Efficient synthesis of 5-(hydroxymethyl)piperazin-2-ones using automatically prepared chiral bromocarboxylic acid and Garner's aldehyde as versatile building blocks.

An efficient method for the synthesis of substituted 5-(hydroxymethyl)piperazin-2-ones was established by using an automated synthesis process. Thirteen piperazinones were synthesized from chiral α-bromocarboxylic acids and Garner's aldehyde which were prepared by using our originally developed automated synthesizer, ChemKonzert®. The automated method of synthesizing chiral α-bromocarboxylic acids was efficient and safe because the rate of the dropwise addition of the reagent can be controlled using the automated synthesizer. This method is expected to contribute to the synthesis of pharmaceuticals.

Solution-phase automated synthesis of an α-amino aldehyde as a versatile intermediate.

A solution-phase automated synthesis of the versatile synthetic intermediate, Garner's aldehyde, was demonstrated. tert-Butoxycarbonyl (Boc) protection, acetal formation, and reduction of the ester to the corresponding aldehyde were performed utilizing our originally developed automated synthesizer, ChemKonzert. The developed procedure was also useful for the synthesis of Garner's aldehyde analogues possessing fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl (Fmoc) or benzyloxycarbonyl (Cbz) protection.