Pier Paolo Giovannini

Anti-Prelog microbial reduction of prochiral carbonyl compounds

Abstract Yarrowia lipolytica strains isolated from various habitats were tested in the reduction of prochiral carbonyl groups. The anti-Prelog reduction ( R -enantiomer) is observed with different yields and enantiomeric excesses depending on the structure of the ketones 1a-e .

Combined microbial oxidation and reduction: a new approach to the highyield synthesis of homochiral unsaturated secondary alcohols from racemates

Abstract The oxidation of racemic secondary alcohols with Bacillus stearothermophilus followed by reduction of the mixture with Yarrowialipolytica to afford high yields of the enantiomerically pure R-alcohols 1a, b, d is described. Comparisons with Yarrowia lipolytica reduction, Bacillus stearothermophilus oxidation, and the contemporary use of the two microrganisms have been made.

Xanthomonas maltophilia CBS 897.97 as a source of new 7β- and 7α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases and cholylglycine hydrolase: Improved biotransformations of bile acids

The paper reports the partial purification and characterization of the 7beta- and 7alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (HSDH) and cholylglycine hydrolase (CGH), isolated from Xanthomonas maltophilia CBS 897.97. The activity of 7beta-HSDH and 7alpha-HSDH in the reduction of the 7-keto bile acids is determined. The affinity of 7beta-HSDH for bile acids is confirmed by the reduction, on analytical scale, to the corresponding 7beta-OH derivatives. A crude mixture of 7alpha- and 7beta-HSDH, in soluble or immobilized form, is employed in the synthesis, on preparative scale, of ursocholic and ursodeoxycholic acids starting from the corresponding 7alpha-derivatives. On the other hand, a partially purified 7beta-HSDH in a double enzyme system, where the couple formate/formate dehydrogenase allows the cofactor recycle, affords 6alpha-fluoro-3alpha, 7beta-dihydroxy-5beta-cholan-24-oic acid (6-FUDCA) by reduction of the corresponding 7-keto derivative. This compound is not obtainable by microbiological route. The efficient and mild hydrolysis of glycinates and taurinates of bile acids with CGH is also reported. Very promising results are also obtained with bile acid containing raw materials.

A Combined Kinetic and Thermodynamic Approach for the Interpretation of Continuous‐Flow Heterogeneous Catalytic Processes

The heterogeneous proline-catalyzed aldol reaction was investigated under continuous-flow conditions by means of a packed-bed microreactor. Reaction-progress kinetic analysis (RPKA) was used in combination with nonlinear chromatography for the interpretation, under synthetically relevant conditions, of important mechanistic aspects of the heterogeneous catalytic process at a molecular level. The information gathered by RPKA and nonlinear chromatography proved to be highly complementary and allowed for the assessment of optimal operating variables. In particular, the determination of the rate-determining step was pivotal for optimizing the feed composition. On the other hand, the competitive product inhibition was responsible for the unexpected decrease in the reaction yield following an apparently obvious variation in the feed composition. The study was facilitated by a suitable 2D instrumental arrangement for simultaneous flow reaction and online flow-injection analysis.

Thiazolium-functionalized polystyrene monolithic microreactors for continuous-flow umpolung catalysis

Thiazolium salt pre-catalysts have been immobilized on silica and monolithic polystyrene and their activity was tested under batch conditions in three model umpolung reactions, namely the benzoin condensation of benzaldehyde, the acyloin-type condensation of biacetyl, and the Stetter reaction of biacetyl with trans-chalcone. A prerequisite of the study has been the utilization of environmentally benign water and ethanol solvents. After having established the higher performance of polystyrene monolithic thiazolium carbene catalysts, their effectiveness has been tested under the flow regime by fabricating the corresponding monolithic microreactors (pressure-resistant stainless-steel columns). Importantly, it has been demonstrated by a brief substrate scope study that the polymeric matrix and the continuous flow regime synergistically contribute to preserve the activity of the carbene catalysts over time, thus permitting the long-term operation (up to 7 days) of the prepared monolithic reactors for the production of valuable compounds via the umpolung strategy.

Homochiral (R)- and (S)-1-heteroaryl- and 1-aryl-2-propanols via microbial redox

Preparation of various heteroaryl propanols 2a‐g and of the corresponding propanones 3a‐g as starting materials for microbial redox is described. The kinetic resolution of the racemic propanols 2a‐g is obtained via oxidation with Pseudomonas paucimobilisand Bacillus stearothermophilus[(R)-alcohols, ee 74‐100%]. Similar results are achieved with 3-(2-hydroxypropyl)trifluoromethylbenzene 7 (44%, ee 100% of the (R)-alcohol 6). The reduction of the propanones 3a‐d and 3g with baker’s yeast and other fungi gives the ( S)-alcohols (ee 100%). The pure (S)-alcohols are also obtained by reduction of 1-[3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-2-propanone 7. 1-[(4,4-Dimethyl)2-( 2 )oxazolinyl]-2-propanone 3e and 1[2-( 2 )-thiazolinyl)-2-propanone 3f are not reduced. The heterocyclic rings of (S)-5-(2-hydroxypropyl)-3-methylisoxazole 2d and of (S)-2-(2-hydroxypropyl)-4-methylthiazole 2g are deblocked to the homochiral enamino ketone 8 (78%) and to the protected -hydroxy aldehyde 9 (73%), respectively. The (R)-3-(2-hydroxypropyl)trifluoromethylbenzene 6 is transfomed into the homochiral precursor of (S)-fenfluramine 10 (overall yield 65%).

Expanding the scope of enzymatic carboligation reactions in flow-mode: production of optically active tertiary alcohols with packed-bed micro-bioreactors

Acetylacetoin synthase (AAS) from Bacillus licheniformis has been partially purified and immobilized on a silica support and its activity was tested under batch conditions in the homo-coupling of a set of α-diketones leading to valuable α-hydroxy ketone derivatives displaying a chiral tertiary alcohol functionality at the α-position. Next, the effectiveness of AAS heterogeneous catalysis has been evaluated under continuous-flow conditions by fabricating the corresponding packed-bed microreactors (pressure-resistant stainless-steel columns). It has been demonstrated that the covalent immobilization on a silica support and the flow regime synergistically contribute to preserve the enzyme activity over time, thus permitting the long-term operation (up to 15 days) of the prepared bioreactors for the production of the chiral targets via the umpolung strategy.

7α- and 12α-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus lwoffii: a new integrated chemo-enzymatic route to ursodeoxycholic acid

We report the very efficient biotransformation of cholic acid to 7-keto- and 7,12-diketocholic acids with Acinetobacter calcoaceticus lwoffii. The enzymes responsible of the biotransformation (i.e. 7alpha- and 12alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases) are partially purified and employed in a new chemo-enzymatic synthesis of ursodeoxycholic acid starting from cholic acid. The first step is the 12alpha-HSDH-mediated total oxidation of sodium cholate followed by the Wolf-Kishner reduction of the carbonyl group to chenodeoxycholic acid. This acid is then quantitatively oxidized with 7alpha-HSDH to 7-ketochenodeoxycholic acid, that was chemically reduced to ursodeoxycholic acid (70% overall yield).

Unexpected reactivity of diaryl α-diketones with thiazolium carbenes: discovery of a novel multicomponent reaction for the facile synthesis of 1,4-thiazin-3-ones

Diaryl α-diketones do not undergo polarity reversal in the presence of (benzo)thiazolium carbenes but are engaged in a novel multicomponent reaction with water to efficiently give medicinally relevant 1,4-thiazin-3-one heterocycles. Three different sets of conditions have been optimized to furnish the title compounds in fair to excellent yields depending on the electronic properties of α-diketone aromatic substituents and thiazolium or benzothiazolium substrate. A plausible reaction mechanism is also proposed based on the isolation and characterization of the postulated key intermediate and isotopic labeling experiments.

Nucleophilic and Electrophilic Double Aroylation of Chalcones with Benzils Promoted by the Dimsyl Anion as a Route to All Carbon Tetrasubstituted Olefins

Dimsyl anion promoted the polarity reversal of benzils in a Stetter-like reaction with chalcones to give 2-benzoyl-1,4-diones (double aroylation products), which, in turn, were converted into the corresponding tetrasubstituted olefins via aerobic oxidative dehydrogenation catalyzed by Cu(OAc)2.