Synthesis and configurational assignment of the amino alcohol in the eastern fragment of the GE2270 antibiotics by regio- and stereoselective addition of 2-metalated 4-bromothiazoles to α-chiral electrophiles

A synthesis of the eastern fragment of the thiazole peptide GE2270 A (1) has been developed. The synthetic approach relies on the regioselective functionalization of 2,4-dibromothiazole (5) via metalation and nucleophilic addition (at C2) or palladium-mediated cross-coupling (at C2 or C4). The stereochemistry at the N-bearing stereocenter was established by coupling of 2-metalated 4-bromothiazoles ( 4) to enantiomerically pure mandelic acid derivatives. Both the erythro (2) and threo (3) configurated amino alcohols were prepared with high diastereoselectivities depending on the electrophile employed. More specifically, the threo-configurated(S,R)-4-bromothiazolyl, ss-amino alcohol 6 was synthesized from O-TBS protected (R)-mandelonitrile in 62% yield. Its N-PMB protected (R,S)-enantiomer 20 was obtained from O-TBS protected (S)-mandelic aldehyde in 67% yield. The erythro-configurated ( S,S)-4-bromothiazolyl, ss-amino alcohol 29 was prepared from O-TBS protected (S)-ethyl mandelate in four steps and 33% overall yield. The bithiazole moiety in the desired products 2 and 3 was finally established by the regioselective Negishi coupling of 2,4-dibromothiazole (5) and the 4-zincated, N-Boc protected thiazole derivatives of the diastereomeric 4-bromothiazolyl, ss-amino alcohols 6 and 29.