A Strain-Promoted Divergent Chemical Steroidation Unveils Potent Anti-Inflammatory Pseudo-Steroidal Glycosides

J Am Chem Soc. 2024 May 1;146(17):11811-11822. doi: 10.1021/jacs.4c00537. Epub 2024 Apr 18.

Abstract

The development of novel agents with immunoregulatory effects is a keen way to combat the growing threat of inflammatory storms to global health. To synthesize pseudo-steroidal glycosides tethered by ether bonds with promising immunomodulatory potential, we develop herein a highly effective deoxygenative functionalization of a novel steroidal donor (steroidation) facilitated by strain-release, leveraging cost-effective and readily available Sc(OTf)3 catalysis. This transformation produces a transient steroid-3-yl carbocation which readily reacts with O-, C-, N-, S-, and P-nucleophiles to generate structurally diverse steroid derivatives. DFT calculations were performed to shed light on the mechanistic details of the regioselectivity, underlying an acceptor-dependent steroidation mode. This approach can be readily extended to the etherification of sugar alcohols to enable the achievement of a diversity-oriented, pipeline-like synthesis of pseudo-steroidal glycosides in good to excellent yields with complete stereo- and regiospecific control for anti-inflammatory agent discovery. Immunological studies have demonstrated that a meticulously designed cholesteryl disaccharide can significantly suppress interleukin-6 secretion in macrophages, exhibiting up to 99% inhibition rates compared to the negative control. These findings affirm the potential of pseudo-steroidal glycosides as a prospective category of lead agents for the development of novel anti-inflammatory drugs.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents* / chemical synthesis
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents* / chemistry
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents* / pharmacology
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / chemical synthesis
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / chemistry
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / pharmacology
  • Density Functional Theory
  • Glycosides* / chemical synthesis
  • Glycosides* / chemistry
  • Glycosides* / pharmacology
  • Humans
  • Interleukin-6 / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Interleukin-6 / metabolism
  • Macrophages / drug effects
  • Mice
  • Molecular Structure
  • Steroids* / chemical synthesis
  • Steroids* / chemistry
  • Steroids* / pharmacology

Substances

  • Glycosides
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents
  • Steroids
  • Interleukin-6
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal