C7 Epimerization of Benzylidene-Protected β-d-Idopyranosides Brings Structural Insights into Idose Conformational Flexibility.

Idose is unique among other aldohexoses because of its high conformational flexibility in solution. We herein show that benzylidene acetal-protected 3- O -acyl-β-d-idopyranosides undergo Lewis acid-catalyzed C7 epimerization with concomitant ⁴ C ₁ to ¹ C ₄ ring inversion. The reaction conditions and structural parameters for this transformation to occur have been thoroughly investigated through an extensive glycosylation study combined with NMR analyses, X-ray diffraction, and quantum molecular modeling. In addition to reporting a direct, β-stereoselective idosylation approach, our work brings fundamental structural insights into the conformational flexibility of idose.