dl-2-(7,11-Dimethyl-3,7,11 - trans,trans-dodecatrienyl)-3-methyl-cyclopent-2-enol was prepared by reduction of the corresponding ketone. This tetraenol, on treatment with trifluoroacetic acid, underwent stereoselective cyclization to give dl-3,17-dimethyl-A-nor-D-homoestra-3,16-diene. This tetracyclic material was readily converted, by oxidative cleavage to the bicyclic triketo aldehyde followe...

The synthesis of 1H-benzo[f ]isoindole derivatives was achieved by the cascade radical cyclization–cyclization reaction of the active methine substrate having an allyl group and phenyl group as different two radical acceptors. This oxidative transformation proceeded by using iron(III) chloride FeCl3 as a mild oxidant via the intramolecular radical addition to the allyl group followed by the sec...

Fluorinated, contorted hexabenzocoronenes (HBCs) have been synthesized in a facile manner via Suzuki-Miyaura coupling of fluorinated phenyl boronic acids followed by photocyclization and Scholl cyclization. In addition to the molecular conformation observed in previous HBC derivatives, close-contact fluorine-fluorine intramolecular interactions result in a metastable conformation not previously...

TFA alone was found to be remarkably effective for the intramolecular hydroarylation (IMHA) of alkynes when employed as a solvent in the cyclization of 3-alkynyl substituted 2-(indol-3-yl)quinoxalines. This simple and metal free cyclization method afforded a range of indolophenazines as new and potential cytotoxic agents. The use of excess TFA was found to be crucial for the success of this rea...

A variety of functionalized 3,4-benzo-7-hydroxy-2,9-diazabicyclo[3.3.1]non-7-enes were prepared by one-pot cyclizations of 1,3-bis(silyl enol ethers) with quinazolines. The mechanism of the cyclization was studied by B3LYP/6-31G(d) density functional theory computations. The products could be functionalized by Suzuki cross-coupling reactions. The reaction of 1,3-bis(silyl enol ethers) with phth...

Depending on the substitution pattern and the solvent, the gold-catalyzed cyclization of alk-4-yn-1-ones affords different oxygen heterocycles under mild reaction conditions. Alkynones with one substituent at C-3 undergo a 5-exo-dig cycloisomerization to substituted furans , whereas a 6-endo-dig cyclization to 4H-pyrans is observed with substrates bearing two substituents at C-3. In alcoholic s...

A synthetic method to prepare tricyclic bridged heptenones and hexenones from gold(I)-catalyzed double cycloisomerization of 1,11-dien-3,9-diyne benzoates is described. A divergence in product selectivity was achieved by fine-tuning the steric nature of the ligand of the Au(I) catalyst. In the presence of [MeCNAu(JohnPhos)](+)SbF6(-) (JohnPhos = (1,1'-biphenyl-2-yl)-di-tert-butylphosphine) as t...

RNA 3'-terminal phosphate cyclase has been partially purified from HeLa cells. In the presence of ATP and Mg2+, cyclase preparations catalyze conversion of RNA 3'-terminal phosphate to the 2',3'-cyclic phosphodiester. The mechanism of 3'-phosphate cyclization was studied with oligoribonucleotides containing terminal 2'-deoxy- or 2'-O-methylribose. Incubation of these substrates with cyclase and...

A flexible synthesis of dibenzo[e,g]isoindol-1-ones has been developed. Dibenzo[e,g]isoindol-1-ones represent simplified benzenoid analogues of biological indolo[2,3-a]pyrrolo[3,4-c]carbazol-5-ones (indolocarbazoles), compounds that have demonstrated a wide range of biological activity. The synthesis of the title compounds involved tetramic acid sulfonates. Different aryl groups were introduced...

The biosynthesis of cyclic monoterpenes (C(10)) generally requires the cyclization of an activated linear precursor (geranyldiphosphate) by specific terpene cyclases. Cyclic triterpenes (C(30)), on the other hand, originate from the linear precursor squalene by the action of squalene-hopene cyclases (SHCs) or oxidosqualene cyclases (OSCs). Here, we report a novel terpene cyclase from Zymomonas ...