Seung-Mann Paek

A Concise Total Synthesis of (+)‐Tetrabenazine and (+)‐α‐Dihydrotetrabenazine

Highly concise asymmetric total syntheses of (+)-tetrabenazine (1), a drug for the treatment of chorea associated with Huntingtons disease, and of (+)-α-dihydrotetrabenazine (2), an active metabolite of 1, have been accomplished. Our synthetic route features a trans-selective enol etherification, followed by an unprecedented cation-dependent aza-Claisen rearrangement to establish the carbon framework and two stereogenic centers of tetrabenazine. The syntheses consist of seven steps (34 % overall yield) for (+)-2 and eight steps (22 % overall yield) for (+)-1.

Enantioselective total synthesis of a natural iridoid.

The first total synthesis of 6-hydroxy-7-(hydroxymethyl)-4-methylenehexahydrocyclopenta[c]pyran-1(3H)-one has been accomplished. A key feature of the synthesis includes facile construction of the bicyclic lactone intermediate via intramolecular Pd(0)-catalyzed allylic alkylation and the efficient transformation of this intermediate into the iridoid skeleton employing silicon tethered radical cyclization.

First total synthesis and structural confirmation of fluvirucinine A2 via an iterative ring expansion strategy.

The first asymmetric total synthesis of fluvirucinine A(2) has been accomplished. A key feature of the synthesis is an iterative lactam ring expansion to provide rapid access to the 14-membered lactam skeleton and three stereogenic centers. The excellent remote control of the three stereogenic centers relied on stereoselective amidoalkylation followed by an amide-enolate-induced aza-Claisen rearrangement. In addition, the structure of fluvirucinine A(2) has been completely elucidated by our total synthesis.

Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Constrained meta-Substituted Phenyl Propanoic Acids as Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor α and γ Dual Agonists

In an effort to develop dual PPARalpha/gamma activators with improved therapeutic efficacy, a series of diaryl alpha-ethoxy propanoic acid compounds comprising two aryl groups linked by rigid oxime ether or isoxazoline ring were designed and synthesized and their biological activities were examined. Most of the compounds possessing an oxime ether linker were more potent PPARgamma activators than the lead PPARalpha/gamma dual agonist, tesaglitazar in vitro. Compound 18, one of the derivatives with an oxime ether linker, was found to selectively transactivate PPARgamma (EC 50 = 0.028 microM) over PPARalpha (EC 50 = 7.22 microM) in vitro and lower blood glucose in db/ db mice more than muraglitazar after oral treatment for 11 days.

Perturbation of Maize Phenylpropanoid Metabolism by an AvrE Family Type III Effector from Pantoea stewartii

The virulence activity of an effector protein belonging to the widely conserved AvrE family is linked to its ability to cause system-wide reprogramming of phenylpropanoid metabolism in susceptible maize seedlings. AvrE family type III effector proteins share the ability to suppress host defenses, induce disease-associated cell death, and promote bacterial growth. However, despite widespread contributions to numerous bacterial diseases in agriculturally important plants, the mode of action of these effectors remains largely unknown. WtsE is an AvrE family member required for the ability of Pantoea stewartii ssp. stewartii (Pnss) to proliferate efficiently and cause wilt and leaf blight symptoms in maize (Zea mays) plants. Notably, when WtsE is delivered by a heterologous system into the leaf cells of susceptible maize seedlings, it alone produces water-soaked disease symptoms reminiscent of those produced by Pnss. Thus, WtsE is a pathogenicity and virulence factor in maize, and an Escherichia coli heterologous delivery system can be used to study the activity of WtsE in isolation from other factors produced by Pnss. Transcriptional profiling of maize revealed the effects of WtsE, including induction of genes involved in secondary metabolism and suppression of genes involved in photosynthesis. Targeted metabolite quantification revealed that WtsE perturbs maize metabolism, including the induction of coumaroyl tyramine. The ability of mutant WtsE derivatives to elicit transcriptional and metabolic changes in susceptible maize seedlings correlated with their ability to promote disease. Furthermore, chemical inhibitors that block metabolic flux into the phenylpropanoid pathways targeted by WtsE also disrupted the pathogenicity and virulence activity of WtsE. While numerous metabolites produced downstream of the shikimate pathway are known to promote plant defense, our results indicate that misregulated induction of phenylpropanoid metabolism also can be used to promote pathogen virulence.

Concise syntheses of (+)-macrosphelides A and B: studies on the macro-ring closure strategy.

Highly concise syntheses of (+)-macrosphelides A and B were accomplished in this study. The key feature of our synthetic route involved the direct three-carbon homologation of the readily available Weinreb amide 6 by the addition of a trans-vinylogous ester anion equivalent and facile construction of the 16-membered macrolide skeleton of macrosphelides via an intramolecular nitrile oxide-olefin cycloaddition. The syntheses of macrosphelides A and B were completed with a 30 and 20% overall yield, respectively. This paper describes the details of our syntheses.

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel diarylalkyl amides as TRPV1 antagonists

We have developed a new class of diarylalkyl amides as novel TRPV1 antagonists. They exhibited potent (45)Ca(2+) uptake inhibitions in rat DRG neuron. In particular, the amide 59 was identified as a potent antagonist with IC(50) of 57 nM. The synthesis and structure-activity relationship of the diarylalkyl amides are also described.

Direct and Indirect Targeting of PP2A by Conserved Bacterial Type-III Effector Proteins

Bacterial AvrE-family Type-III effector proteins (T3Es) contribute significantly to the virulence of plant-pathogenic species of Pseudomonas, Pantoea, Ralstonia, Erwinia, Dickeya and Pectobacterium, with hosts ranging from monocots to dicots. However, the mode of action of AvrE-family T3Es remains enigmatic, due in large part to their toxicity when expressed in plant or yeast cells. To search for targets of WtsE, an AvrE-family T3E from the maize pathogen Pantoea stewartii subsp. stewartii, we employed a yeast-two-hybrid screen with non-lethal fragments of WtsE and a synthetic genetic array with full-length WtsE. Together these screens indicate that WtsE targets maize protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) heterotrimeric enzyme complexes via direct interaction with B’ regulatory subunits. AvrE1, another AvrE-family T3E from Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato strain DC3000 (Pto DC3000), associates with specific PP2A B’ subunit proteins from its susceptible host Arabidopsis that are homologous to the maize B’ subunits shown to interact with WtsE. Additionally, AvrE1 was observed to associate with the WtsE-interacting maize proteins, indicating that PP2A B’ subunits are likely conserved targets of AvrE-family T3Es. Notably, the ability of AvrE1 to promote bacterial growth and/or suppress callose deposition was compromised in Arabidopsis plants with mutations of PP2A genes. Also, chemical inhibition of PP2A activity blocked the virulence activity of both WtsE and AvrE1 in planta. The function of HopM1, a Pto DC3000 T3E that is functionally redundant to AvrE1, was also impaired in specific PP2A mutant lines, although no direct interaction with B’ subunits was observed. These results indicate that sub-component specific PP2A complexes are targeted by bacterial T3Es, including direct targeting by members of the widely conserved AvrE-family.

Synthesis of lactam analog of 4-epi-brefeldin A

A concise synthetic route to the lactam analog of 4-epi-brefeldin A is described. The key features of the synthesis involve cross metathesis of the bicyclic lactone intermediate and the side chain subunit readily available from an amino acid, and 13-membered macrolactam formation. Unlike the case of synthesis of natural (+)-brefeldin A, the introduction of C4-alcohol into the 13-membered lactam skeleton furnished the opposite configuration, which was confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis.

Synthetic Studies on Bioactive Natural Polyketides: Intramolecular Nitrile Oxide-Olefin Cycloaddition Approach for Construction of a Macrolactone Skeleton of Macrosphelide B

Studies on the synthesis of macrosphelide B via an intramolecular nitrile oxide-olefin cycloaddition (INOC) is described. In particular, an asymmetric INOC approach using phase transfer catalysts seems to be a potentially efficient and versatile procedure for the construction of the macrolactone skeleton of macrosphelide B in terms of facial selectivity. Our preliminary and unprecedented stereoselective procedure is anticipated to be usefully applied through further studies for the synthesis of the macrosphelide family.