Quararibea metabolites.: 4.: Total synthesis and conformational studies of (±)-funebrine and (±)-funebral

Syntheses of racemic forms of the main secondary metabolites of Quararibea funebris, (+/-)-funebrine, (+/-)-funebral, and their biogenetic precursor (+/-)-(2S,3S,4R)-gamma-hydroxyalloisoluecine lactone have been developed. In synthetic studies, a new variation of the Paal-Knorr condensation employing titanium isopropoxide was utilized to construct the pyrrole lactone moiety. Two efficient synthetic approaches to the key (+/-)-gamma-amino lactone have been developed, one based on Claisen chemistry and the other on addition reactions to the butenolide ring of beta-angelicalactone. The restricted rotation around the C(sp(3))-N(sp(2)) bond in the pyrrole lactone structures of(+/-)-funebrine, (+/-)-funebral, and related aldehydes has been probed by conformational dynamic studies, and the barriers for interconversion between conformations have been measured by full NMR line-shape analysis. Molecular mechanics (MMX) and a H-1-H-1 NOE study indicate a distinct preferred conformation for (+/-)-funebrine.