Fmoc-1,2-trans-ACHC-OH(1S,2S)

The mimicry of protein-sized β-sheet structures with unnatural peptidic sequences (foldamers) is a considerable challenge. In this work, the de novo designed betabellin-14 β-sheet has been used as a template, and α→β residue mutations were carried out in the hydrophobic core (positions 12 and 19). β-Residues with diverse structural properties were utilized: Homologous β(3) -amino acids, (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclopentanecarboxylic acid (ACPC), (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclohexanecarboxylic acid (ACHC), (1R,2S)-2-aminocyclohex-3-enecarboxylic acid (ACEC), and (1S,2S,3R,5S)-2-amino-6,6-dimethylbicyclo[3.1.1]heptane-3-carboxylic acid (ABHC). Six α/β-peptidic chains were constructed in both monomeric and disulfide-linked dimeric forms. Structural studies based on circular dichroism spectroscopy, the analysis of NMR chemical shifts, and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that dimerization induced β-sheet formation in the 64-residue foldameric systems. Core replacement with (1R,2S)-ACHC was found to be unique among the β-amino acid building blocks studied because it was simultaneously able to maintain the interstrand hydrogen-bonding network and to fit sterically into the hydrophobic interior of the β-sandwich.

An efficient process for the purification of anthocyanin monomeric isomers from wild blueberries of Lake Saint-Jean region (Quebec, Canada) was developed and easy scalable at industrial purpose. The blueberries were soaked in acidified ethanol, filtered, and the filtrate was cleaned by solid phase extraction using silica gel C-18 and DSC-SCX cation-exchange resin. Anthocyanin-enriched elutes (87 wt.%) were successfully fractionated by preparative liquid chromatography. The major anthocyanins mono-galactoside, -glucoside and -arabinoside isomers of delphinidin, cyanidin, petunidin, peonidin and malvidin were isolated with a purity up to 100% according to their LC-MS and (1)H NMR spectra. The oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) of the obtained pure anthocyanins was evaluated. Delphinidin-3-galactoside has the highest capacity (13.062 ± 2.729 μmol TE/μmol), and malvidin-3-glucoside the lowest (0.851 ± 0.032 μmol TE/μmol). A mechanistic pathway preview is suggested for the anthocyanins scavenging free radical activity by hydrogen transfer.

The enzymatically derived and enantiomerically pure (1S,2S)-3-bromocyclohexa-3,5-diene-1,2-diol (7) has been elaborated over 17 steps into compounds 8 and 32, each of which embodies the pentacyclic framework and much of the functionality associated with the alkaloid vindoline (3). This work sets the stage for effecting the conversion of the related metabolite (1S,6R)-5-ethyl-1,6-dihydroxycyclohexa-2,4-diene-1-carboxylic acid (4) into compound 3, the latter being a biogenetic precursor to the clinically significant anticancer agents vinblastine and vincristine.

Asymmetric transfer hydrogenation (ATH) of imines has been performed with variation in formic acid (F) and triethylamine (T) molar ratios in water. The F/T ratio is shown to affect both the reduction rate and enantioselectivity, with the optimum ratio being 1.1 in the ATH of imines with the Rh-(1S,2S)-TsDPEN catalyst. Use of methanol as a cosolvent enhanced reduction activity. A variety of imine substrates have been reduced, affording high yields (94-98%) and good to excellent enantioselectivities (89-98%). In comparison with the common azeotropic F-T system, the reduction with 1.1/1 F/T is faster.