Arianna Quintavalla

Azetidinones as zinc-binding groups to design selective HDAC8 inhibitors.

2‐Azetidinones, commonly known as β‐lactams, are well‐known heterocyclic compounds. Herein we described the synthesis and biological evaluation of a series of novel β‐lactams. In vitro inhibition assays against HDAC isoforms showed an interesting isoform‐selectivity of these compounds towards HDAC6 and HDAC8. The isoform selectivity changed in response to modification of the azetidinone‐ring nitrogen atom substituent. The presence of an N‐thiomethyl group is a prerequisite for the activity of these compounds in the micromolar range towards HDAC8.

A Liquid–Liquid Biphasic Homogeneous Organocatalytic Aldol Protocol Based on the Use of a Silica Gel Bound Multilayered Ionic Liquid Phase

An innovative two stage liquid–liquid biphasic homogeneous protocol for the asymmetric organocatalytic aldol reaction is proposed, based on the use of the cis‐ion‐tagged proline 8 dissolved in the liquid film of a multilayered ionic liquid covalently bonded to silica gel 4. The resulting catalytically active material 9 is first soaked with cyclohexanone in the presence of water, resulting in a semi‐transparent gel, then the aldehyde is added and the mixture stirred at RT. In the first stage, 4 acts as a catalyst reservoir that delivers 8 to the cyclohexanone phase allowing the reaction to take place homogeneously. In the second stage, cyclohexanone is removed under vacuum and the resulting slurry is extracted with anhydrous diethylether. Now 4 acts as a catalyst sponge, redissolving 8. Product extraction is extremely selective; no trace of catalyst is detected in the product‐containing phase, and 9 can be easily reused several times with high cumulative productivity values (up to 523).

Highly Stereoselective [4+2] and [3+2] Spiroannulations of 2‐(2‐Oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)acetic Esters Catalyzed by Bifunctional Thioureas

A new Michael-Michael cascade reaction between 2-(2-oxoindolin-3-ylidene)acetic esters 1 and nitroenoates 2, catalyzed by bifunctional thioureas, is investigated. The combination of the two Michael reactions results in a novel and facile [4+2] or [3+2] spiroannulation process, which is characterized by the following features: 1) two carbon-carbon bonds and four stereocenters, including a quaternary spiro carbon, are formed under mild conditions; 2) an unprecedented and stereochemically defined substitution pattern on the spirocarbocyclic unit is obtained; 3) the double-bond configuration of the donor-acceptor nitroenoate 2 determines the absolute configuration of the spiro center, whereas the remaining stereocenters are formed under control of the catalyst. The effect on the final stereochemical outcome of structural variations of each starting material, catalyst, and experimental conditions is analyzed in detail. In particular, the use of specifically designed chiral nitroenoates enables diverse polyfunctional spirocyclohexane derivatives containing six consecutive stereogenic centers to be constructed. To our knowledge, this is the first asymmetric organocatalytic strategy enabling both five- and six-membered β-nitro spirocarbocyclic oxindoles.

Organocatalytic conjugate addition of nitroalkanes to 3-ylidene oxindoles: a stereocontrolled diversity oriented route to oxindole derivatives.

An efficient and highly enantioselective Michael addition of nitroalkanes to 3-ylidene oxindoles is described, mediated by thiourea-based bifunctional organocatalysts. The stereochemistry at C(α) and C(β) centers is perfectly controlled, and the intermediate C-3 enolate is trapped with a second Michael acceptor. The developed one-pot three-component consecutive reactions generate up to four contiguous stereocenters, including the C-3 all-carbon quaternary center, in a perfectly defined configuration. The conversion of the β-nitro oxindole into the corresponding β-amino derivative discloses synthetically useful transformations, exploitable to generate pharmaceutically attractive molecular targets.

The First Enantioselective Organocatalytic Synthesis of 3-Spiro-α-Alkylidene-γ-Butyrolactone Oxindoles.

A new and flexible methodology catalyzed by bifunctional chiral thioureas has been developed to react β-nitro oxindoles 1 with aldehydes. This approach allowed us to achieve the first enantioselective organocatalytic synthesis of 3-spiro-α-alkylidene-γ-butyrolactone oxindoles 3. We examined the scope of the two starting materials and, varying the structure of the β-nitro oxindole 1, intriguing new products, derived from unexpected transformations, have been stereoselectively obtained. The aim of this study was to merge two potentially bioactive structural motifs: the spirooxindole substructure and the α-alkylidene-γ-butyrolactone moiety. A preliminary NMR study on the ability to reversibly trap 2-aminoethanethiol gave us promising results.

Dioxetane-doped silica nanoparticles as ultrasensitive reagentless thermochemiluminescent labels for bioanalytics.

Thermochemiluminescence (TCL; the light emission originating by the thermally triggered decomposition of a molecule) was proposed in the late 1980s as a detection technique for immunoassays. However, after little pioneering work, this technique was abandoned because of the high temperatures required and the poor detectability in comparison to other labels. Here we describe for the first time a thermochemiluminescent acridine-based 1,2-dioxetane with a remarkably low (i.e., below 100 °C) emission-triggering temperature, which made it possible to obtain light emission even in an aqueous environment, as well as amino-functionalized silica nanoparticles loaded with this compound and the fluorescent energy acceptor dipyridamole. Thanks to the signal amplification due to the large number of 1,2-dioxetane molecules in each nanoparticle (about 10(4)) and the increased emission efficiency due to energy transfer to the fluorescent acceptor, the doped nanoparticles could be revealed with a detectability close to that of chemiluminescent enzyme labels (the limit of detection of doped nanoparticles by TCL imaging was 1 × 10(-16) mol mm(-2), thus approaching the value of 5 × 10(-17) mol mm(-2) obtained for the enzyme label horseradish peroxidase with chemiluminescence detection). They could thus be used as highly detectable labels in the development of sensitive TCL-based immunoassays and nucleic acid hybridization assays, in which the detection step does not require any additional chemical reagent. We believe that these doped silica nanoparticles could pave the way for the revival of TCL detection in bioanalytics, taking advantage of the reagentless detection and the high signal/noise ratio in comparison with conventional luminescence detection techniques.

A new class of antimalarial dioxanes obtained through a simple two-step synthetic approach: rational design and structure-activity relationship studies.

A new series of simple endoperoxides, characterized by a 3-methoxy-1,2-dioxane scaffold, was designed on the basis of a previously developed pharmacophore. Through a simplified and versatile scheme of synthesis, which utilizes cheap and commercially available starting materials, it was possible to obtain several structurally and stereochemically different compounds that were tested against P. falciparum. Most of compounds showed antimalarial activity in the low micromolar range and no cellular toxicity, all being significantly more active on chloroquine resistant (CQ-R) than on chloroquine sensitive (CQ-S) strains. Resulting structure-activity relationships were analyzed by means of experimental and computational techniques, validating our design rationale and tailoring it for the new scaffold. Our study demonstrated that according to the hypothesized mechanism of action, the antimalarial activity can be improved through rational structural modifications, paving the way for the development of new simplified antimalarial endoperoxides.

Synthesis of novel 4-(1-ethoxycarbonyl-methylidene)-azetidin-2-ones via a Lewis acid-catalyzed reaction of ethyl diazoacetate

Treatment of (3R,4R,1′R)-3-[1-(t-butyldimethylsilyloxy)ethyl]-4-acetoxy-azetidin-2-one with ethyl diazoacetate in the presence of a Lewis acid such as TiCl4, TiF4, AlCl3 or SnCl4 affords the novel (3S,1′R)-3-[1-(t-butyldimethylsilyloxy)ethyl]-4(1-ethoxycarbonyl-methylidene)-azetidin-2-one as an E and/or Z isomer.

Antibacterial Agents and Cystic Fibrosis: Synthesis and Antimicrobial Evaluation of a Series of N-Thiomethylazetidinones

The increasing emergence of multidrug‐resistant microorganisms is one of the greatest challenges in the clinical management of infectious disease. New antimicrobial agents are therefore urgently required, particularly in the treatment of chronic and recurrent infections often associated with antibiotic‐resistant pathogens, as in the case of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. This study reports the antibacterial activity of a series of monocyclic β‐lactams with an alkylidenecarboxyl chain or electron‐withdrawing groups such as 4‐OAc, 4‐SAc, and 4‐SO2Ph at the C4 position of the ring. N‐Unsubstituted and N‐thiomethyl derivatives were compared. A total of 33 azetidinones were tested for their activity against Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacterial clinical isolates. The combination of an N‐thiomethyl group and a benzyl ester on the 4‐alkylidene side chain were found to increase the potency against Gram‐positive bacteria. The N‐thiomethyl group clearly elevated the activity of 4‐acetoxyazetidinones relative to the corresponding NH derivatives. The most active compounds showed minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of 4 and 8 mg L−1 against methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from pediatric patients with CF.

Gold-Catalyzed Allylation Reactions

The allylation reaction is a well‐established and indispensable tool for the development of chemical complexity and diversity in organic synthesis. Over several decades, this unique transformation has undergone several developments to establish a more simple, selective, and sustainable variant. Moving from stoichiometric amounts of metal additives to sub‐stoichiometric amounts, and more recently to catalytic loadings is only one of the chemical revolutions faced by the allylation reaction. In this context, homogeneous gold catalysis has played a pivotal role, resulting in unexpected reaction pathways, concerning unactivated unsaturated hydrocarbons, feasible. Among them, [AuI]‐ and [AuIII]‐assisted allylation reactions deserve particular mention owing to their impact in the synthesis of key organic building blocks and value‐added compounds. An unprecedented survey across the development of allylation methodologies based on this coinage metal is documented in the present Minireview.