoxic against HCT-116 cells and not the lack of the effect on HL-60 cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

( S)-(-)-Dichotomine A and its enantiomer were synthesized from the key intermediate, methyl 1-(1-hydroxyethyl)-β-carboline-3-carboxylate, by enantioselective esterification with Lipase QLM. The first total synthesis of (+)-dichotomide II and its enantiomer were also achieved from ( S)-(-)-dichotomine A methyl ester and its enantiomer. The absolute configuration of the stereogenic center of the reported (+)-dichotomide II was determined to be R. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The palladium-catalyzed tandem cyclization/cross-coupling reaction of triethyl(indol-2-yl)borate with vinyl bromide was successfully used in the concise total synthesis of the indolophenanthridine alkaloids, calothrixins A and B. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]