2-Deoxy-disaccharide approach to natural and unnatural glycosphingolipids synthesis

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/S0957-4166(00)00366-9

2-Deoxy-disaccharides were easily converted into glycosylphytosphingosines, as new and efficient precursors of natural and unnatural glycosphingolipids. Copyright (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Full text of DOI:10.1016/S0957-4166(00)00366-9

TETRAHEDRON:
ASYMMETRY
Pergamon
Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
2-Deoxy-disaccharide approach to natural and unnatural
glycosphingolipids synthesis
Andrea Graziani, Pietro Passacantilli,* Giovanni Piancatelli* and Simona Tani
Dipartimento di Chimica and Centro CNR di Studio per la Chimica delle Sostanze Organiche Naturali,
Universita` ‘‘La Sapienza’’, P. le Aldo Moro 5, Box 34-Rome 62, 00185 Rome, Italy
Received 19 July 2000; accepted 13 September 2000
Abstract
2-Deoxy-disaccharides were easily converted into glycosylphytosphingosines, as new and efficient
precursors of natural and unnatural glycosphingolipids. © 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
Recently, the development of the synthetic strategies of naturally occurring glycosphingo-
lipids, such as a-galactosylceramide 1 (Fig. 1), have received great attention, due to their
interesting biological properties.1 Glycosphingolipids are amphipathic compounds, consisting of
sugar and ceramide moieties. Structurally, the ceramide is formed from two units: a sphingoid
base, which is an amino alcohol such as (2S,3S,4R)-2-amino-hexadecane-1,3,4-triol 2 and a long
chain fatty acid, such as (R)-2-hydroxy-tetracosanoic acid 3 (Fig. 1).
Usually, the last step in the total syntheses of these molecules is the coupling of a ceramide
with a given sugar, and several protocols have been developed for this purpose.1–6 However,
classical regio- and stereospecific glycosylation procedures have involved multiple step
sequences, which include the protection and deprotection strategies of the sugar moiety, its
activation as glycosyl donor and the use of a reaction promoter for the coupling, generally a
Lewis acid. The yields are variable from poor to good.7–10
Glycosphingolipids are essential both in inter- and intramolecular communications. Simulta-
neously, they play key-roles in the regulation of cell growth and differentiation and antibody
interactions.11–19 Owing to their recognised importance, efficient methods for their preparation
are continuously requested.
* Corresponding authors. E-mail: pietro.passacantilli@uniroma1.it; giovanni.piancatelli@uniroma1.it
0957-4166/00/$ - see front matter © 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S0957-4166(00)00366-9

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A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
Figure 1.
A recent achievement of our group was a simple and efficient synthesis of 2-deoxy-sugars:
protected glycals, derived from mono-, di- and trisaccharides were easily converted in very
excellent yields into the corresponding 2-deoxy-sugars, by reaction with aqueous mercuric(II)
acetate/sodium borohydride.20
The reaction shows a wide generality and makes 2-deoxy-sugars from more complex com-
pounds easily available in one reaction flask and in large amounts, such as the perbenzylated
derivatives of
1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy-
zyl-b- -galactopyranosyl)-1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy-
benzyl-4-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-b- -glucopyranosyl)-1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy-
enitol], prepared from the corresponding naturally occurring disaccharides.20
D
-melibial [3,4-di-O-benzyl-6-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-a-
-lyxo-hex-1-enitol], -lactal [3,6-di-O-benzyl-4-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-ben-
-lyxo-hex-1-enitol] and -cellobial [3,6-di-O-
-lyxo-hex-1-
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
Stimulated by the above, we considered the exploitation of the reactivity and the synthetic
utility of 2-deoxy-disaccharides to be of interest, particularly with the aim of finding new and
efficient strategies for the preparation of complex biologically active natural compounds. Now
we report a practical and enantioselective route, which makes easily available glycosyl-phyto-
sphingosines, such as 6a–c and 17, as new and efficient precursors of both natural and unnatural
glycosphingolipids. In fact, the strategy of the present syntheses focuses on the construction of
the fragment which contains a sugar and a sphingoid base, starting from suitable 2-deoxy-disac-
charides. The last step of this procedure is the easy formation of the amide linkage, thus
avoiding lengthy protocols for the glycosylation combination.
Then, this new strategy shows high flexibility, allowing relatively inaccessible unnatural
glycolipids from suitable 2-deoxy-disaccharides to be prepared, which can be studied in
biomedical research.
Although the literature provides several important laboratory processes for the utilisation of
carbohydrates as the source of chirality for preparing the sphingoid bases,1,21–24 the direct use of
disaccharide derivatives in this synthetic field, though very attractive, is completely unrealised.

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3923
2. Results and discussion
First, we explored the synthetic utility in this field of 2-deoxy-sugars 4a–c (Fig. 2) derived
from naturally occurring disaccharides melibiose, lactose and cellobiose, and easily available
from the corresponding glycosyl-glycals according to our previously described protocol, in a
large amount as well.20
Figure 2.
However, the 2-deoxy-glucose moiety of 4a–c does not possess the
D
-arabino configuration
required for the natural phytosphingosine synthesis.6 Thus, their
D
-lyxo configuration will give
rise to the formation of both unnatural phytosphingosines and glycosphingolipids. Scheme 1
outlines the synthetic sequence leading to the new glycosyl-phytosphingosines 6a–c. For the
chain extension, the Wittig reaction was utilised; when n-dodecyltriphenylphosphonium bromide
was treated with n-butyllithium to generate the Wittig reagent, the expected (2R,3R,4R)-1-O-
(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-a- -galactopyranosyl)-3,4-di-O-benzyl-6-octadecen-2-ol 5a (90:10 E/Z
D
mixture) was obtained starting from 4a. Using the same protocol, the intermediates 5b,c were
obtained from 4b,c (see Section 4).
It is worth noting that all the intermediates 5a–c derived from 4a–c have the carbon skeleton
of the chain with the protected required functionality and the free hydroxyl group for the
introduction of the amino group in the same position as in the natural sphingoid bases.
The generation of the amino group from 5a–c proceeded smoothly following a previous
protocol of four steps sequence:24 (i) 2-O-mesylation of 5a–c with methanesulfonyl chloride in
pyridine, (ii) then a high yield chemoselective hydrogenation of the double bond with diimine
(prepared in situ from tosylhydrazide) as reducing agent, (iii) treatment with sodium azide in
DMSO at 100°C and (iv) reduction of the azido group with hydrogen and Pd/CaCO3 with the
formation of 2-amino derivatives 6a–c. The remaining steps of the synthesis involved the amide
formation 7a–c, which was easily carried out from 6a–c with docosanoic acid in presence of
HOBT and EDAC.25 After removing the benzyl groups, the unnatural glycosphingolipids 8d–f
were obtained in ꢀ25% total yield from the starting disaccharides.
Stemming from the above results, we wanted to explore the flexibility and the utility of our
strategy for preparing naturally occurring glycosphingolipids, whose synthesis had not been
described before. The a-galactosyl-ceramide 1, Agelasphin AGL-7a, isolated from the marine
sponge Agelas mauritianus,26,27 is the synthetic target of choice. The examined biological activity
showed that 1 possesses a stronger antitumour activity against B16-bearing mice and stimulatory
effects of lymphocyte proliferation on allergenic mixed lymphocyte reaction (MRL) than
b-glucosyl-ceramide.28 To our knowledge, the total synthesis of 1 has not been reported to date.

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A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
Scheme 1.
The retrosynthetic analysis shows that the 3,4-di-O-benzyl-6-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-a-
galactopyranosyl)-2-deoxy- -galactose 15a can be considered a suitable starting material, pos-
sessing already the -arabino configuration required for the natural phytosphingosine synthesis
(Scheme 2).21–24 However, being not naturally available the corresponding disaccharide as
precursor, the perbenzylated 6-O-(a- -galactopyranosyl)- -galactal [3,4-di-O-benzyl-6-O-(2%,3%,
4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-a- -galactopyranosyl)-1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy- -arabino-hex-1-enitol] 14a was
D
-
D
D
D
D
D
D
prepared in a stepwise manner utilising a conventional approach, the condensation of an
activated galactosyl donor and an unactivated galactosyl acceptor.
The details for the synthesis of 2-deoxy-sugar progenitor 15a are shown in Scheme 2. Thus,
3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-
D
-galactal (3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy-
D
-arabino-hex-1-enitol) 9
reacted smoothly with 2,2-dimethyldioxirane to afford stereoselectively the epoxide 10 from the
a-face, which immediately reacted with dry TBAF to generate 3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-
D
-galactopyran-
osyl fluoride 11.29

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3925
Scheme 2.
The subsequent coupling of the benzyl derivative 12 with 3,4-di-O-benzyl-
D
-galactal 13 under
D
Mukaiyama’s conditions30 led to the formation of the protected
D
-galactosyl- -galactals 14a,b
as an anomeric epimers mixture (4:1 a/b ratio). The previously described mercuration–demercur-
ation strategy,20 carried out on 14a, gave rise to the formation of the corresponding 2-deoxy-
sugar 15a, never described before.
The synthesis of 1 is described in Scheme 3 and follows the same above strategy. The Wittig
reaction, carried out with n-decyltriphenylsphophonium bromide, gave the expected (2R,3S,4R)-
3,4-di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-a- -galactopyranosyl)-6-hexadecen-2-ol 16 (90:10
D
E/Z mixture). The intermediate 16 derived from 15a has the carbon skeleton of the chain with
the protected required functionality and the free hydroxyl group with the right configuration for
introducing the amino group with the same configuration (2S) as in the natural sphingoid bases.
Scheme 3.

3926
A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
The generation of the amino group from 16 proceeded smoothly following the previous
utilised protocol of a four step sequence, as outlined in Scheme 3. The remaining steps of the
synthesis first involved the amide formation, which was easily carried out by reaction of 17 with
(R)-2-O-benzyl-tetracosanoic acid in presence of HOBT and EDAC.25 The subsequent removal
of the benzyl groups led to the synthetic 1, which showed physical data identical with the natural
compound ([h]2D0 +54, c 0.6 Pyr; mp 192–194.5°C; lit. [h]2D4 +52.3, c 1.0 Pyr; mp 193.5–195°C).26
The described straightforward synthesis of 1 demonstrates the power of the developed
2-deoxy-disaccharide strategy for the preparation of complex molecules, and renders the
glycosphingolipids readily available in pure form for further biological investigations.
3. Conclusions
The utilisation of the readily available 2-deoxy-disaccharides, such as 4a–c, renders them the
most attractive starting materials for the construction of structurally modified glycolipids, which
should be biologically important. Thus, the route described here is much shorter than was
possible by classical glycosylation. The latter required extensive manipulations in each synthesis
to expose the glycosyl donor. We think that the interfacing of 2-deoxy-disaccharide chemistry
with enzymatically driven processes in the molecule holds considerable promise for a remarkable
simplification in the field of glycolipids synthesis.
However, this strategy avoids the need for a multistep installation of the glycosyl framework
only if the correct disaccharide exists already as a readily available starting material.
Further extension of this strategy to the synthesis of more complex glycolipids from
2-deoxy-trisaccharides is currently in progress.
4. Experimental
Solvents were purified and dried by standard procedures before use. Analytical TLC was
performed using silica gel 60 F254 plates (Merck) and detected by treatment with a solution of
2N H2SO4. Column chromatography was performed using silica gel 60 (0.063–0.200 nm)
(Merck) and flash chromatography using silica gel 60 (0.040–0.063) (Merck). Optical rotations
were measured using sodium D line on DIP-370 JASCO digital polarimeter. Melting points were
1
determined on a Mettler FP 800 melting point apparatus. H NMR (200 MHz) and 13C NMR
(50.3 MHz) were recorded in CDCl3 and NC5D5. IR spectra were recorded in CHCl3 solution
and KBr, using a Shimadzu IR spectrometer 470 and are reported in wavenumbers (cm−1). Mass
spectra were obtained on an API 356 mass spectrometer.
4.1. (2R,3R,4R)-3,4-Di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
6-octadecen-2-ol 5a
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
To a solution of n-dodecyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (1.2 g, 2.4 mmol) in dry tetra-
hydrofuran (10 mL) was added, under N2, n-butyllithium 1.6 M in hexane (1.5 mL, 2.4 mmol),
furnishing a dark orange solution. The mixture was stirred for 15 min; thereafter a solution of

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3927
2-deoxy-sugar 4a (415 mg, 0.48 mmol) in dry tetrahydrofuran (8 mL) was added dropwise. The
reaction was complete within 5 min; subsequently acetone (4 mL) was added and the reaction
mixture was treated with 1N hydrochloric acid until pHꢀ7 and concentrated in vacuo. After
dilution with ethyl acetate, the organic phase was washed with water, then brine, dried over
Na2SO4 and concentrated. The residue was purified by chromatography over silica gel with
hexane/diethyl ether (8:2) to give 5a (390 mg, 80%) as a white foam. 1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3
(fm, 30H, Ph); 5.6–5.3 (m, 2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.1–4.4 (fs, 14H); 4.18–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H);
2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 3H, H8, OH); 1.35 (bs, 18H, H9ꢀH17); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.17–138.44 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 134.87, 125.61 (C6, C7 Z isomer);
132.73, 125.96 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.89–127.97 (PhꢀCH2); 99.39 (C1%); 80.10, 79.82, 79.52,
77.01, 75.38, 70.78, 70.16 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.30, 74.39, 74.10, 73.96, 73.36, 73.14
(CH2ꢀPh); 71.20, 69.38 (C1, C6%); 32.46 (C5); 30.38–23.23 (C8ꢀC17); 14.67 (C18). (C66H82O9
requires: C, 77.7%; H, 8.1%. Found: C, 77.3%; H, 8.3%).
4.2. (2S,3R,4R)-2-Amino-3,4-di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
D
-galacto-
pyranosyl)octadecane 6a
(i) Methanesulfonyl chloride (0.03 mL, 0.4 mmol) was added to 5a (390 mg, 0.38 mmol) in dry
pyridine (4 mL) at 0°C. After stirring at room temperature for 3 h, the reaction mixture was
worked up at 0°C by adding methanol (1 mL) and diluted with ethyl acetate. After cold-ice
treatment with 6N hydrochloric acid (10 mL) and saturated NaHCO3, the mixture was washed
with water, then brine and dried over Na2SO4. The organic phase was concentrated and purified
by silica gel chromatography (hexane/diethyl ether 8:2) yielding the corresponding mesyl
1
derivative (383 mg, 92%) as colourless oil. H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.5–5.35
(m, 2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.12–4.41 (fs, 14H); 4.2–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H); 2.84 (s, 3H, CH3SO2);
2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 18H, H9ꢀH17); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.13–138.40 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 134.72, 125.63 (C6, C7 Z isomer);
133.46, 125.03 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.96–128.09 (PhꢀCH2); 98.14 (C1%); 83.52, 81.49, 79.84,
78.73, 76.79, 75.04, 70.18 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.38, 75.18, 74.01, 72.87, 72.78, 72.75
(CH2ꢀPh); 69.30 (C6%); 66.68 (C1); 38.79 (CH3SO2); 32.50 (C5); 30.27–23.28 (C8–C17); 14.74
(C18).
(ii) Tosylhydrazide (651 mg, 3.5 mmol) was added to a solution of the mesyl derivative (383
mg, 0.35 mmol) in absolute ethanol (15 mL). The reaction mixture was refluxed for 5 h and
during this time a solution of sodium acetate (574 mg, 7 mmol) in water (8 mL) was added.
After dilution with ethyl acetate, organic phases were washed with water, brine, dried over
Na2SO4 and concentrated. The purification of the residue by column chromatography over silica
gel with hexane/diethyl ether (8:2) furnished the intermediate with the reduced double bond
C(6)ꢀC(7) (365 mg, 95%) as colourless oil. [h]2D0 +57.8 (c 1.5, CH2Cl2); H NMR (CDCl3) l
1
7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs, 14H); 4.2–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H); 2.87 (s, 3H,
CH3SO2); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6–H17); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C
NMR (CDCl3) l 139.16–138.42 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.94–128.12 (PhꢀCH2); 98.19 (C1%); 83.71,
81.35, 79.81, 78.77, 76.84, 75.10, 71.25 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.41, 75.04, 74.04,
72.96, 72.80 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.38 (C6%); 66.72 (C1); 38.77 (CH3SO2); 32.53 (C5); 30.88–23.31
(C6ꢀC17); 14.78 (C18).

3928
A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
(iii) The above dihydro intermediate (365 mg, 0.33 mmol) and sodium azide (858 mg, 13.2
mmol) in dry dimethylsulfoxid (20 mL) were stirred under N2 for 36 h at 100°C. The reaction
mixture was diluted with ethyl acetate, washed with water, brine and then dried over Na2SO4.
The organic phase was concentrated and the purification of the residue by column chro-
matography over silica gel with hexane/diethyl ether (9:1) gave the azido derivative (289 mg,
84%) as a colourless oil. [h]2D0 +26 (c 1.4, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2870, 2100, 1648, 1513,
1
1453, 1363, 1247, 1100, 735; H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs, 14H);
4.1–3.5 (fs, 10H); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6ꢀH17); 0.92 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.71–137.87 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.28–127.42 (PhꢀCH2); 98.66
(C1%); 79.82, 79.46, 78.70, 76.32, 74.92, 69.66 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 74.69, 74.34, 73.35,
73.14, 73.06, 72.71 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.66, 68.41 (C1, C6%); 61.64 (C2) 31.88 (C5); 29.66–22.66
(C6ꢀC17); 14.10 (C18). [C66H83N3O8 requires: C, 75.7%; H, 8.0%. Found: C, 75.8%; H, 8.2%;
MS: m/z 1017 (M+−N2)].
(iv) The azido derivative (289 mg, 0.27 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture (18
mL, 1:2) was hydrogenated under atmospheric pressure over Pd/CaCO3 (50 mg, 5%) for 12 h.
The reaction mixture was subsequently filtered over Celite, the filtrate concentrated and the
residue purified by silica gel (treated with 1 M NaOH) chromatography (hexane/ethyl acetate
1
9:1) to yield 6a (224 mg, 80%) as an amorphous white solid. H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.42 (fm,
30H, Ph); 4.97–4.32 (fs, 12H); 4.18–3.88 (fs, 8H); 3.78–3.06 (fs, 4H); 1.69 (bs, 2H, NH2); 1.24
(bs, 26H, H5ꢀH17); 0.89 (t, J=4 Hz, 3H, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.29–138.40
(CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.81–127.92 (PhꢀCH2); 99.33 (C1%); 81.85, 80.81, 79.49, 77.19, 75.42, 75.26,
(C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 73.95, 73.82, 73.47, 73.18, 72.85 (CH2ꢀPh); 70.03, 69.36 (C1,
C6%); 52.57 (C2); 32.43 (C5); 31.48–23.20 (C6ꢀC17); 14.63 (C18).
4.3. (2S,3R,4R)-3,4-Di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
2-N-docosanoil-octadecane 7a
A solution of docosanoyl acid (75 mg, 0.22 mmol), EDAC [N-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-N%-
ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride] (50 mg, 0.26 mmol), HOBT [1-hydroxybenzotriazole] (35
mg, 0.26 mmol) in N,N-dimethylformamide/dichloromethane (2 mL, 1:2.5) was stirred under
N2 for 30 min at 0°C. Then 6a (224 mg, 0.22 mmol) and diisopropylethylamine (0.092 mL,
0.53 mmol) in dry dichloromethane (7 mL) were added and the reaction mixture was stirred
at room temperature for 3 h. Diluted with ethyl acetate/diethyl ether (50 mL, 8:2) mixture,
the organics were treated with saturated Na2CO3, then 1N hydrochloric acid and subse-
quently washed with water, brine and dried over Na2SO4. The organic phase was concen-
trated and the residue was purified by column chromatography over silica gel with
hexane/ethyl acetate (95:5) to give 7a (254 mg, 90%) as an amorphous white solid. [h]2D0 +18.4
1
(c 1.4, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2900, 2850, 1735, 1645, 1513, 1248, 1103, 1056, 735; H
NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–3.4 (fs, 24H); 2.33 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz, H2%%);
1.5–1.1 (bs, 64H, H5ꢀH17/H3%%ꢀH21%%); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l
172.69 (HNꢀCꢁO); 138.74–137.90 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.31–127.42 (PhꢀCH2); 98.56 (C1%);
80.55, 79.23, 78.67, 76.51, 74.97, 69.84 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 74.83, 74.69, 73.41, 73.03,
(CH2ꢀPh); 69.02, 68.36 (C1, C6%); 48.63 (C2); 36.78 (C2%%); 32.71 (C5); 31.91–22.69 (C6ꢀC17,
C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.12 (C18, C22%%). (C88H127NO9 requires: C, 78.7%; H, 9.5%. Found: C, 78.8%;
H, 9.7%).

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3929
4.4. (2S,3R,4R)-2-N-Docosanoil-1-O-h- -galactopyranosyl-octadecane-3,4-diol 8d
D
A solution of 7a (254 mg, 0.19 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture (9 mL, 1:2) was
hydrogenated under atmospheric pressure over Pd/C (50 mg, 10%) for 24 h. The reaction
mixture was subsequently filtered and the filtrate concentrated. The residue was purified by silica
gel chromatography (chloroform/methanol 95:5) to yield 8d (144 mg, 95%) as a white solid; mp
180–182.3°C (methanol); [h]2D0 +12.1 (c 1.1, NC5D5); IR cm−1 (KBr): 3356, 2920, 2851, 1734,
1
1652, 1547, 1466, 1372, 1260, 1075, 1042; H NMR (NC5D5) l 8.48 (d, 1H, J=9.2 Hz, NH);
6.68 (bs, OH); 6.48 (bs, OH); 5.6–4.1 (fs, 12H); 2.35 (t, 2H, J=6.2 Hz, H2%%); 2.28–1.62 (m, 4H);
1.5–1.1 (bs, 60H); 0.89 (t, 3H, J=6.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (NC5D5) l 173.80 (HNꢀCꢁO); 101.59
(C1%); 74.23, 73.28, 72.60, 71.32, 70.74, 70.22 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 69.85 (C1); 63.05 (C6%);
51.18 (C2); 37.04 (C2%%); 35.18–19.39 (C5ꢀC17, C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.55 (C18, C22%%). (C46H91NO9
requires: C, 68.8%; H, 11.4%. Found: C, 68.6%; H, 11.6%).
4.5. (2R,3R,4R)-1,4-Di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
6-octadecen-2-ol 5b
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
Compound 5b (318 mg, 68%; however, the yields can vary between 60 and 80%) was obtained
as an inseparable E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) from 4b, [406 mg, 0.46 mmol in dry tetrahydrofuran
(8 mL), n-dodecyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (1.2 g, 2.4 mmol) in dry tetrahydrofuran (10
mL), n-butyllithium 1.6 M in hexane (1.5 mL, 2.4 mmol)], following the procedure described for
5a.
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.53–7.33 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.62–5.29 (m, 2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.11–4.42 (fs, 14H);
4.18–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H); 2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 18H,
H9ꢀH17); 0.96 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.28–138.40 (CquatCH2ꢀPh);
134.90, 127.01 (C6, C7 Z isomer); 132.49, 126.54 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.96–128.02 (PhꢀCH2);
104.38 (C1%); 82.96, 81.07, 79.90, 77.49, 74.23, 73.78, 71.52* (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%);
75.71, 75.08, 74.00, 73.68, 73.44, 73.08 (CH2ꢀPh); 71.52*, 69.30 (C1, C6%); 32.46 (C5); 30.20–
23.23 (C8ꢀC17); 14.67 (C18). (C66H82O9 requires: C, 77.7%; H, 8.1%. Found: C, 77.3%; H,
8.3%).
4.6. (2S,3R,4R)-2-Amino-1,4-di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
D
-galacto-
pyranosyl)octadecane 6b
Compound 6b (183 mg, 58%) was obtained from 5b (318 mg, 0.31 mmol) following the
procedures (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) described for 6a.
(i) [318 mg, 0.31 mmol of E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) in dry pyridine (4 mL), methanesulfonyl
1
chloride (0.026 mL, 0.33 mmol)]: H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.52–7.28 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.51–5.35 (m,
2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.12–4.41 (fs, 14H); 4.2–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H); 2.82 (s, 3H, CH3SO2);
2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 18H, H9ꢀH17); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.38–138.33 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 134.07, 126.62 (C6, C7 Z isomer);
132.81, 125.99 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.95–128.08 (PhꢀCH2); 103.36 (C1%); 84.00, 82.90, 79.96,
79.86, 78.69, 77.79, 74.23, 73.81 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.54, 75.13, 74.22, 74.00,
73.81, 73.40, 73.36, 72.60 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.37, 69.06 (C1, C6%); 38.97 (CH3SO2); 32.47 (C5);
30.27–23.23 (C8ꢀC17); 14.68 (C18).

3930
A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
(ii) [Mesyl derivative (312 mg, 0.285 mmol) in absolute ethanol (15 mL), tosyl hydrazide (530
mg, 2.85 mmol), sodium acetate (467 mg, 5.7 mmol) in water (6 mL)]: [h]2D0 +6.0 (c 1.5, CH2Cl2);
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.52–7.28 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.15–4.45 (fs, 14H); 4.19–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.71–3.48
(fs, 3H); 2.88 (s, 3H, CH3SO2); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6ꢀH17); 0.97 (t, 3H,
J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.78–137.75 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.36–127.53 (PhꢀCH2);
102.93 (C1%); 83.58, 82.27, 79.36, 79.21, 78.21, 73.56, 73.12 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%);
74.92, 74.58, 73.41, 72.78, 71.97 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.37, 68.32 (C1, C6%); 38.34 (CH3SO2); 31.87 (C5);
29.70–22.64 (C6ꢀC17); 14.09 (C18).
(iii) [Dihydro derivative (294 mg, 0.268 mmol), sodium azide (715 mg, 11 mmol) in dry
dimethylsulfoxide (20 mL)]: [h]D20 +1.4 (c 1.2, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2870, 2100, 1645, 1520,
1
1453, 1363, 1250, 1097, 735; H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.48–7.28 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs, 14H);
4.11–3.48 (fs, 10H); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6ꢀH17); 0.95 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.85–137.79 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.40–127.35 (PhꢀCH2); 104.54
(C1%); 82.43, 79.98, 79.30, 77.47, 73.70, 73.23 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.05, 74.52, 73.48,
73.01, 72.32 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.99, 68.82 (C1, C6%); 61.93 (C2); 31.91 (C5); 29.73–22.68 (C6ꢀC17);
14.12 (C18). [C66H83N3O8 requires: C, 75.7%; H, 8.0%. Found: C, 75.6%; H, 8.0%; MS: m/z
1017 (M+−N2)].
(iv) [Azido derivative (236 mg, 0.226 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture (18 mL, 1:2),
1
Pd/CaCO3 (50 mg, 5%)]. 6b: H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.42 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.0–4.33 (fs, 14H);
3.92–3.25 (fs, 10H); 1.74 (bs, 2H, NH2); 1.25 (bs, 26H, H5ꢀH17), 0.9 (t, J=4 Hz, 3H, CH3); 13C
NMR (CDCl3) l 138.83–137.76 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.26–127.50 (PhꢀCH2); 104.87 (C1%); 82.71,
80.72, 79.49, 73.55, 73.14 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.39, 74.56, 73.41, 73.72, 71.84, 71.74
(CH2ꢀPh); 71.70, 68.64 (C1, C6%); 52.18 (C2); 31.90 (C5); 29.72–22.67 (C6ꢀC17); 14.12 (C18).
4.7. (2S,3R,4R)-1,4-Di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
2-N-docosanoyl-octadecane 7b
Compound 7b (217 mg, 90%) was obtained from 6b [183 mg, 0.18 mmol in dry
dichloromethane (7 mL), diisopropylethylamine (0.075 mL, 0.43 mmol), docosanoyl acid (61
mg, 0.18 mmol), EDAC (39 mg, 0.20 mmol), HOBT (27 mg, 0.20 mmol) in N,N-dimethylform-
amide/dichloromethane (2 mL, 1:2.5)], following the procedure described for 7a.
[h]2D0 +6.3 (c 1.5, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2898, 2850, 1740, 1645, 1515, 1248, 1100, 1048,
735; 1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–3.4 (fs, 24H); 2.33 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz, H2%%);
1.53–1.11 (bs, 64H, H5ꢀH17/H3%%ꢀH21%%); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3). 13C NMR (CDCl3) l
172.89 (HNꢀCꢁO); 139.36–138.33 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.94–127.54 (PhꢀCH2); 104.08 (C1%);
83.39, 80.89, 79.78, 77.74, 74.01, 73.91 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.47, 75.19, 73.77, 73.20,
73.11 72.77 (CH2ꢀPh); 70.07, 69.01 (C1, C6%); 48.04 (C2); 37.13 (C2%%); 32.44 (C5); 30.24–23.21
(C6ꢀC17, C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.64 (C18, C22%%). (C88H127NO9 requires: C, 78.7%; H, 9.5%. Found: C,
78.9%; H, 9.6%).
4.8. (2S,3R,4R)-2-N-Docosanoyl-3-O-i- -galactopyranosyl-octadecane-1,4-diol 8e
D
Compound 8e (123 mg, 95%) was obtained from 7b [217 mg, 0.16 mmol in ethyl acetate/eth-
anol 95% mixture (9 mL, 1:2), Pd/C (50 mg, 10%)], following the procedure described for 8d; mp

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3931
154–155.5°C (methanol); [h]2D0 +5.7 (c 1.2, NC5D5); IR cm−1 (KBr): 3356, 2920, 2850, 1735, 1650,
1
1547, 1466, 1370, 1260, 1080, 1040; H NMR (NC5D5) l 7.85 (d, 1H, J=9.5 Hz, NH); 6.62 (bs,
OH); 5.59–4.08 (fs, 12H); 2.32 (t, 2H, J=5.1 Hz, H2%%); 2.21–1.65 (m, 4H); 1.5–1.1 (bs, 60H);
0.88 (t, 3H, J=6.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (NC5D5) l 173.26 (HNꢀCꢁO); 106.23 (C1%); 85.27,
77.49, 75.62, 73.22, 71.67, 70.27 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 62.40, 62.23 (C1, C6%); 58.09 (C2);
36.89 (C2%%); 32.30–23.29 (C5ꢀC17, C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.64 (C18, C22%%). (C46H91NO9 requires: C,
68.8%; H, 11.4%. Found: C, 68.8%; H, 11.5%).
4.9. (2R,3R,4R)-1,4-Di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
6-octadecen-2-ol 5c
D
-glucopyranosyl)-
Compound 5c (305 mg, 65%; however, the yields can vary between 60–80%) was obtained as
an inseparable E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) from 4c [398 mg, 0.4 mmol in dry tetrahydrofuran (8
mL), n-dodecyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (1.2 g, 2.4 mmol) in dry tetrahydrofuran (10
mL), n-butyllithium 1.6 M in hexane (1.5 mL, 2.4 mmol)], following the procedure described for
5a.
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.58–5.28 (m, 2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.03–4.38 (fs, 14H);
4.16–3.88 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.52 (fs, 3H); 2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 18H,
H9ꢀH17); 0.95 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.15–138.73 (CquatCH2ꢀPh);
133.87, 127.47 (C6, C7 Z isomer); 132.56, 126.55 (C6, C7 E isomer); 129.06–128.08 (PhꢀCH2);
103.80 (C1%); 85.29, 82.71, 81.24, 78.40, 77.23, 75.31, 71.37 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%);
76.14, 75.46, 75.39, 74.02, 73.80, 71.37* (CH2ꢀPh); 71.37*, 69.61 (C1, C6%); 32.45 (C5);
30.22–23.22 (C8ꢀC17); 14.66 (C18). (C66H82O9 requires: C, 77.7%; H, 8.1%. Found: C, 77.3%; H,
8.3%).
4.10. (2S,3R,4R)-2-Amino-1,4-di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
D
-gluco-
pyranosyl)octadecane 6c
Compound 6c (197 mg, 60%) was obtained from 5c (305 mg, 0.3 mmol) following the
procedures (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) described for 6a.
(i) [305 mg, 0.3 mmol of E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) in dry pyridine (4 mL), methanesulfonyl
1
chloride (0.025 mL, 0.32 mmol)]: H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.49–7.31 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.48–5.35 (m,
2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.14–4.41 (fs, 14H); 4.21–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.7–3.5 (fs, 3H); 2.84 (s, 3H, CH3SO2);
2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 18H, H9–H17); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.56–137.67 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 133.65, 126.09 (C6, C7 Z isomer);
132.44, 125.29 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.37–127.64 (PhꢀCH2); 102.38 (C1%); 84.78, 83.26, 82.25,
79.34, 77.80, 77.77, 74.74 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.68, 74.90, 73.51, 72.91, 72.09
(CH2ꢀPh); 69.17, 68.88 (C1, C6%); 38.51 (CH3SO2); 31.94 (C5); 29.67–22.71 (C8ꢀC17); 14.16
(C18).
(ii) [Mesyl derivative (312 mg, 0.285 mmol) in absolute ethanol (15 mL), tosyl hydrazide (530
mg, 2.85 mmol), sodium acetate (467 mg, 5.7 mmol) in water (6 mL)]: [h]2D0 +0.6 (c 1.6, CH2Cl2);
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.32 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.11–4.43 (fs, 14H); 4.22–3.86 (fs, 7H); 3.72–3.51
(fs, 3H); 2.87 (s, 3H, CH3SO2); 1.72–1.56 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6ꢀH17); 0.96 (t, 3H,
J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.09–138.21 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.88–128.06 (PhꢀCH2);
103.13 (C1%); 85.32, 83.90, 82.78, 79.78, 78.60, 78.29, 75.72* (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%);
76.20, 75.72*, 75.24, 74.05, 73.44, 72.54 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.81, 69.41 (C1, C6%); 38.99 (CH3SO2); 32.46
(C5); 30.27–23.23 (C6ꢀC17); 14.68 (C18).

3932
A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
(iii) [Dihydro derivative (300 mg, 0.274 mmol), sodium azide (715 mg, 11 mmol) in dry
dimethylsulfoxide (20 mL)]: [h]D20 +1.6 (c 1.2, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2870, 2100, 1650, 1513,
1
1460, 1366, 1245, 1100, 735; H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.53–7.32 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs, 14H);
4.1–3.51 (fs, 10H); 1.72–1.54 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 24H, H6ꢀH17); 0.95 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.16–138.31 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.84–128.02 (PhꢀCH2); 104.74
(C1%); 85.25, 82.58, 80.62, 78.33, 77.66, 75.24 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 76.13, 75.47, 74.04,
73.60, 72.72, 72.20 (CH2ꢀPh); 70.54, 69.69 (C1, C6%); 62.36 (C2); 32.42 (C5); 30.24–23.19
(C6ꢀC17); 14.62 (C18). [C66H83N3O8 requires: C, 75.7%; H, 8.0%. Found: C, 75.8%; H, 8.1%;
MS: m/z 1017 (M+−N2)].
(iv) [Azido derivative (243 mg, 0.233 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture (18 mL, 1:2),
1
Pd/CaCO3 (50 mg, 5%)]. 6c: H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.38 (fm, 30H, Ph); 4.92 (AB, 4H, J=12 Hz,
2CH2Ph); 4.6–4.38 (fs, 12H); 3.78–3.22 (fs, 8H); 1.62 (bs, 2H, NH2); 1.21 (bs, 26H, H5ꢀH17);
0.88 (t, J=4 Hz, 3H, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.35–138.62 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.97–127.90
(PhꢀCH2); 104.96 (C1%); 85.50, 82.87, 81.32, 81.19, 78.41, 75.25 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%);
76.09, 75.71, 75.46, 73.50, 73.13, 71.88* (CH2ꢀPh); 71.73*, 68.97 (C1, C6%) 52.14 (C2); 31.92
(C5); 29.72–22.68 (C6ꢀC17); 14.11 (C18).
4.11. (2S,3R,4R)-1,4-Di-O-benzyl-3-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-i-
D
-glucopyranosyl)-
2-N-docosanoyl-octadecane 7c
Compound 7c (221 mg, 92%) was obtained from 6c [197 mg, 0.193 mmol in dry
dichloromethane (7 mL), diisopropylethylamine (0.080 mL, 0.46 mmol), docosanoyl acid (66
mg, 0.194 mmol), EDAC (44 mg, 0.227 mmol), HOBT (31 mg, 0.229 mmol) in N,N-dimethylform-
amide/dichloromethane (2 mL, 1:2.5)], following the procedure described for 7a. [h]2D0 +7.1 (c
1
1.2, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2900, 2852, 1738, 1649, 1513, 1247, 1103, 1054, 735; H NMR
(CDCl3) l 7.5–7.23 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–3.41 (fs, 24H); 2.33 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz, H2%%); 1.47–1.07
(bs, 64H, H5ꢀH17/H3%%ꢀH21%%); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 172.31
(HNꢀCꢁO); 138.78–138.00 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.00–126.95 (PhꢀCH2); 103.3 (C1%); 84.90, 82.10,
80.47, 77.80, 76.08, 74.81 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.53, 74.81, 74.65, 73.48, 72.79, 72.02
(CH2ꢀPh); 69.64, 68.73 (C1, C6%); 47.63 (C2); 36.58 (C2%%); 33.71 (C5); 31.87–22.64 (C6ꢀC17,
C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.07 (C18, C22%%). (C88H127NO9 requires: C, 78.7%; H, 9.5%. Found: C, 78.6%; H,
9.4%).
4.12. (2S,3R,4R)-2-N-Docosanoyl-3-O-b- -glucopyranosyl-octadecane-1,4-diol 8f
D
Compound 8f (125 mg, 95%) was obtained from 7c [221 mg, 0.165 mmol in ethyl acetate/eth-
anol 95% mixture (9 mL, 1:2), Pd/C (50 mg, 10%)], following the procedure described for 8d; mp
161–163°C (methanol); [h]2D0 +6.0 (c 1.0, NC5D5); IR cm−1 (KBr): 3358, 2925, 2850, 1738, 1655,
1
1549, 1466, 1372, 1265, 1075, 1038; H NMR (NC5D5) l 7.86 (d, 1H, J=9.6 Hz, NH); 6.68 (bs,
OH); 6.5 (bs, OH); 5.62–3.92 (fs, 12H); 2.38 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz, H2%%); 2.28–1.52 (m, 4H); 1.5–1.1
(fs, 60H); 0.89 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (NC5D5) l 173.28 (HNꢀCꢁO); 105.52 (C1%);
85.06, 78.94, 78.77, 75.66, 71.75 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 62.68, 62.46 (C1, C6%); 52.04 (C2);
36.92 (C2%%); 33.32–23.23 (C5ꢀ C17, C3%%ꢀC21%%); 14.57 (C18, C22%%). (C46H91NO9 requires: C,
68.8%; H, 11.4%. Found: C, 68.6%; H, 11.5%).

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3933
4.13. 2,3,4,6-Tetra-O-benzyl-i-
D
-galactopyranosyl fluoride 12
-galactal; 500 mg, 1.2 mmol) in dry dichloromethane (21
Compound 9 (3,4,6-tri-O-benzyl-
D
mL) under N2 at 0°C was treated with dimethyldioxirane (21 mL, ꢀ1.7 mmol). The reaction
mixture was stirred for 30 min until all the galactal was consumed (TLC hexane/diethyl ether
6:4) and the solvent was evaporated using a dry N2 steam to give 10, which had been
azeotropically dried using benzene. The residue was dissolved in dry tetrahydrofuran (8 mL)
under N2 at 0°C, treated with TBAF [tetrabutylammonium fluoride] (11 mL, ꢀ11 mmol; stored
over molecular sieves) and then stirred at rt for 30 h. The dark brown solution was diluted with
ethyl acetate, washed with water, brine, dried over Na2SO4 and concentrated to dryness. Flash
column chromatography of residue using dichloromethane/ethyl acetate (95:5) as eluent gave 11
(277 mg, 51%) as an amorphous colourless solid. The compound was dissolved in dry
N,N-dimethylformamide (5 mL) under N2 at 0°C, treated with benzyl bromide (0.20 mL, 1.7
mmol), NaH (40 mg, 1.7 mmol) and stirred for 30 min at 0°C and 30 min at rt. The reaction
was quenched by pouring the mixture into ice. Finally the mixture was diluted with ethyl acetate
and washed with water, brine, dried (Na2SO4) and concentrated in vacuo. Flash column
chromatography of residue using hexane/diethyl ether (75:25) as eluent gave 12 (292 mg, 88%)
as an amorphous colourless solid.
1
[h]2D0 +16.1 (c 0.9, CH2Cl2); H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.48–7.35 (fs, 20H, PhꢀCH2); 5.25 (dd, 1H,
J=52.7, J=7.2 Hz, H-1); 5.02 (d, 1H, J=11.6 Hz); 4.92–4.85 (AB q, 2H, J=11.0 Hz); 4.81 (t,
2H, J=11.4 Hz); 4.69 (d, 1H, J=11.6 Hz); 4.58–4.49 (AB q, 2H, J=11.8 Hz); 4.12–3.90 (mfs,
2H, H-2, H-5); 3.76 (fs, 3H, H-3, 2H-6); 3.62 (dd, 1H, J=10.1, J=2.3 Hz, H-4); 13C NMR
(CDCl3) l 138.50–137.80 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.52–127.88 (PhꢀCH2); 110.42 (d, J=212 Hz, C1);
81.17 (d, J=12.2 Hz, C3); 79.21 (d, J=19.8 Hz, C2); 75.14, 74.78, 73.75, 73.24 (CH2ꢀPh); 73.77
(d, J=4.6 Hz, C4); 73.18 (C5); 68.50 (C6).
4.14. 3,4-Di-O-benzyl-6-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
2-deoxy- -arabino-hex-1-enitol 14a
D
-galactopyranosyl)-1,5-anhydro-
D
Galactal derivative 13 (117 mg, 0.36 mmol) and fluoro sugar 12 (292 mg, 0.54 mmol) were
combined in diethyl ether, concentrated, dried in vacuo for 2 h and then treated with
6-methyl-2,4-di-tert-butylpyridine29 (110 mg, 0.54 mmol) in a glovebag and dissolved in dry
diethyl ether (8 mL) under argon. Silver perchlorate (112 mg, 0.54 mmol), stannous chloride
,
(102 mg, 0.54 mmol) and 4 A molecular sieves were placed in a separate flask and the system
was flushed with argon. The salt mixture was placed in a water–ice bath, and the sugar solution
was introduced via a double-tipped needle. The reaction flask was wrapped with aluminium foil
and stirred at room temperature for 30 h. The reaction mixture was quenched by addition of
saturated NaHCO3, washed with water, then brine and dried over Na2SO4. The organics were
concentrated and purified by silica gel chromatography (hexane/diethyl ether 85:15) to afford
the desired a-product 14a (257 mg, 80%) and 64 mg (20%) of b-product 14b, both as amorphous
colourless solids.
14a: [h]2D0 +13.1 (c 0.5, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2868, 1645, 1613, 1513, 1092, 735; H
1
NMR (CDCl3) l 7.41–7.11 (fm, 30H, Ph); 6.24 (dd, 1H, J=6.2, J=1.1 Hz, H1); 4.96–3.88 (fs,
22H); 3.68 (dd, 1H, J=2.5, J=8.5 Hz); 3.48 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz, H6%); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l

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A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
144.08 (C1); 138.83–137.99 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.33–127.37 (PhꢀCH2); 99.68 (C2); 97.74 (C1%);
79.08, 74.95, 71.78, 70.11, 69.15 (C3, C4, C5, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 74.73, 73.41, 72.96, 70.74
(CH2ꢀPh); 68.73 (C6%); 66.28 (C6). (C54H56O9 requires: C, 76.4%; H, 6.6%. Found: C, 76.5%; H,
6.6%).
14b: [h]2D0 −20 (c 0.5, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2868, 1645, 1620, 1511, 1210, 1092, 735; H
1
NMR (CDCl3) l 7.52–7.18 (fm, 30H, Ph); 6.38 (dd, 1H, J=5.5, J=1.1 Hz, H1); 5.08–3.80 (fs,
22H); 3.72–3.48 (fm, 3H); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 144.10 (C1); 138.81–137.83 (CquatCH2ꢀPh);
128.36–127.47 (PhꢀCH2); 104.29 (C1%); 99.72 (C2); 82.02, 79.43, 75.52, 73.39, 73.12, 71.61, 70.16
(C3, C4, C5, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 74.91, 74.50, 73.43, 72.98, 72.89, 70.87 (CH2ꢀPh); 68.40, 68.23
(C6, C6%). (C54H56O9 requires: C, 76.4%; H, 6.6%. Found: C, 76.4%; H, 6.5%).
4.15. 3,4-Di-O-benzyl-6-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
-galactose 15a
D
-galactopyranosyl)-2-deoxy-
D
The protected h-galactosyl-galactal 14a (257 mg, 0.3 mmol) in dry tetrahydrofuran (20 mL)
was cooled to 0°C, treated with a solution of mercuric acetate (382 mg, 1.2 mmol) in water (2
mL) and stirred until all glycal was consumed. The reaction mixture was diluted with water (80
mL, water/tetrahydrofuran 4:1), then at 0°C was added sodium borohydride (182 mg, 4.8
mmol). After 1 min the mixture was treated with bubbling carbon dioxide until pHꢀ7. The
suspension was extracted with diethyl ether (3×50 mL). The combined organic phases were
washed with water, brine, dried over Na2SO4 and concentrated. The silica gel column chro-
matography of the crude product, using hexane/diethyl ether (6:4) as eluent, furnished 15a (217
1
mg, 84%) as a colourless oil. IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 3360, 2868, 1613, 1513, 1092, 735; H NMR
(CDCl3) l 5.30 (fm, 1H, H1); 4.90–4.30 (fs, 18H); 4.18 (m, 1H, H4); 4.01 (m, 1H, H3); 3.75 (m,
2H, H6); 3.53 (fs, 1H, H5); 2.35–1.95 (m, 2H, H2); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.74–137.20
(CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.45–127.30 (PhꢀCH2); 98.35, 98.25 (C1%); 95.32, 92.15 (C1); 79.14, 79.08,
78.69, 74.97, 74.88, 74.69, 74.46, 73.87, 73.83, 73.64, 73.57, 73.49, 73.01, 70.92, 70.76, 70.53,
69.76, 69.50, 69.22, 69.15 (C3, C4, C5, C6, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%, C6%, CH2ꢀPh); 31.11, 29.68 (C2).
(C54H58O10 requires: C, 74.8%; H, 6.7%. Found: C, 74.7%; H, 6.8%).
4.16. (2R,3S,4R)-3,4-Di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
6-hexadecen-2-ol 16
D
-galactopyranosyl)-
Compound 16 (203 mg, 82%; however, the yields can vary between 75 and 85%) was obtained
as an inseparable E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) from 15a [217 mg, 0.25 mmol in dry tetrahydrofuran
(4 mL), n-decyltriphenylphosphonium bromide (661 mg, 1.3 mmol) in dry tetrahydrofuran (10
mL), n-butyllithium 1.6 M in hexane (1.5 mL, 2.4 mmol)], following the procedure described for
5a.
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.48–7.32 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.62–5.28 (m, 2H, H6ꢀH7); 5.08–4.41 (fs, 14H);
4.18–3.87 (fs, 7H); 3.72–3.48 (fs, 3H); 2.5–2.4 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (fs, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 14H,
H9ꢀH15); 0.98 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.17–138.52 (CquatCH2ꢀPh);
134.84, 125.96, (C6, C7 Z isomer) 132.76, 124.98 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.89–127.97 (PhꢀCH2);
125.96 (C7); 99.39 (C1%); 82.10, 79.82, 79.52, 77.01, 75.38, 70.78, 70.16 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%,
C4%, C5%); 75.30, 74.39, 74.10, 73.96, 73.36, 73.14 (CH2ꢀPh); 71.20 (C6%); 69.38 (C1); 32.46 (C5);
30.38–23.23 (C8ꢀC15); 14.67 (C16). (C64H78O9 requires: C, 77.5%; H, 7.9%. Found: C, 77.4%; H,
8.0%).

A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
3935
4.17. (2S,3S,4R)-2-Amino-3,4-di-O-benzyl-1-O-(2%,3%,4%,6%-tetra-O-benzyl-h-
pyranosyl)hexadecane 17
D
-galacto-
Compound 17 (114 mg, 59%) was obtained from 16 (203 mg, 0.2 mmol) following the
procedures (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) described for 6a.
(i) [203 mg, 0.2 mmol of E/Z mixture (ratio 9:1) in dry pyridine (2 mL), methanesulfonyl
chloride (0.017 mL, 0.22 mmol)]: 1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.31 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.52–5.35 (m, 2H,
H6ꢀH7); 5.1–4.41 (fs, 14H); 4.22–3.85 (fs, 7H); 3.72–3.52 (fs, 3H); 2.82 (s, 3H, CH3SO2);
2.49–2.41 (fs, 2H, H5); 2.15–2.0 (m, 2H, H8); 1.35 (bs, 14H, H9ꢀH15); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=3.5 Hz,
CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.14–138.42 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 134.73, 125.64 (C6, C7 Z isomer);
133.45, 125.04 (C6, C7 E isomer); 128.97–128.10 (PhꢀCH2); 99.15 (C1%); 83.52, 81.49, 79.84,
78.73, 76.79, 75.04, 70.18 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.38, 75.18, 74.01, 72.87, 72.78, 72.75
(CH2ꢀPh); 69.30 (C6%); 66.68 (C1); 38.79 (CH3SO2); 32.51 (C5); 30.24–23.29 (C8ꢀC15); 14.75
(C16).
(ii) [Mesyl derivative (196 mg, 0.184 mmol) in absolute ethanol (7 mL), tosyl hydrazide (342
mg, 1.84 mmol), sodium acetate (304 mg, 3.7 mmol) in water (4 mL)]: [h]2D0 +27 (c 1.2, CH2Cl2);
1H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs, 14H); 4.21–3.85 (fs, 7H); 3.68–3.49 (fs,
3H); 2.84 (s, 3H, CH3SO2); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 20H, H6ꢀH15); 0.98 (t, 3H, J=3.5
Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 139.16–138.42 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.94–128.12 (PhꢀCH2); 99.19
(C1%); 83.72, 81.35, 79.81, 78.77, 76.84, 75.10, 70.25 (C2, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 75.41, 75.05,
74.05, 72.96, 72.80 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.38 (C6%), 66.73 (C1); 38.77 (CH3SO2); 32.54 (C5); 30.88–23.32
(C6ꢀC15); 14.78 (C16).
(iii) [Dihydro derivative (187 mg, 0.175 mmol), sodium azide (455 mg, 7 mmol) in dry
dimethylsulfoxide (12 mL)]: [h]D20 +19.2 (c 1.5, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2870, 2100, 1648,
1
1510, 1460, 1366, 1248, 1100, 735; H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.5–7.3 (fm, 30H, Ph); 5.13–4.45 (fs,
14H); 4.12–3.52 (fs, 10H); 1.72–1.55 (m, 2H, H5); 1.35 (bs, 20H, H6ꢀH15); 0.93 (t, 3H, J=3.5
Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3) l 138.73–137.88 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.28–127.41 (PhꢀCH2); 96.66
(C1%); 79.82, 79.46, 78.70, 76.32, 74.92, 69.68 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 74.69, 74.34, 73.14,
73.06, 72.71 (CH2ꢀPh); 69.66 (C6%), 68.41 (C1); 61.64 (C2); 31.87 (C5); 29.66–22.64 (C6ꢀC15);
14.09 (C16). [C64H79N3O8 requires: C, 75.5%; H, 7.8%. Found: C, 75.6%; H, 7.9%; MS: m/z 989
(M+−N2)].
(iv) [Azido derivative (151 mg, 0.148 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture (18 mL, 1:2),
1
Pd/CaCO3 (50 mg, 5%)]. 17: H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.43–7.22 (fm, 30H, Ph); 4.98–4.33 (fs, 14H);
3.92–3.25 (fs, 10H); 1.74 (bs, 2H, NH2); 1.25 (bs, 22H, H5ꢀH15), 0.9 (t, J=4 Hz, 3H, CH3); 13C
NMR (CDCl3) l 139.29–138.40 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.81–127.92 (PhꢀCH2); 99.33 (C1%); 81.85,
80.81, 79.49, 75.42, 75.26, 75.08 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%); 73.95, 73.82, 73.47, 73.18, 72.85
(CH2ꢀPh); 70.03, 69.36 (C1, C6%); 52.57 (C2); 32.43 (C5); 31.48–23.20 (C6ꢀC15); 14.63 (C16).
4.18. (2S,3S,4R,2%%R)-1-O-h-
D
-Galactopyranosyl-2-N-(2%%-hydroxy-tetracosanoyl)hexadecane-
3,4-diol 1
A solution of (R)-2-O-benzyl-tetracosanoic acid (52.2 mg, 0.11 mmol), EDAC [N-(3-dimethyl-
aminopropyl)-N%-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride] (26 mg, 0.13 mmol), HOBT [1-hydroxyben-
zotriazole] (18 mg, 0.13 mmol) in N,N-dimethylformamide/dichloromethane (2 mL, 1:1) was
stirred under N2 for 30 min at 0°C. Then 17 (114 mg, 0.11 mmol) and diisopropylethylamine
(0.005 mL, 0.3 mmol) in dry dichloromethane (7 mL) were added and the reaction mixture was

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A. Graziani et al. / Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 11 (2000) 3921–3937
stirred for 3 h at room temperature. Diluted with ethyl acetate/diethyl ether (50 mL, 8:2)
mixture, the organics were treated with saturated Na2CO3, then 1N hydrochloric acid and
subsequently washed with water, brine and dried over Na2SO4. The organic phase was
concentrated and the residue was purified by column chromatography over silica gel with
hexane/ethyl acetate (95:5) to give amide derivative (146 mg, 90%) as an amorphous white solid.
[h]2D0 +58.2 (c 1.4, CH2Cl2); IR cm−1 (CHCl3): 2900, 2858, 1740, 1645, 1515, 1247, 1100, 1054,
1
735; H NMR (CDCl3) l 7.52–7.33 (fm, 35H, Ph); 5.13–3.42 (fs, 27H); 2.33 (t, 2H, J=6.5 Hz,
H2%%); 1.49–1.12 (m, 64H, H5ꢀH15/H3%%ꢀH23%%); 0.97 (t, 3H, J=6.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (CDCl3)
l 172.89 (HNꢀCꢁO); 139.36–138.67 (CquatCH2ꢀPh); 128.94–127.54 (PhꢀCH2); 104.08 (C1%);
83.99, 83.40, 80.89, 79.78, 74.01, 73.91, 73.77 (C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%, C2%%); 75.47, 75.19,
73.20, 73.11, 72.77, (CH2ꢀPh); 70.07, 69.01 (C1, C6%); 48.03 (C2); 37.13–23.21 (C5ꢀC15,
C3%%ꢀC23%%); 14.65 (C16, C24%%). (C95H133NO10 requires: C, 78.7%; H, 9.2%. Found: C, 78.9%; H,
9.4%). A solution of amide derivative (146 mg, 0.1 mmol) in ethyl acetate/ethanol 95% mixture
(2.5 mL, 1:2) was hydrogenated under atmospheric pressure over Pd/C (10 mg, 10%) for 24 h.
The reaction mixture was subsequently filtered and the filtrate concentrated. The residue was
purified by silica gel chromatography (chloroform/methanol 95:5) to yield 126 (79 mg, 95%) as
a white solid; mp 192–194.5°C (methanol); [h]2D0 +54 (c 0.6, NC5D5); IR cm−1 (KBr): 3358, 2925,
1
2850, 1738, 1655, 1550, 1465, 1372, 1268, 1070, 1038; H NMR (NC5D5) l 8.50 (d, 1H, J=9.2
Hz, NH); 6.71 (bs, OH); 6.68 (bs, OH); 5.58–4.25 (fs, 13H); 2.28–1.62 (m, 4H); 1.5–1.1 (fs, 62H);
0.89 (t, 3H, J=6.5 Hz, CH3); 13C NMR (NC5D5) l 173.80 (HNꢀCꢁO); 101.59 (C1%); 75.73,
75.39, 74.56, 73.28, 72.60, 71.32, 70.74, 68.82 (C1, C3, C4, C2%, C3%, C4%, C5%, C2%%); 63.05 (C6%);
51.81 (C2); 37.04–19.39 (C5ꢀC15, C3%%ꢀC23%%); 14.55 (C16, C24%%). (C46H91NO10 requires: C,
67.5%, H, 11.2%. Found: C, 67.7%, H, 11.2%).
Acknowledgements
We wish to tank Murst Cofin 1998 for financial support.
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