Photoinduced C(sp3)-H Functionalization of Glycine Derivatives: Preparation of Unnatural α-Amino Acids and Late-Stage Modification of Peptides.

ConspectusPeptides are essential components of living systems and contribute to critical biological processes, such as cell proliferation, immune defense, tumor formation, and differentiation. Therefore, peptides have attracted considerable attention as targets for the development of therapeutic products. The incorporation of unnatural amino acid residues into peptides can considerably impact peptide immunogenicity, toxicity, side effects, water solubility, action duration, and distribution and enhance the peptides' druggability. Typically, the direct modification of natural amino acids is a practical and effective approach for promptly obtaining unnatural amino acids. However, selective functionalization of multiple C(sp3)-H bonds with comparable chemical reactivities in the peptide side chains remains a formidable challenge. Furthermore, chemical modifications aimed at highly reactive (nucleophilic and aromatic) groups on peptide side chains can interfere with the biological activity of peptides.In recent years, the rapid advancement of photoinduced radical reactions has made photoredox radical-radical cross-coupling a practical approach for constructing C(sp3)-C(sp3) bonds under mild conditions. Glycine, a naturally occurring amino acid and the fundamental skeleton of all α-amino acids, provides a basis for the alkylated modification of its own α-C(sp3)-H bond under mild conditions. This Account describes our recent research endeavors for systematically investigating the photocatalytic α-C(sp3)-H alkylation of glycine derivatives via radical-radical coupling between N-aryl glycinate-derived radicals and various alkyl radicals. In 2018, we disclosed the photoinduced Cu-catalyzed decarboxylative α-C(sp3)-H alkylation of glycine derivatives. Subsequently, we developed a catalyst-free method for alkylating glycine derivatives and glycine residues in peptides via electron donor-acceptor (EDA)-complex-promoted single electron transfer. Moreover, we developed a photoinduced method for the radical alkylation of N-aryl glycinate α-C(sp3)-H bonds using unactivated alkyl chlorides (iodides) under photocatalyst-free conditions. Notably, by building on racemic alkylations of glycine derivatives and glycine-residue-containing peptides, we recently stereoselectively alkylated the N-aryl glycinate α-C(sp3)-H bond using a dual-functional Cu catalyst generated in situ for synthesizing a series of unnatural chiral α-amino and C-glycoamino acids.We have developed a series of methods for synthesizing unnatural amino acids through the α-C(sp3)-H alkylation of glycine derivatives using photoredox-promoted radical coupling as a key strategy. These methods are efficient and versatile and can be used for the late-stage modification of peptides in various contexts. Our work builds on the fundamental importance of glycine as the basic scaffold of all α-amino acids and highlights the potential of radical-based chemistry for developing chemical transformations in peptide synthesis. These findings have broad implications for chemical biology and may open doors for discovering peptide drugs and developing therapeutics.

Copper-catalyzed asymmetric C(sp3)-H cyanoalkylation of glycine derivatives and peptides.

Alkylnitriles play important roles in many fields because of their unique electronic properties and structural characteristics. Incorporating cyanoalkyl with characteristic spectroscopy and reactivity properties into amino acids and peptides is of special interest for potential imaging and therapeutic purposes. Here, we report a copper-catalyzed asymmetric cyanoalkylation of C(sp3)-H. In the reactions, glycine derivatives can effectively couple with various cycloalkanone oxime esters with high enantioselectivities, and the reaction can be applied to the late-stage modification of peptides with good yields and excellent stereoselectivities, which is useful for modern peptide synthesis and drug discovery. The mechanistic studies show that the in situ formed copper complex by the coordination of glycine derivatives and chiral phosphine Cu catalyst can not only mediate the single electronic reduction of cycloalkanone oxime ester but also control the stereoselectivity of the cyanoalkylation reaction.

Glycosyl Radical-Based Synthesis of C-Glycoamino Acids and C-Glycopeptides.

Radical-based reactions usually exhibit excellent functional-group compatibilities due to their mild initiation conditions. Glycosyl radical involved C-glycosylation modifications are important strategies to achieve highly regio- and chemoselective constructions of C-glycosidic bonds or C-glycoside linkages of peptides and proteins. In this Concept, we cover recent developments in glycosyl radical-based synthesis of unnatural amino acids and late-stage modification of peptides and proteins, and provide a preliminary outlook on the possible development of this direction in the future.

Visible-Light-Promoted Stereoselective C(sp3 )-H Glycosylation for the Synthesis of C-Glycoamino Acids and C-Glycopeptides.

The glycosylative modification of peptides could improve the pharmacological properties of peptide drugs and deliver them efficiently to the target sites. Compared with O-/N-glycosides, C-glycosides exhibit more metabolic stability. We here disclose the first example of visible-light-promoted and Cu-catalyzed stereoselective C-glycosylation. The mild reaction conditions are compatible with various carbohydrate substrates, as demonstrated with a series of monosaccharides and a disaccharide, and are amenable to the synthesis of a wide variety of C-glycoamino acids and C-glycopeptidomimetics with good yields and excellent stereoselectivities. The dual-functional photocatalyst formed in situ via coordination of the glycine derivative and the chiral phosphine Cu complex could not only catalyze the photoredox process but also control the stereoselectivity of the glycosylation reaction.

Visible Light Induced Cu-Catalyzed Asymmetric C(sp3)-H Alkylation.

The asymmetric functionalization of C-H is one of the most attractive strategies in asymmetric synthesis. In the past decades, catalytic enantioselective C(sp3)-H functionalization has been intensively studied and successfully applied in various asymmetric bond formations, whereas asymmetric C(sp3)-H alkylation was not well developed. Photoredox catalysis has recently emerged as an efficient way to synthesize organic compounds under mild conditions. Despite many photoinduced stereoselective reactions that have been achieved, the related enantioselective C(sp3)-C(sp3) coupling is challenging, especially of the photocatalytic asymmetric C(sp3)-H radical alkylation. Here, we report a visible light induced Cu catalyzed asymmetric sp3 C-H alkylation, which is effective for coupling with unbiased primary, secondary, and tertiary alkyl fragments in high enantioselectivities. This reaction would provide a new approach for the synthesis of important molecules such as unnatural α-amino acids and late-stage functionalization of bioactive compounds, and will be useful for modern peptide synthesis and drug discovery.

Visible-Light-Promoted C(sp3 )-H Alkylation by Intermolecular Charge Transfer: Preparation of Unnatural α-Amino Acids and Late-Stage Modification of Peptides.

Disclosed herein is the visible-light-promoted deaminative C(sp3 )-H alkylation of glycine and peptides using Katritzky salts as electrophiles. Simple reaction conditions and excellent functional-group tolerance provide a general strategy for the efficient preparation of unnatural α-amino acids and precise modification of peptides with unnatural α-amino-acid residues. Mechanistic studies suggest that visible-light-promoted intermolecular charge transfer within a glycine-Katritzky salt electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complex induces a single-electron transfer process without the assistance of photocatalyst.

Cu-Catalyzed cyanoalkylation of electron-deficient alkenes with unactivated alkyl bromides.

We here report the photoinduced Cu-catalyzed cyanoalkylation of electron-deficient alkenes by using alkyl bromides as alkylation reagents. In the reactions, 1°, 2°, and 3° unactivated alkyl bromides with various sensitive functional groups were well tolerated with good yields. Notably, terminal and internal alkenes, as well as alkene-containing peptides, were all tolerated well.

Arylation of benzyl amines with aromatic nitriles.

In the past years, the activations of aromatic nitriles for radical arylations under photoirradiation have been developed. We here report the first example of radical arylations using aromatic nitriles without the assistance of photoirradiation. Importantly, with this method, the direct arylation of C(sp3)-H in benzyl amines provided a practical method for the synthesis of diarylmethylamines without the use of precious transition metal catalysts.

Visible-Light-Driven, Copper-Catalyzed Decarboxylative C(sp3 )-H Alkylation of Glycine and Peptides.

Despite a well-developed and growing body of work in Cu catalysis, the potential of Cu to serve as a photocatalyst remains underexplored. Reported herein is the first example of visible-light-induced Cu-catalyzed decarboxylative C(sp3 )-H alkylation of glycine for preparing α-alkylated unnatural α-amino acids. It merits mentioning that the mild conditions and the good functional-group tolerance allow the modification of peptides using this method. The mechanistic studies revealed that a radical-radical coupling pathway is involved in the reaction.