Role of Noncovalent Sulfur···Oxygen Interactions in Phenoxyl Radical Stabilization: Synthesis of Super Tocopherol-like Antioxidants

Org Lett. 2016 Nov 4;18(21):5464-5467. doi: 10.1021/acs.orglett.6b02557. Epub 2016 Oct 18.

Abstract

Noncovalent sulfur···oxygen interactions can increase the stability of chalcogen ortho-substituted phenoxyl radicals. This effect contributes to transforming the 7-hydroxybenzo[b]thiophene moiety in a privileged structural motif to enhance the activity of phenolic antioxidants. A cascade of five consecutive electrophilic reactions occurring in one pot afforded potent and biocompatible α-tocopherol-like antioxidants.