Angewandte
Chemie
Natural Products Synthesis
Total Synthesis of the Posttranslationally Modified Polyazole Peptide
Antibiotic Plantazolicin A
Hiroki Wada, Huw E. L. Williams, and Christopher J. Moody*
Abstract: The power of rhodium–carbene methodology in
chemistry is demonstrated by the synthesis of a structurally
complex polyazole antibiotic. Plantazolicin A, a novel soil-
bacterium metabolite, comprises a linear array of 10 five-
membered rings in two pentacyclic regions that derive from
ribosomal peptide synthesis followed by extensive posttransla-
tional modification. The compound possesses potent anti-
microbial activity, and is selectively active against the anthrax-
causing organism. A conceptually different synthesis of
plantazolicin A is reported in which the key steps are the use
of rhodium(II)-catalyzed reactions of diazocarbonyl com-
Scheme 1. Synthesis of oxazoles from carboxamides and nitriles via
rhodium carbenes.
pounds to generate up to six of the seven oxazole rings of the
antibiotic. NMR spectroscopic studies and molecular modeling
reveal a likely dynamic hairpin conformation with a hinge
region around the two isoleucine residues. The compound has
modest activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA).
array of five-membered rings (azoles) that derive biosynthet-
ically from amino acids by ribosomal peptide synthesis
followed by wide-ranging posttranslational modification.[13–15]
However, it is the potent antimicrobial activity of plantazo-
licin A against Gram-positive organisms that has attracted
much attention. In particular, the compound is selectively
active against the anthrax-causing organism Bacillus anthracis
(Sterne).[11,13] Although the polyazole nature of plantazoli-
cin A is highly reminiscent of the thiopeptide antibiotics,[16–18]
a synthetic derivative of which has entered the clinic against
Clostridium difficile infections,[19,20] there are key differences.
Specifically, the linear nature of the antibiotic with its two
pentacyclic regions represents a challenge for chemical
synthesis that, in combination with the antimicrobial activity,
makes plantazolicin A highly attractive for further study. The
first total synthesis of plantazolicin A was reported by
Süssmuth and co-workers in 2013,[21] and very recently,
a second total synthesis was reported by Ley and co-work-
ers.[22] Both syntheses relied on classical peptide coupling. We
now report a conceptually different synthesis of plantazoli-
cin A on the basis of carbene chemistry.
I
n the one and a half centuries since August KekulØ and
Archibald Scott Couper independently proposed that
a carbon atom could form four bonds to other atoms
(including other carbon atoms),[1,2] the existence of divalent
carbon species with a six-electron valence shell has intrigued
chemists. Once regarded as mechanistic curiosities or fleeting
intermediates, such divalent species, now known as carbenes,
have moved center stage as a result of the isolation of the first
stable carbene in the late 1980s,[3] to be followed by the now
familiar stable N-heterocyclic carbenes,[4] which as ligands
have revolutionized transition-metal catalysis.[5] Also metallo-
carbene intermediates, derived from diazo compounds, par-
ticipate in a plethora of reactions that are useful in chemical
synthesis.[6] We now demonstrate the power of carbene
chemistry in the synthesis of the structurally unique, complex
polyazole antibiotic plantazolicin A, in which up to six of the
seven five-membered oxazole rings of the natural product are
formed from simple precursors, such as carboxamides or
Our strategy was to construct the azole rings by using
carbene intermediates, and hence our retrosynthetic analysis
divided the molecule into two fragments, 3 and 4, each
adorned with appropriate protecting groups, with the sensi-
tive oxazoline ring in the C-terminus right-hand fragment 4 to
nitriles,
as
facilitated
by
carbene
methodology
(Scheme 1).[7–10]
Plantazolicin A (1) and plantazolicin B (2) are novel
metabolites isolated from the soil bacterium Bacillus amylo-
liquefaciens FZB42.[11,12] The structures consist of a linear
be formed by
a late-stage cyclodehydration reaction
(Scheme 2). In contrast with other approaches, we elected
to introduce the guanidine moiety later in the synthesis. Thus,
the starting point for our synthesis was the known ornithine-
derived thiazole-4-ester 5,[23] which was readily converted into
the corresponding carboxamide 6 to set the scene for our first
step involving a carbene (Scheme 3). The key metallocarbene
[*] H. Wada, Dr. H. E. L. Williams, Prof. C. J. Moody
School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham
Nottingham NG7 2RD (UK)
E-mail: c.j.moody@nottingham.ac.uk
À
N H insertion was carried out by heating a mixture of methyl
Supporting information for this article, including experimental
procedures, characterization data for all compounds, and copies of
the 1H and 13C NMR spectra, is available on the WWW under http://
2-diazo-3-oxobutanoate and amide 6 in the presence of
rhodium(II) acetate dimer (2.5 mol%) in dichloromethane
in a microwave reactor (200 W, 808C), to give the ketoamide
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 54, 15147 –15151
ꢀ 2015 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
15147