The design of new synthetic methods has a broad impact on biomedical research. Many factors are involved in the selection of a compound as a potential drug candidate, but one that is critical, but not always articulated, is whether or not a potential target is accessible. If a compound cannot be made in a practical way either through synthesis or from biological sources, then it will never become a viable pharmaceutical agent. Consequently, truly powerful and previously unprecedented synthetic methods can open up vistas of novel structural scaffolds for exploration as potential drug targets. The central goal of this research program is to develop new strategic reactions that will have broad impact in organic synthesis. Rhodium-stabilized carbenoids containing both donor and acceptor groups are capable of a range of synthetically useful transformations. This proposal focuses on a new direction of study of donor/acceptor carbenoids, namely enantioselective transformations of rhodium-bound zwitterionic intermediates. The full scope of these new synthetic methods will be explored and then applied to the synthesis of biologically relevant natural products and important pharmaceutical drug scaffolds.

Public Health Relevance

Broader Significance: This research program is directed towards the development of new synthetic methods with broad application for streamlining schemes for the stereoselective synthesis of natural products and pharmaceutical targets. The approach is likely to generate synthetic methods that can have a major impact on changing the type of strategies that are used in synthesis compared to studies aimed at improving established reactions. The research group is broadly collaborative and the training environment is ideal for graduate students and post docs who are interested in careers in the pharmaceutical industry or academia.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM099142-04
Application #
8665818
Study Section
Synthetic and Biological Chemistry A Study Section (SBCA)
Program Officer
Lees, Robert G
Project Start
2011-09-20
Project End
2015-05-31
Budget Start
2014-06-01
Budget End
2015-05-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Emory University
Department
Chemistry
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
City
Atlanta
State
GA
Country
United States
Zip Code
30322
Garlets, Zachary J; Davies, Huw M L (2018) Harnessing the ?-Silicon Effect for Regioselective and Stereoselective Rhodium(II)-Catalyzed C-H Functionalization by Donor/Acceptor Carbenes Derived from 1-Sulfonyl-1,2,3-triazoles. Org Lett 20:2168-2171
Fu, Liangbing; Davies, Huw M L (2017) Scope of the Reactions of Indolyl- and Pyrrolyl-Tethered N-Sulfonyl-1,2,3-triazoles: Rhodium(II)-Catalyzed Synthesis of Indole- and Pyrrole-Fused Polycyclic Compounds. Org Lett 19:1504-1507
Kubiak 2nd, Robert W; Mighion, Jeffrey D; Wilkerson-Hill, Sidney M et al. (2016) Enantioselective Intermolecular C-H Functionalization of Allylic and Benzylic sp(3) C-H Bonds Using N-Sulfonyl-1,2,3-triazoles. Org Lett 18:3118-21
Negretti, Solymar; Cohen, Carolyn M; Chang, Jane J et al. (2015) Enantioselective Dirhodium(II)-Catalyzed Cyclopropanations with Trimethylsilylethyl and Trichloroethyl Aryldiazoacetates. Tetrahedron 71:7415-7420
Parr, Brendan T; Davies, Huw M L (2015) Stereoselective synthesis of highly substituted cyclohexanes by a rhodium-carbene initiated domino sequence. Org Lett 17:794-7
Spangler, Jillian E; Lian, Yajing; Raikar, Sandeep N et al. (2014) Synthesis of complex hexacyclic compounds via a tandem Rh(II)-catalyzed double-cyclopropanation/Cope rearrangement/Diels-Alder reaction. Org Lett 16:4794-7
Parr, Brendan T; Davies, Huw M L (2014) Highly stereoselective synthesis of cyclopentanes bearing four stereocentres by a rhodium carbene-initiated domino sequence. Nat Commun 5:4455
Guzmán, Pablo E; Lian, Yajing; Davies, Huw M L (2014) Reversal of the regiochemistry in the rhodium-catalyzed [4+3] cycloaddition between vinyldiazoacetates and dienes. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 53:13083-7
Wang, Hengbin; Guptill, David M; Alvarez, Adrian Varela et al. (2013) Rhodium-catalyzed enantioselective cyclopropanation of electron deficient alkenes. Chem Sci 4:2844-2850
Qin, Changming; Davies, Huw M L (2013) Rh2(R-TPCP)4-catalyzed enantioselective [3+2]-cycloaddition between nitrones and vinyldiazoacetates. J Am Chem Soc 135:14516-9

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