For flavan-3-ols, significant effects to prevent the development of diabetes mellitus are postulated. Inter alia, this is attributed to inhibitory effects on the intestinal α-amylase, in particular for high-molecular-weight procyanidins. In order to gain a deeper insight into the mode of interaction and the resulting α-amylase inhibition, the interaction between the monomers (+)-catechin (CAT) and (-)-epicatechin (EC), the dimers procyanidin (PC) B1 and PC B2, and the trimer PC C1 and their inhibition of porcine pancreatic α-amylase were investigated. Weak interactions were determined by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), with no clear difference between monomers and dimers and even no observable interaction with PC C1. Data from saturation transfer difference (STD)-NMR experiments supported these results with respect to reversible interactions. The detailed NMR signal assignments revealed that the formation of rotamers is solvent-dependent, which might explain the differences in the interaction strength between both diastereomers. The results for interaction were in contrast to the accumulating inhibitory strength with an increasing degree of polymerization when monitoring hydrolysis of the natural substrate starch in a novel continuous approach by ITC. By combining the data from the interaction and inhibition studies, we propose that protein aggregation occurs in the presence of flavan-3-ol oligomers, which are responsible for the inhibitory effects. This rather irreversible interaction is not susceptible to detection by ITC and STD-NMR and was also not observable by CD spectroscopy.

Enantioenriched boron chelates show promising synthetic and luminescent properties; however, the challenging synthesis makes these compounds scarce. In our earlier work, we established a chirality transfer from boron O,N-chelates toward enantioenriched C,N-chelates. This methodology proved to be quite robust, in terms of yields and selectivity. However, unexpected steric effects on stereocontrol prompted a deeper investigation of the chirality transfer. In order to gain a holistic understanding of this process, we studied the structure of the O,N- and C,N-chelates as well as the stability of the dative B–N bonds. Furthermore, the proposed ate-complex as a reaction intermediate could be characterized using heteronuclear (2D) NMR spectroscopy. For this ate-complex, a tridentate O,N,N-chelate effect of the borate anion with the Li-cation was observed. Additional experiments indicated that the borate formation governs the stereoselectivity of chirality transfer. For a successful chirality transfer, an unprecedented SN2-type breaking of the dative B–N bond with an organometallic nucleophile was identified by DFT calculations as the most likely reaction path. For other cases, decreased or inverse enantioselectivity was rationalized by a solvent-assisted pathway.

Interactions between phenolic compounds and the allergen Mal d 1 are discussed to be the reason for better tolerance of apple cultivars, which are rich in polyphenols. Because Mal d 1 is susceptible to proteolytic digestion and allergenic symptoms are usually restricted to the mouth and throat area, the release of native Mal d 1 during the oral phase is of particular interest. Therefore, we studied the release of Mal d 1 under different in vitro oral digestion conditions and revealed that only 6-15% of the total Mal d 1 present in apples is released. To investigate proposed polyphenol-Mal d 1 interactions, various analytical methods, e.g., isothermal titration calorimetry, H-1-N-15-HSQC NMR, and untargeted mass spectrometry, were applied. For monomeric polyphenols, only limited noncovalent interactions were observed, whereas oligomeric polyphenols and browning products caused aggregation. While covalent modifications were not detectable in apple samples, a Michael addition of epicatechin at cysteine 107 in r-Mal d 1.01 was observed.

Molecules stereogenic only at tetrahedral boron atoms show great promise for applications, for example as chiroptical materials, but are scarcely investigated due to their synthetic challenge. Hence, this study reports a two-step synthesis of enantioenriched boron C,N-chelates. First, the diastereoselective complexation of alkyl/aryl borinates with chiral aminoalcohols furnished boron stereogenic heterocycles in up to 86 % yield and d.r. >98 : 2. Treatment of these O,N-complexes with chelate nucleophiles was surmised to transfer the stereoinformation via the ate-complex into the C,N-products. This chirality transfer succeeded by substitution of the O,N-chelates with lithiated phenyl pyridine to give boron stereogenic C,N-chelates in up to 84 % yield and e.r. up to 97 : 3. The chiral aminoalcohol ligands could be recovered after isolation of the C,N-chelates. The chirality transfer tolerated alkyl, alkynyl and (hetero-)aryl moieties at boron and could be further extended by post-modification: transformations such as catalytic hydrogenations or sequential deprotonation/electrophilic trapping were feasible while maintaining the stereochemical integrity of the C,N-chelates. Structural aspects of the boron chelates were studied by variable temperature NMR and X-ray diffraction.

Strategies for synthesizing polyhydroxylated piperidines such as iminosugars have received broad attention. These substances are known to interact with carbohydrate related enzymes, glycosidases and glycosyltransferases, to which also the large enzyme families of chitin synthases and cellulose synthases belong. Many chemical and biological aspects of chitin synthases remain unexplored due to the fact that modulating substances are hardly available or expensive. Starting from enantiopure D- and L-amino acids, a series of iminosugars was prepared by a Lewis acid-catalyzed cyclization of amino acid-derived unsaturated aldehydes as key step. Therefore, different Lewis acids were tested. For samarium diiodide we observed a superior stereoselectivity in comparison to iron(III) chloride and methylaluminium dichloride. To increase water solubility for testing and measurement of enzyme activity, the cyclization products were further functionalized. We established a novel biological chitin synthesis test system which allows quantitative investigation of chitin synthesis in the chitin fiber producing diatom algae Thalassiosira in vivo under the light microscope. None of the compounds displayed cytotoxicity, but two of the four iminosugars increased the length of the chitin fibers produced. This is a strong indicator that these compounds mimic carbohydrates responsible for restarting chitin polymerization.

Two series of flavylium triflates carrying alkoxy side chains in the A-ring (benzo unit of chromylium salt) and thioethers in the B ring (phenyl unit) (O-n-Fla-S-m) as well as thioethers at both A and B ring (S-n-Fla-S-m) were synthesized in order to understand the effect of thioether functionalization on their self-assembly and electronic properties. Concentration-dependent and diffusion ordered (DOSY) NMR experiments of O-1-iV-Fla-S-3 indicate the formation of columnar H-aggregates in solution with antiparallel intracolumnar stacking of the AC unit (chromylium) of the flavylium triflate, in agreement with the solid state structure of O-1-V-Fla-S-1. Thioether substitution on the B ring changes the linear optical properties in solution, whereas it has no effect on the A ring. According to differential scanning calorimetry, polarizing optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction bulk self-assembly of these ionic liquid crystals (ILCs) depends on the total number of side chains, yielding SmA and Lam(Col) phases for ILCs with 2-3 chains and Col(ro), Col(h) phases for ILCs with 3-6 chains. Thus, we demonstrated that thioethers are a useful design tool for ILCs with tailored properties.

Chiral trans-hydrindanes (bicyclo[4.3.0]nonanes) are important building blocks of polycyclic natural products. In order to access 5/6/5- and 5/6/6-carbotricyclic scaffolds scope and limitation of [4+2] cycloadditions of tetrahydroindanones with various dienes were studied. Cyclopentadiene gave a tetracylic endo-(R,R)-diastereomer under acid-catalysis, whereas thermal conditions provided the endo-(S,S)-diastereomer with the opposite diastereofacial selectivity. The stereodivergent outcome was rationalized by high-level quantum-chemical computations which revealed the acid-catalysis to be a kinetically controlled reaction and the thermal cycloaddition to be under thermodynamic control. Stereochemical assignment of the cycloadducts was facilitated by conversion of the 1,3-dicarbonyls with BF3 . OEt2 into BF2-chelate complexes. Subsequent thermal Diels-Alder reaction of BF2- or BBN-chelates (from 9-BBN-OTf) gave endo/exo-mixtures of the (R,R)- and (S,S)-diastereomers, while more elevated temperatures yielded primarily the endo/exo-(S,S)-diastereomers. Thermal [4+2] cycloadditions with 2,3-dimethylbutadiene proceeded with lower diastereoselectivity as the reaction was kinetically controlled according to calculations. Attempted Diels-Alder-reactions with furan gave furyl-substituted indanones rather than cycloadducts.

The AB ring systems of the clifednamide family, polycyclic tetramate macrolactames (PoTeMs), were prepared by a new, convergent approach employing an intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) reaction. Key steps comprise an organocatalytic Michael addition (>90% enantiomeric excess (ee)), a Mukaiyama aldol reaction for the convergent installation of a diene moiety, and a telescoped hydrozirconation/cross-coupling grafting an enone. The following IMDA furnished a highly functionalized hydrindane (diastereomeric ratio (dr) = 91:1) with the same configuration as the clifednamide scaffold. Advantages of this route are only one required protecting group, 13% overall yield over 9 steps (reduced from previously 17 steps/1.3% overall), and the potential access to the key intermediates in the clifednamide biosynthesis.

The Cu -catalyzed carbenoid route gave access to racemic 1-acyl-2-vinylcyclopropanes in 6 steps with yields from < 5 % up to 64 %. As an alternative, a route starting from cyclopentenone or cyclohexenone using sulfur ylides was examined. This 2-step route gave yields ranging from 17 % up to 62 % for cyclopentenone derivatives. The corresponding reactions with cyclohexenone proceeded with lower overall yields due to the formation of several side products. The influence of the substituents R and R, the counterion X−− and the ringsize n on the yields and the cis/trans ratio were studied. Finally, possible mechanisms for the formation of main and side products were discussed [1].

The role of liquid confinement on the asymmetric Rh catalysis was studied using the 1,2-addition of phenylboroxine (2) to N-tosylimine 1 in the presence of [RhCl(C2H4)(2)](2) and chiral diene ligands as benchmark reaction. To get access to Rh complexes of different polarity, enantiomerically pure C-2-symmetric p-substituted 3,6-diphenylbicyclo[3.3.0]octadienes 4 and diastereomerically enriched unsymmetric norbornadienes 5 and 6 carrying either the Evans or the SuperQuat auxiliary were synthesized. A microemulsion containing the equal amounts of H2O/KOH and toluene/reactants was formulated using the hydrophilic sugar surfactant n-octyl beta-d-glucopyranoside (C(8)G(1)) to mediate the miscibility between the nonpolar reactants and KOH, needed to activate the Rh-diene complex. Prominent features of this organized reaction medium are its temperature insensitivity as well as the presence of water and toluene-rich compartments with a domain size of 55 angstrom confirmed by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). Although bicyclooctadiene ligands 4 a,b,e performed equally well under homogeneous and microemulsion conditions, ligands 4 c,d gave a different chemoselectivity. For norbornadienes 5, 6, however, microemulsions markedly improved conversion and enantioselectivity as well as reaction rate, as was confirmed by kinetic studies using ligand 5 b.

The organocatalytic Michael reaction of easily available 1-cyclopentene-1-carbaldehyde and 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds led to cyclopentanecarbaldehydes on a gram scale with low catalyst loading (2 mol%) and high enantioselectivity. The synthetic potential of 4-acylhexahydroindenones from intramolecular aldol condensation was demonstrated by Diels–Alder reaction to a tetracyclic derivative with seven stereogenic centers. The diastereofacial preference of the tetracyclic product was confirmed by DFT calculations. The described reaction sequence is characterized by few redox-economic steps and high degree of molecular complexity.

A blood glucose level lowering effect is postulated for polyphenols (PPs), which is in part attributed to the inhibition of α-amylase. To estimate structure-effect relationships, chlorogenic acid (CA), phlorizin (PHL), epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), epicatechin (EC), and malvidin-3-glucoside (Mlv-3-glc) were used as inhibitors in an enzyme assay, on the basis of the conversion of GalG2CNP by α-amylase. The detection of CNP was performed by UV/vis spectroscopy. The data reveal that the inhibitor strength decreases as follows: EGCG > Mlv-3-glc > EC > PHL ∼ CA. Detection of the substrate conversion by isothermal titration calorimetry supports these results. All PPs showed mixed inhibition, except for CA and EGCG wherein the competitive proportion was predominant. Investigations by saturation transfer difference NMR revealed interaction of PPs with α-amylase prevalently based on interactions with the aromatic or conjugated system. A correlation between the extent of the conjugated system and the IC50 of the PP could be found.

Cembranoids constitute a large family of 14-membered oxygenated macrocyclic diterpenoids with potential as therapeutic agents. Selective late-stage oxidations of cembranoid scaffolds remain a challenge for chemical catalysts but can be accomplished by enzymes. Here, a new chemoenzymatic route to oxyfunctionalized 14-membered macrocycles including cembranoids is described. This route combines a metal-catalyzed ring-closing metathesis with a subsequent P450 BM3-catalyzed hydroxylation and delivers cembranoid-like analogues. Systematic substrate probing with a set of synthetic 14-membered macrocycles revealed that the regioselectivity of a P450 BM3-based biocatalyst increased with increasing ring rigidity as well as size and polarity of the exocyclic substituents. Enzyme regioselectivity could further be improved by first-sphere active site mutagenesis. The V78A/F87A variant catalyzed hydroxylation of cembranoid-ol (9S/R)-3d with 90% regioselectivity for C5 position. Extensive NMR analysis of Mosher esters and single crystal X-ray structure determination revealed a remarkable diastereoselectivity of this P450 BM3 mutant depending on substrate stereochemistry, which led exclusively to the syn-cembranoid-diols (5S,9S)-4 and (5R,9R)-4.

The synthesis of a range of racemic 1-acyl-2-vinylcyclo­propanes by using two different methodologies is studied. We have developed a copper-catalyzed process for converting diazoketones into 1-acyl-2-vinylcyclopropanes and a sulfur-ylide-mediated procedure which allows, in only two steps, a simplified access to 1-acyl-2-vinyl­cyclopropanes with alkyl or aryl substituents on the alkene moiety.

Late-stage oxyfunctionalization of terpenoid scaffolds has been recognized as a powerful tool M the synthesis of complex molecules such as natural products to achieve their efficient diversification. Selective C-H oxidation of such hydrocarbon scaffolds remains challenging for chemical catalysts because of their insufficient regio- and stereoselectivity. To achieve this goal, cytochrome P450 monooxygenases are often used as bmcatalysts. Here, we demonstrate the successful P450-catalyzed chemo-, regio-, and stereoselective oxidation of the tobacco cembranoid beta-cembrenediol. This 14 membered macrocycle possesses a broad range of biological activities including antitumor promoting and neuroprotective effects and carries seven potential sites for allylic hydroxylation as well as three epoxidation sites. On the basis of first sphere active site mutagenesis, we generated in a few rounds a P450 BM3 minimal library and screened for beta-cembrenediol oxidation activity. Several P450 BM3 variants were evolved, enabling the regioselective hydroxylation of the neighboring positions C-9 (100% regioselectivity and a diastereomeric ratio of 89:11 in the case of the F87A/I263L mutant) and C-10 (97% regioselectivity and a diastereomeric ratio of 74:26 M the case of the L75A/V78A/F87G mutant) of beta-cembrenediol.

Binding RNA targets, such as microRNAs, with high fidelity is challenging, particularly when the nucleobases to be bound are located at the terminus of the duplex between probe and target. Recently, a peptidyl chain terminating in a quinolone, called ogOA, was shown to act as a cap that enhances affinity and fidelity for RNAs, stabilizing duplexes with Watson-Crick pairing at their termini. Here we report the three-dimensional structure of an intramolecular complex between a DNA strand featuring the ogOA cap and an RNA segment, solved by NMR and restrained torsion angle molecular dynamics. The quinolone stacks on the terminal base pair of the hybrid duplex, positioned by the peptidyl chain, whose prolinol residue induces a sharp bend between the 5' terminus of the DNA chain and the glycine linked to the oxolinic acid residue. The structure explains why canonical base pairing is favored over hard-to-suppress mismatched base combinations, such as T:G and A:A, and helps to design improved high-fidelity probes for RNA.

The (E)- and (Z)-terpene-based aldehydes 6b and 6c with a silyl ether function in the γ-position were prepared and investigated in boron-mediated asymmetric Evans aldol reactions. Screening experiments of chiral N-acylated oxazolidinones 7, which are conveniently accessible from 5-methyl-5-hexenoic acid and Evans oxazolidinone auxiliaries, with various boron triflates and terpenoid neral (Z)-6a as aldehyde component, provided conditions in which highly selective formation of syn-aldol adduct 5a occurred and competing C=C double bond isomerization to 10 was completely suppressed. Applying the optimized conditions to O-silylated aldehydes 6b and 6c and N-acyloxazolidinone derivative (R)-7a confirmed the syn-selectivity and gave the appropriate products syn-5b,c and syn-21b,c in good yields. In the case of neral-derived syn adduct 5a, the configuration of the new stereogenic centers C-2/C-3 could be assigned as (2R,3S).

Polycyclizations constitute a cornerstone of chemistry and biology. Multicyclic scaffolds are generated by terpene cyclase enzymes in nature through a carbocationic polycyclization cascade of a prefolded polyisoprene backbone, for which electrostatic stabilization of transient carbocationic species is believed to drive catalysis. Computational studies and site-directed mutagenesis were used to assess the contribution of entropy to the polycyclization cascade catalyzed by the triterpene cyclase from A. acidocaldarius. Our results show that entropy contributes significantly to the rate enhancement through the release of water molecules through specific channels. A single rational point mutation that results in the disruption of one of these water channels decreased the entropic contribution to catalysis by 60 kcal mol(-1) . This work demonstrates that entropy is the key to enzyme-catalyzed polycyclizations, which are highly relevant in biology since 90 % of all natural products contain a cyclic subunit.