Saibal Jana

Asymmetric Garratt–Braverman Cyclization: A Route to Axially Chiral Aryl Naphthalene–Amino Acid Hybrids

We report the first example of a highly diastereoselective Garratt-Braverman cyclization leading to the synthesis of chiral aryl naphthalene-amino acid hybrids in excellent yields. The stereogenecity in the amino acid has induced high diastereoselectivity for the reaction. Computations based on density functional theory indicated a lower activation free energy barrier for the M isomer as compared to that for the P diastereomer (ΔΔG = 3.48 kcal/mol). Comparison of the recorded CD spectrum of the product with the calculated one also supported the preferential formation of the M diastereomer.

Shifting the Reactivity of Bis-propargyl Ethers from Garratt-Braverman Cyclization Mode to 1,5-H Shift Pathway To Yield 3,4-Disubstituted Furans: A Combined Experimental and Computational Study.

Aryl or vinyl substituted bis-propargyl ethers upon base treatment generally form phthalans via the Garratt-Braverman (GB) cyclization pathway. In a major departure from this usual route, several aryl/vinyl bis-propargyl ethers with one of the acetylenic arms ending up with 2-tetrahydropyranyloxy methyl or ethoxy methyl have been shown to follow the alternative intramolecular 1,5-H shift pathway upon base treatment. The reaction has led to the formation of synthetically as well as biologically important 3,4-disubstituted furan derivatives in good yields. The initially formed E isomer in solution (CDCl3) slowly isomerizes to the Z isomer, indicating greater stability of the latter. The factors affecting the interplay between the 1,5-H shift and GB rearrangement have also been evaluated, and the results are supported by DFT-based computational study.

Does the Mechanism of the Garratt-Braverman Cyclization Differ with Substrates? A Computational Study on Bispropargyl Sulfones, Sulfides, Ethers, Amines, and Methanes.

We studied the variation in mechanism among different bispropargyl substrates-sulfone, sulfide, ether, amine, and methane-toward Garratt-Braverman (GB) cyclization using density functional theory calculations. Isomerization and cycloaddition are the key steps in the GB cyclization. To compare the reactivity among the various substrates, we computed the free energy of activation (ΔG(⧧)) for the cycloaddition and the cyclization steps, whereas we used the theoretically computed pKa values for the isomerization steps. Our results suggest that the sulfones undergo a relatively fast isomerization followed by slower cyclization, while the ethers undergo a slow isomerization followed by easy cyclization. The methanes and amines are similar to the ethers, and the sulfides showed intermediate behavior. We extended our study to unsymmetrical substrates and compare the results with experiments that suggest the isomerization to be the rate-limiting step for bispropargyl ethers, while cyclization through a diradical intermediate is crucial to the rate for the bispropargyl sulfones. On the basis of these findings, we made predictions on the selectivity of unsymmetrical bispropargyl sulfones, amines, methanes, and sulfides. This is the first detailed mechanistic study on the GB cyclization of bispropargyl substrates other than sulfones.

Cooperativity in bimetallic glutathione complexes

Glutathione interacting with Au(+), Ag(+), and [HgMe](+) metal ions is investigated using density functional theory. An extensive conformational search shows that the sulfhydryl group of cysteine is the predominant binding motif for Au(+), Ag(+), and [HgMe](+). The order of binding affinities and binding free energies for the metal:ligand complexes are calculated at the B3LYP-D3(BJ)/def2-TZVP level of theory. Analysis of the gas-phase optimized structures has shown that the increase in the number of metal ions (1:1 → 2:1) during the complex formation with a single glutathione leads to a strong cooperative behavior. Conversely, anti-cooperativity is demonstrated in implicit solvation corrections as well as in explicit solvent corrections to the energies in the explicitly solvated-phase structures optimized using a density-based adaptive QM/MM methodology.

Trienediynes on a 1,3,5-trisubstituted benzene template: a new approach for enhancement of reactivity

The synthesis of trienediynes based on a 1,3,5-trisubstituted benzene template is described. The presence of three adjacent enediyne moieties in the dendritic core exerted a cooperative effect to bring down the onset temperature for Bergman cyclization leading to increased DNA cleavage in a shorter time.

π-Stacking assisted redox active peptide–gallol conjugate: synthesis of a new generation of low-toxicity antimicrobial silver nanoparticles

In this study, we describe the rational design and synthesis of a redox-active petide–gallol conjugate and explore its application in the preparation of antimicrobial silver nanoparticles. Increase in acidity and redox activity of peptide–gallol compounds upon pi-stacking was predicted in silico. A representative phenyl alanine–glycine dipeptide–gallol conjugate was synthesized via click chemistry between N-propargyl dipeptide and azidomethyl pyrogallol. The enhanced redox properties of the conjugate were exemplified by rapid formation of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) at room temperature without the need of an external capping agent. The nanoparticles formed were found to exhibit prominent antifungal activity against Candida albicans NCIM 3471 along with robust biofilm eradication ability. Thus, our study established the hypothesis that rationally designed peptide–gallol conjugates can be used as biocompatible, redox-active moieties for in situ generation of non-toxic antimicrobial silver nanoparticles in a fast one pot chemical reduction method.

A Rationally Designed Thymidine‐Based Self‐Assembled Monolayer on a Gold Electrode for Electroanalytical Applications

A self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of 1-(3,5-epidithio-2,3,5-trideoxy-β-D-threo-pentofuranosyl)thymine (EFT) on a gold electrode was prepared and characterized by Raman spectral and electrochemical measurements. Voltammetric and electrochemical impedance measurements show that the SAM of EFT on a Au electrode impedes the electron-transfer reaction. The SAM of EFT was successfully used for the voltammetric sensing of urate in neutral solution. The coexisting ascorbate anion does not interfere and therefore the EFT-based electrode was able to quantify urate at the micromolar level in the presence of a large excess amount of ascorbate. To demonstrate the practical applications, the amount of urate in two different human serum samples was quantified by using the EFT-based electrode; the results are in good agreement with those determined by the clinical method. DFT calculations show that both ascorbate and urate have noncovalent interactions including hydrogen-bonding interactions with EFT.