S. F. Vasilevsky

Unusual spin transitions

New heterospin complexes of Cu(hfac)2 (hfac, hexafluoroacetylacetonate) with pyrazole-substituted nitronyl nitroxides have been found that in the solid state exhibit thermally induced spin transitions analogous to spin crossover. For the first complex, [Cu(hfac)2Li-Pr], at room temperature, the Cu—OL distances, where OL is the oxygen atom of the nitroxyl group, are very short (2.143 Å). This leads to a strong antiferromagnetic exchange (∼-120cm−1) in the > N—·O—Cu2+—O·—N < exchange clusters. The CuO6 coordination units formed by four O atoms of the two hfac anions and by the nitroxyl O atoms of the two bridging nitroxides have a rare form of flattened octahedra, transformed at low temperatures into elongated octahedra with shorter Cu—OL distances (2.143 Å→2.002Å) and two longer Cu—Ohfac distances (2.130 Å→2.293 Å). For the second complex, [Cu(hfac)2LBu·0.5C6H14], unusual low temperature structural dynamics of heterospin systems have been found. It is characterized by the formation of two types of CuO6 unit. The axial Cu—OL distances are lengthened in one unit (2.250 Å→2.347 Å) and shortened in the other (2.250 Å → 2.006 Å). This leads to a sophisticated μeff(T) dependence with μeff drastically decreased at 163 K as a result of full coupling of two spins in half of all >N—·O—Cu2+—O·—N < exchange clusters and to a shift from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic exchange in the other half.

Rapid access to new bioconjugates of betulonic acid via click chemistry.

Plant-derived pentacyclic triterpenoids of lupane and oleanane families provide a versatile structural platform for the discovery of new biologically active compounds. A number of semisynthetic derivatives of these molecules, possess high medical efficiency including antiviral (HIV-1), anticancer and immunomodulating activity. Even small structural changes in these triterpenoid derivatives were reported to lead to significant changes in their activity, making a convincing case for a systematic study of structure-activity relationships in this class of compounds. Our earlier work opened synthetic access to alkynes derived from the betulonic scaffold and enabled the development of a new family of biohybrids using Click Chemistry (CC). The computer-aided prediction of several types of biological activity were performed with program PASS (Prediction Activity Spectra of Substances. Experimental studies based on mouse models verified the SAR predictions obtained by the PASS program. The observed correlation between the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity indicates substantial contribution of the latter in the mechanism of anti-inflammatory effect of the triazole derivatives of betulonic acid.

Synthesis of unsymmetrical hetaryl-1,2-diketones

Abstract Oxidation of the triple bond in 4-alkynylpyrazoles 2a – e and acetylenic derivatives of the crown-ethers 7a , b with PdCl 2 –DMSO has been carried out to give unsymmetrical hetaryl-1,2-diketones 3a – e ; 8a , b . Attempts to oxidize the triple bond in 5-alkynylpyrazole 6 and alkynylpyridines 5a , b and 9 failed.

Efficient synthesis of the first betulonic acid-acetylene hybrids and their hepatoprotective and anti-inflammatory activity.

The Sonogashira reaction can be applied for the preparation of acetylenic derivatives of betulonic acid where the triterpenoid moiety can serve as either the halo- or the acetylenic component. This reaction opened access to the first derivatives of betulonic acid containing either the arylethynyl (C[triple bond]C-Ar(Het) or the ethynyl (C[triple bond]CH) moieties. From the fundamental perspective, this work illustrates the possibility of selective Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling at terminal acetylenes in the presence of a terminal alkene. Hepatoprotective and anti-inflammatory properties of selected acetylenic derivatives of betulonic acid were investigated using the CCl4-induced hepatitis and carrageenan-induced edema models, respectively.

Reaction of Arylpropargyl Aldehydes with 2,3-Bis-hydroxylamino-2,3-dimethylbutane: Synthesis of 2-(1-Hydroxy-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazolidin-2-ylidene)-1-arylethanones

Abstract Reaction of arylpropargyl aldehydes with 2,3-dihydroxylamino-2,3-dimethylbutane results in the formation of 2-(1-hydroxy-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazolidin-2-ylidene)-1-arylethanones in high yields (70–80%). Allowing availability of propargyl aldehydes, this method gives new possibilities for the preparation of 2-(1-hydroxy-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazolidin-2-ylidene)-1-arylethanones.

Chameleonic reactivity of vicinal diazonium salt of acetylenyl-9,10-anthraquinones: synthetic application toward two heterocyclic targets.

The nature of products in the diazotization of 1-amino-2-acetylenyl-9,10-anthraquinones strongly depends on the nature of substituents at both the alkyne and at the anthraquinone core. Donor substitution (NHAr, OH) at the fourth position stabilizes the diazonium salt at C1, decelerating electrophilic cyclization at the arylethynyl substituent at C2. This effect allows the replacement of the diazonium with azide group and subsequent closure into isoxazole ring with preservation of the alkyne. In contrast, electrophilic 5-exo-dig cyclizations to condensed pyrazoles is observed for the combination of donor substituents at the aryl alkyne moiety and an OAc substituent at C4. The latter process provides a new synthetic route to 3-ethynyl-[1,9-cd]isoxazol-6-ones that are difficult to access otherwise. DFT calculations suggest that donor substituents have only a minor effect on alkyne and diazonium polarization in the reactant but provide specific transition state stabilization by stabilizing the incipient vinyl cation. This analysis provides the first computational data on electrophilic 5-exo-dig cyclization in its parent form and the nucleophile-promoted version. This cyclization is a relatively fast but endothermic process that is rendered thermodynamically feasible by the enol-keto tautomerization with concomitant aromatization in the five-membered heteroaromatic ring. Computations suggest that the importance of nucleophilic assistance in the transition state for a relatively weak nucleophile such as water is minor because the energy gain due to the Lewis base coordination to the carbocationic center is more than compensated for by the unfavorable entropic term for the bimolecular proces.

Synthesis of new betulinic acid–peptide conjugates and in vivo and in silico studies of the influence of peptide moieties on the triterpenoid core activity

The modification of betulinic acid derivatives bearing an ethynyl group at the C-3 position by different azidopeptides using Cu(I)-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition has been described. All obtained compounds were tested for their anti-inflammatory activity using a histamine-induced paw edema model. Betulinic acid–peptide conjugates containing histidine, alanine, tryptophan and isoleucine amino acid fragments were found to exhibit high anti-inflammatory activity, comparable to that of indomethacin. It has been shown by molecular docking that the obtained conjugates are incorporated into the binding site of the protein Keap1 Kelch-domain by their amino acid residues and form more non-covalent bonds, but have lower affinity than the initial triterpenoid core. It has been suggested that peptide moieties can modify the activity of the initial triterpenoid scaffold due to the change in the conformational and thermodynamic characteristics, which have influence on the binding of the compound to its molecular target.

Heterocyclization of o-(arylethynyl)arylhydrazines as a new procedure for the synthesis of substituted 1H- and 2H-indazoles and indoles

Procedures for the preparation of 3-substituted 1H- and 2H-indazoles and 2-substituted indoles were developed based on cross-coupling of o-iodoarylhydrazines with copper acetylenides in pyridine or dimethylformamide. An alternative procedure for the synthesis of 3-substituted 1H-indazoles involves cyclocondensation of (2-chloroaryl)acetylenes with hydrazine hydrate in butanol.

Acetylenic derivatives of betulonic acid amide as a new type of compounds possessing spasmolytic activity

Efficient and versatile synthetic procedures towards novel derivatives of betulonic acid via Mannich reaction, Sonogashira cross-coupling, and copper(i)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cyclo-additions were developed. Introduction of secondary amines (Mannich reaction) into betulonic acid amides led to derivatives possessing marked spasmolytic activity, which is not characteristic of the triterpene fragment.

Dual reactivity of diazonium salts derived from 1-amino-2-ethynyl-9,10-anthraquinones

Diazotization of vicinal 1-amino-2-ethynyl-4-R-9,10-anthraquinones followed by a reaction with NaN3 gave 5-hydroxy-3-R-1H-naphtho[2,3-g]indazole-6,11-diones or 3-ethynyl-5-R-6H-anthra[1,9-cd]isoxazol-6-ones, depending on the substituents at the triply bonded C atom and in position 4 of the anthraquinone framework.