Synthesis and properties of allenic natural products and pharmaceuticals

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2004 Feb 27;43(10):1196-216. doi: 10.1002/anie.200300628.

Abstract

Nowadays, about 150 natural products comprising an allenic or cumulenic structure are known. The chemistry of these compounds has turned out to be a very attractive and prolific area of interest: advances in the isolation and characterization of new allenic natural products have led to the establishment of efficient synthetic procedures which in many cases also open up an access to enantiomerically pure target molecules. Inspired by the intriguing biological activities of many allenic natural products, allene moieties are now systematically introduced in pharmacologically active classes of compounds (steroids, prostaglandins, amino acids, nucleosides). The functionalized allenes thus obtained often exhibit impressive activities as mechanism-based enzyme inhibitors, cytotoxic, or antiviral agents. A prerequisite for further developments in this field is the efficient stereoselective synthesis of allene derivatives.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Alkadienes / chemical synthesis*
  • Alkadienes / isolation & purification
  • Alkadienes / metabolism
  • Amino Acids / chemical synthesis
  • Biological Products / chemical synthesis*
  • Molecular Structure
  • Nucleosides / chemical synthesis
  • Pharmaceutical Preparations / chemical synthesis*
  • Prostaglandins / chemical synthesis
  • Stereoisomerism
  • Steroids / chemical synthesis
  • Terpenes / chemical synthesis
  • Terpenes / isolation & purification

Substances

  • Alkadienes
  • Amino Acids
  • Biological Products
  • Nucleosides
  • Pharmaceutical Preparations
  • Prostaglandins
  • Steroids
  • Terpenes
  • propadiene