10.1016/j.tet.2009.11.069
The study “Total Synthesis of 3,3-Difluorinated 1-Deoxynojirimycin Analogs” focused on the synthesis and evaluation of 3,3-difluorinated analogs of 1-deoxynojirimycin (DNM). The researchers aimed to create a competitive inhibitor of α-glucosidase and α-galactosidase that could have potential applications in diabetes treatment and antiviral drugs. The synthesis involved multiple steps, starting with the allylation of glucose to obtain allyl β-D-glucopyranoside. This compound was then subjected to various reactions including benzylic methylene acetal formation, benzyl introduction, Swern oxidation, diethylaminosulfur trifluoride (DAST) treatment, and deallylation to introduce the difluoromethylene group and obtain the desired difluorinated pyranoside. Further oxidation, reductive amination, and debenzylation steps were used to obtain the final target compounds 15 and 16. The synthesized compounds were tested for their inhibitory activity against several glycosidases, among which compound 15 showed an inhibitory activity against baker's yeast α-glucosidase that was approximately 10-fold higher than that of standard miglitol. The study showed that difluorination at the C(3) position significantly enhanced the activity of the DNM analogs, making them promising candidates for further clinical studies.