The hydrolytic kinetic resolution (HKR) of terminal epoxides catalyzed by chiral (salen)Co(III) complex 1 x OAc affords both recovered unreacted epoxide and 1,2-diol product in highly enantioenriched form. As such, the HKR provides general access to useful, highly enantioenriched chiral building blocks that are otherwise difficult to access, from inexpensive racemic materials. The reaction has several appealing features from a practical standpoint, including the use of H(2)O as a reactant and low loadings (0.2-2.0 mol %) of a recyclable, commercially available catalyst. In addition, the HKR displays extraordinary scope, as a wide assortment of sterically and electronically varied epoxides can be resolved to > or = 99% ee. The corresponding 1,2-diols were produced in good-to-high enantiomeric excess using 0.45 equiv of H(2)O. Useful and general protocols are provided for the isolation of highly enantioenriched epoxides and diols, as well as for catalyst recovery and recycling. Selectivity factors (k(rel)) were determined for the HKR reactions by measuring the product ee at ca. 20% conversion. In nearly all cases, k(rel) values for the HKR exceed 50, and in several cases are well in excess of 200.

A major challenge in drug discovery is to distinguish the molecular targets of a bioactive compound from the hundreds to thousands of additional gene products that respond indirectly to changes in the activity of the targets. Here, we present an integrated computational-experimental approach for computing the likelihood that gene products and associated pathways are targets of a compound. This is achieved by filtering the mRNA expression profile of compound-exposed cells using a reverse-engineered model of the cell's gene regulatory network. We apply the method to a set of 515 whole-genome yeast expression profiles resulting from a variety of treatments (compounds, knockouts and induced expression), and correctly enrich for the known targets and associated pathways in the majority of compounds examined. We demonstrate our approach with PTSB, a growth inhibitory compound with a previously unknown mode of action, by predicting and validating thioredoxin and thioredoxin reductase as its target.

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Chiral BINOL-derived diols catalyze the enantioselective asymmetric allylboration of acyl imines. The reaction requires 15 mol% of (S)-3,3′-Ph 2 -BINOL as the catalyst and allyldiisopropoxyborane as the nucleophile. The reaction products are obtained in good yields (75 -94%) and high enantiomeric ratios (95:5 -99.5:0.5) for aromatic and aliphatic imines. High diastereoselectivities (dr > 98:2) and enantioselectivities (er > 98:2) are obtained in the reactions of acyl imines with crotyldiisopropoxyboranes. This asymmetric transformation is directly applied to the synthesis of maraviroc, the selective CCR5 antagonist with potent activity against HIV-1 infection. Mechanistic investigations of the allylboration reaction including IR, NMR, and mass spectrometry study indicate that acyclic boronates are activated by chiral diols via exchange of one of the boronate alkoxy groups with activation of the acyl imine via hydrogen bonding.

Chiral BINOL-derived diols catalyze the enantioselective asymmetric allylboration of ketones. The reaction requires 15 mol % of 3,3'-Br2-BINOL as the catalyst and allyldiisopropoxyborane as the nucleophile. The reaction products are obtained in good yields (76-93%) and high enantiomeric ratios (95:5-99.5:0.5). High diastereoselectivities (dr >/= 98:2) and enantioselectivities (er >/= 98:2) are obtained in the reactions of acetophenone with crotyldiisopropoxyboranes.