Issue 7, 2017

Enantioselective total synthesis of (−)-colchicine, (+)-demecolcinone and metacolchicine: determination of the absolute configurations of the latter two alkaloids

Abstract

Here, we describe a concise, enantioselective, and scalable synthesis of (−)-colchicine (9.2% overall yield, >99% ee). Moreover, we have also achieved the first syntheses of (+)-demecolcinone and metacolchicine, and determined their absolute configurations. The challenging tricyclic 6-7-7 core of colchicinoids was efficiently introduced using an intramolecular oxidopyrylium-mediated [5 + 2] cycloaddition reaction. Notably, the synthesized colchicinoid 23 exhibited potent inhibitory activity toward the cell growth of human cancer cell lines (IC50 = ∼3.0 nM), and greater inhibitory activity towards microtubule assembly than colchicine, making it a promising lead in the search for novel anticancer agents.

Graphical abstract: Enantioselective total synthesis of (−)-colchicine, (+)-demecolcinone and metacolchicine: determination of the absolute configurations of the latter two alkaloids

Associated articles

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
25 Mar 2017
Accepted
30 Apr 2017
First published
05 May 2017
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2017,8, 4961-4966

Enantioselective total synthesis of (−)-colchicine, (+)-demecolcinone and metacolchicine: determination of the absolute configurations of the latter two alkaloids

B. Chen, X. Liu, Y. Hu, D. Zhang, L. Deng, J. Lu, L. Min, W. Ye and C. Li, Chem. Sci., 2017, 8, 4961 DOI: 10.1039/C7SC01341H

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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