Structure-activity relationship study of nitrogen signaling factors.

We have synthesized 10 analogs of oxylipins, which are nitrogen signaling factors (NSFs) that mediate cell-to-cell communication in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, and evaluated their structure-activity relationships with the aim of developing molecular probes for NSFs. We found that the OH or OAc group at C10 could be replaced with a compact amide (17) or carbamate (19). Introducing an alkyne as a detection tag at C10 led to decreased, though still sufficient, activity. Introducing an alkyne at the C18 position showed a similar trend, suggesting tolerance is relatively low even for compact functional groups such as alkynes. Although introduction of a diazirine moiety as a photoreactive group at the C5 position decreased the activity, we found that introducing diazirine at the C13 position was acceptable, and compound 38 exhibited potent NSF activity. These findings will be helpful in the development of molecular probes for NSFs.

Total Synthesis of Chlorinated Oxylipin Eiseniachloride B.

Eiseniachloride B is a marine chlorinated oxylipin isolated from the brown alga Eisenia bicyclis. This natural product contains cyclopentane, chlorohydrin, and 14-membered lactone systems that incorporate five stereogenic centers. In this paper, we report on the total synthesis of structurally unique oxylipin eiseniachloride B from optically active lactol via ecklonialactone B in a linear sequence comprising 11 steps with a 12.1% overall yield.

Effect of prohydrojasmon on total phenolic content, anthocyanin accumulation and antioxidant activity in komatsuna and lettuce.

Prohydrojasmon has been reported to improve the quality of crops. However, most previous studies have investigated its application on fruits. Here, we evaluated the effect of prohydrojasmon on the growth and total phenolic content, anthocyanin content, and antioxidant activity in komatsuna (Brassica rapa var. periviridis) and lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). Prohydrojasmon did not show any serious inhibitory effect. Prohydrojasmon applied to komatsuna at a concentration of 0.5 µM significantly increased the total phenolic content and anthocyanin content, and a concentration of 1 µM increased the antioxidant activity. In lettuce, prohydrojasmon at a concentration of 400 µM significantly increased the total phenolic content and anthocyanin content, while a concentration of 0.5 µM significantly increased the antioxidant activity. These results suggest that prohydrojasmon positively affects the phenolic compound and anthocyanin accumulation and antioxidant activity in komatsuna and lettuce without adversely affecting growth.

A Hexokinase 2 Modulator for Field-Directed Treatment of Experimental Actinic Keratoses.

Overexpression of hexokinase 2, and its binding to VDAC1 on the outer mitochondrial membrane of cancer cells, is key to their metabolic reprogramming to aerobic glycolysis, which enables them to proliferate. We describe Comp-1, an allosteric small molecule that selectively detaches hexokinase 2 from the mitochondria. Detachment of hexokinase 2 reduces glycolysis and triggers apoptosis in cancer cells, without affecting hexokinase 1-expressing normal cells. The anti-cancer activity of Comp-1 was demonstrated in the UVB-damaged skin model in SKH-1 mice. Topical treatment with Comp-1 led to 70% reduction in lesion number and area. This in vivo efficacy was obtained without local skin reactions or other safety findings. Mechanism-related pharmacodynamic markers, including hexokinase 2 and cleaved caspase 3 levels, are affected by Comp-1 treatment in vivo. Good Laboratory Practice toxicology studies in minipigs for 28 days and 13 weeks established no systemic toxicities and minimal dermal reaction for once-daily application of up to 20% and 15% ointment strengths, respectively. Thus, Comp-1 may address a significant unmet medical need for a non-irritating efficacious topical actinic keratosis treatment.

Synthesis and mode of action studies of N-[(-)-jasmonyl]-S-tyrosin and ester seiridin jasmonate.

Recent analyses on fungal jasmonic acid (JA)-containing metabolites suggest a mode-of-action of these naturally occurring compounds as inactive storage pools of JA. Plants and/or fungi can catabolize JA into the bioactive jasmonyl-isoleucine (JA-Ile) that in turn activates the JA-Ile-pathway in planta. To extend our knowledge on JA-derivates related to natural occurring JA conjugates, N-[(-)-jasmonyl]-S-tyrosin (JA-Tyr) and the ester JA-Sei between JA and seiridin, a fungal disubstituted furanone, were synthesized. The classical procedures for ester synthesis were applied for compound JA-Sei, while N-[(-)-jasmonyl]-S-tyrosin was synthesized with an optimized procedure. JA-Tyr and JA-Sei were characterized by spectroscopic method (essentially 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy and ESI-MS) and their stereochemical composition was determined by means of HPLC and circular dichroism analysis. Finally, the activity of these JA-derivates was analyzed in planta. JA-Tyr and JA-Sei trigger JA-regulated plant responses, such as protein degradation and growth inhibition. These effects require the conversion of JA into JA-Ile and its recognition by the plant JA-Ile perception complex COI1-JAZ. Overall, these data suggest a mode-of-action of JA-Tyr and JA-Sei as inactive pool of JA that can be transformed into the bioactive JA-Ile to induce the canonical JA-Ile-pathway.

A succinct access to ω-hydroxylated jasmonates via olefin metathesis.

In higher plants, jasmonates are lipid-derived signaling molecules that control many physiological processes, including responses to abiotic stress, defenses against insects and pathogens, and development. Among jasmonates, ω-oxidized compounds form an important subfamily. The biological roles of these ω-modified derivatives are not fully understood, largely due to their limited availability. Herein, a brief (two-step), simple and efficient (>80% yield), versatile, gram-scalable, and environmentally friendly synthetic route to ω-oxidized jasmonates is described. The approach utilizes olefin cross-metathesis as the key step employing inexpensive, commercially available substrates and catalysts.

Stereoselective total synthesis of Oxylipin from open chain gluco-configured building block.

Total synthesis of naturally occurring Oxylipin has been achieved from open chain gluco-configured building block which is readily assembled from inexpensive and commercially available D-(+)-gluconolactone. Grignard reaction and Wittig olefination reactions are key steps for the requisite CC bond formation.

Synthesis of the (9R,13R)-isomer of LDS1, a flower-inducing oxylipin isolated from Lemna paucicostata.

The first synthesis of the (9R,13R)-stereoisomer of LDS1, a flower-inducing oxylipin isolated from Lemna paucicostata, has been achieved from a known allylic alcohol by a seven-step sequence that involves the Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons olefination to construct its full carbon framework and an enzymatic hydrolysis of a penultimate methyl ester intermediate to provide the target molecule.

Synthesis of Oxylipin Mimics and Their Antifungal Activity against the Citrus Postharvest Pathogens.

Nine oxylipin mimics were designed and synthesized starting from d-mannose. Their antifungal activity against three citrus postharvest pathogens was evaluated by spore germination assay. The results indicated that all the compounds significantly inhibited the growth of Penicillium digitatum, Penicillium italicum and Aspergillus niger. The compound (3Z,6Z,8S,9R,10R)-octadeca-3,6-diene-8,9,10-triol (3) exhibited excellent inhibitory effect on both Penicillium digitatum (IC50 = 34 ppm) and Penicillium italicum (IC50 = 94 ppm). Their in vivo antifungal activities against citrus postharvest blue mold were tested with fruit inoculated with the pathogen Penicillium italicum. The compound (3R,4S)-methyl 3,4-dihydroxy-5-octyltetrahydrofuran-2-carboxylate (9) demonstrated significant efficacy by reducing the disease severity to 60%. The antifungal mechanism of these oxylipin mimics was postulated in which both inhibition of pathogenic mycelium and stimuli of the host oxylipin-mediated defense response played important roles.

Total Synthesis of Solandelactone I.

Since the marine natural products solandelactones A-I were isolated from the hydroid Solanderia secunda and investigated by Seo et al. in 1996, considerable synthetic efforts toward these marine oxylipins followed. However, the structure elucidation of solandelactone I remained incomplete, and no synthesis has been reported. On the basis of our retrosynthetic analysis, the key building blocks were combined in a Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction to create two common intermediates for the stereodivergent synthesis of all four diastereomers 1-4 matching the proposed structure of solandelactone I. Comparison of the published analytical data of natural product solandelactone I and data obtained from the synthetic endeavor toward diastereomers 1-4 enabled the structure assignment of isomer 3; the proposed biosynthetic pathway for marine oxylipins also supports the result.

anti-Diols from α-oxyaldehydes: synthesis and stereochemical assignment of oxylipins from Dracontium loretense.

Differentially protected 1,2-diols were synthesized by enantioselective aldehyde α-oxygenation followed by organomagnesium or -lithium addition. Contrary to a previous report, the resultant diols possess an anti configuration. Good selectivity was achieved regardless of the hybridization state of the nucleophile or the presence or absence of branching. This method was applied to short syntheses of all possible stereoisomers of two oxylipins from Dracontium loretense with incomplete stereochemical assignments. Spectroscopic comparisons between the synthetic and natural oxylipins led to unambiguous assignments.

A review (research and patents) on jasmonic acid and its derivatives.

In medicinal chemistry there is a growing interest in using small molecules, including plant stress hormones. Jasmonic acid (JA) and its volatile methyl ester (MJ), collectively termed jasmonates, are lipid-derived cyclopentanone compounds that occur ubiquitously and exclusively in the plant kingdom. This review covers the synthesis, usage, and biological activities of JA and its derivatives. A brief overview of the available information on JA and its features is given, followed by a detailed review of JA and its derivatives as drugs and prodrugs; the properties in plants and the synthesis in recent patents are described. This review shows the direction of long-term drug/nutraceutical safety trials and provides insights for future research in this area. Research on JA continues to be of major interest. Recent innovations offer hope for the development of new therapeutics in related fields. It is anticipated that several analogs can be advanced to preclinical and clinical studies.

Cyclopentanoids from cyclopentadiene: synthesis of (-)-methyl jasmonate and (+)-12-oxophytodienoic acid.

Linoleic acid metabolites, (-)-methyl jasmonate and (+)-12-oxophytodienoic acid ((+)-12-oxo-PDA), were prepared from the same precursor (1,2-trans, 1,3-cis, 2'Z)-2-(pent-2'-enyl)-cyclopent-4-en-1,3-diol, which was obtained by regioselective pent-2-enylation of cyclopentadiene and following photooxidation to cis-1,3-diol. A methoxycarbonylmethyl substituent was introduced to the cyclopentane ring via alkylation of the pi-allyl palladium intermediate derived from (1R,2S,3S,2'Z)-3-acetoxy-2-(pent-2'-enyl)cyclopent-4-ene-1-ol with dimethyl malonate for (-)-methyl jasmonate. The alpha-chain was introduced to the cyclopentane ring via the S(N)2 type nucleophilic substitution of (1S,2R,3R,2'Z)-3-acetoxy-2-(pent-2'-enyl)cyclopent-4-ene-1-ol with a dialkylcuprate for (+)-12-oxo-PDA.

Sakurai reaction of 3,3-bis(silyl) silyl enol ethers with acetals involving selective desilylation of the geminal bis(silane). Concise synthesis of nematocidal oxylipid.

3,3-Bis(silyl) silyl enol ethers have been shown to exhibit predominantly Sakurai reactivity, rather than Mukaiyama aldol reactivity, in their Lewis acid promoted reactions with acetals. Starting from a geminal bis(silyl) moiety consisting of two different silyl groups, such as SiMe(3) and SiMe(2)Ph, the SiMe(3) is selectively eliminated to give monoprotected E- vinylsilyl diols with good to excellent syn-diastereoselectivity. This reaction also underpinned a synthesis of the nematocidal oxylipid from Notheia anomala, demonstrating the attractive bifunctionality of geminal bis(silanes).

Hybrid stereoisomers of a compact molecular probe based on a jasmonic acid glucoside: syntheses and biological evaluations.

12-O-ß-D-glucopyranosyl jasmonic acid (JAG) shows unique biological activities, including leaf-closing of Samanea saman. It is expected that the mode of action for such regulation is distinct from that of other jasmonates. We developed high-performance compact molecular probes (CMPs) based on JAG that can be used for the FLAG-tagging of JAG target. We synthesized four hybrid-type JAG-CMP stereoisomers (7, ent-7, 8, and ent-8), which are composed of (-)-12-OH-JA (2)/D-galactopyranoside, (-)-2/L-galactopyranoside, (+)-ent-2/d-galactopyranoside, and (+)-ent-2/L-galactopyranoside moieties, respectively, and we examined their biological features, such as the stereospecific induction of shrinkage, rate of the cellular response, and dependence on potassium channel activity. These features of the JAG-CMPs were completely consistent with those of the original JAG. These results indicate the biological equivalence of JAG and the JAG-CMPs. During the course of such biological evaluations, it was revealed that the biological activity of the CMPs is greatly dependent on the d/l-stereochemistry of a glycon moiety. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study suggesting that the d/l-stereochemistry of the glycon moiety significantly affects the biological activity of the associated glycoside.

In vitro stability and in vivo anti-inflammatory efficacy of synthetic jasmonates.

A chlorinated methyl jasmonate analog (J7) was elaborated as an in vitro anti-inflammatory lead. However, its in vitro efficacy profile was not reproduced in a subsequent in vivo evaluation, presumably due to its rapid enzymatic hydrolysis in a biological system. In an attempt to improve the metabolic stability of the lead J7 by replacement of its labile methyl ester with reasonable ester groups, several analogs resistant to enzymatic hydrolysis were synthesized. In vivo evaluation of the stability-improved analogs showed that these compounds displayed higher efficacy than the lead J7, suggesting that these new jasmonate analogs may serve as potential anti-inflammatory leads.

Synthesis of the amino acid conjugates of epi-jasmonic acid.

The TES ether of the C6-hydroxy derivative of naturally occurring epi-jasmonic acid (epi-JA) was designed as epimerization-free equivalent of epi-JA. The TES ether was synthesized from (1R,4S)-4-hydroxycyclopent-2-enyl acetate in 13 steps. The acid part of the ether was activated with ClCO2Bui and subjected to condensation with L-amino acid at room temperature for 48 h. The TES group in the condensation product was removed in HCO2H (0°C, 30 min) and the resulting hydroxyl group was oxidized with Jones reagent (acetone, 0°C, 30 min) to furnish the amino acid conjugate of epi-JA. The amino acids examined are L-isoleucine, L-leucine, L-alanine, L-valine, and D-allo-isoleucine, which afforded the conjugates in 48-68% yields with 89-96% diastereomeric purity over the trans isomers. Similarly, the possible three stereoisomers of epi-JA were condensed with L-isoleucine successfully, producing the corresponding stereoisomers in good yields.

Novel allene oxide synthase products formed via Favorskii-type rearrangement: mechanistic implications for 12-oxo-10,15-phytodienoic acid biosynthesis.

The allene oxide synthase (AOS) pathway is widespread in plants. Its products, such as cyclopentenone 12-oxo-10,15-phytodienoic acid (12-oxo-PDA) and related jasmonates, play important biological roles in plants. We found that 12-oxo-PDA in some plant tissues co-occur with an unknown minor oxylipin 1. In vitro incubations of AOSs with α-linolenic acid 13(S)-hydroperoxide reliably afforded 1 along with 12-oxo-PDA and α-ketol. A similar oxylipin 3 was formed during the AOS conversions of γ-linolenic acid 9(S)-hydroperoxide. Linoleic acid hydroperoxides formed neither products similar to 1 and 3 nor cyclopentenones. Oxylipins 1 and 3 were purified and identified as the products of Favorskii-type rearrangement, (2'Z,4Z)-2-(2'-pentenyl)-4-tridecene-1,13-dioic acid and (2'Z,4Z)-2-(2'-octenyl)-4-decene-1,10-dioic acid, respectively. Detection of Favorskii products 1 and 3 demonstrates that cyclopropanones are short-lived AOS products along with allene oxides. The observed parallels between the Favorskii product 1 and 12-oxo-PDA formation suggests that cyclopropanone is either a byproduct or a precursor of 12-oxo-PDA.

Catalysis-based and protecting-group-free total syntheses of the marine oxylipins hybridalactone and the ecklonialactones A, B, and C.

Concise and protecting-group-free total syntheses of the marine oxylipins hybridalactone (1) and three members of the ecklonialactone family (2-4) were developed. They deliver these targets in optically pure form in 14 or 13 steps, respectively, in the longest linear sequence; five of these steps are metal-catalyzed and four others are metal-mediated. The route to either 1 or 2-4 diverges from the common building block 22, which is accessible in 7 steps from 2[5H]furanone by recourse to a rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition reaction controlled by the carvone-derived diene ligand 35 and a ring-closing alkene metathesis (RCM) catalyzed by the ruthenium indenylidene complex 17 as the key operations. Alternatively, 22 can be made in 10 steps from furfural via a diastereoselective three-component coupling process. The further elaboration of 22 into hybridalactone as the structurally most complex target with seven contiguous chiral centers was based upon a sequence of cyclopropanation followed by a vanadium-catalyzed epoxidation, both of which were directed by the same free hydroxy group at C15. The macrocyclic scaffold was annulated to the headgroup by means of a ring-closing alkyne metathesis reaction (RCAM). In response to the unusually high propensity of the oxirane of the targeted oxylipins for ring opening, this transformation had to be performed with complexes of the type [(Ar(3)SiO)(4)Mo≡CPh][K·OEt(2)] (43), which represent a new generation of exceedingly tolerant yet remarkably efficient catalysts. Their ancillary triarylsilanolate ligands temper the Lewis acidity of the molybdenum center but are not sufficiently nucleophilic to engage in the opening of the fragile epoxide ring. A final semireduction of the cycloalkyne formed in the RCAM step to the required (Z)-alkene completed the total synthesis of (-)-1. The fact that the route from the common fragment 22 to the ecklonialactones could follow a similar logic showcased the flexibility inherent to the chosen approach.

A reactive conjugated allene involved in the biosynthesis of volatile oxylipins in the moss Dicranum scoparium.

We addressed the role of the unusual acetylenic fatty acid dicranin as a precursor for volatile oxylipins in the moss Dicranum scoparium. Dicranin is transformed immediately after mechanical wounding of moss tissue to volatile C5- and C6-oxylipins. The transformation of synthetic deuterium labeled dicranin was monitored using LC/MS analysis and multivariate statistics to identify polar metabolites produced during volatile formation. Among the newly formed oxylipins is a highly reactive conjugated C13 allene with similar degrees of labeling compared to the C5 volatiles suggesting that it results as second cleavage product from the biosynthesis of pentenal and pentenone.