Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry Blog

Scaffold diversity of the organic chemistry universe

‘Chemists’ historical exploration of chemical space has been highly uneven and unsystematic’ write Adam Nelson and coworkers.  In this Perspective article they seek to pull together  synthetic strategies that have been designed to allow a more systematic discovery of biologically active small molecules, with particular emphasis on combinatorial strategies.

Areas covered:

• The “build–couple–pair” approach
• Ambiphile pairing reactions
• Folding and branching pathways
• Oligomer-based approaches to scaffold diversity

This hot article is free to access for the next four weeks – download today to read more on the ‘challenge for synthetic chemists in the twenty-first century’:

Towards the systematic exploration of chemical space
Mark Dow, Martin Fisher, Thomas James, Francesco Marchetti and Adam Nelson
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06098H

In this ‘Hot’ OBC Perspective, Alethea Tabor (University College London, UK) provides an excellent overview of the recent advances in the chemical synthesis of lantibiotics, a field which has considerably moved on since the last review in the area in 2005 by W. A. van der Donk.

The approaches covered include:

• solution-phase  and solid-phase synthesis
•  biomimetic approaches
•  biotransformation strategies

Keep up-to date with the synthesis of these structurally complex peptides possessing unique antibacterial properties and read this review article, FREE to access for the next 4 weeks*


The challenge of the lantibiotics: synthetic approaches to thioether-bridged peptides
Alethea B. Tabor
Org. Biomol. Chem., 2011, 9, 7606-7628
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB05946G

* upon a simple registration process for individual access

This Perspective article from Rubén Vicente at the University of Oviedo, Spain, reviews the most relevant and inventive approaches towards the preparation of the ubiquitous indole motif in the last five years.

Areas covered in this review:

• Indole syntheses from o-alkynylanilines and derivatives
• Indole syntheses from o-haloanilines
• Indole syntheses from o-alkynylhaloarenes or o-dihaloarenes
• Indole syntheses from b-(pseudo)halostyrene derivatives
• Indole syntheses from o-propargylanilines
• Indole syntheses from acetophenone derivatives
• Indole syntheses from arylhydrazines and related compounds
• Indole syntheses via nitrene or carbene insertions
• Indole syntheses via processes involving a C–C- or N–N-cleavage
• Indole syntheses through C–H-bond functionalizations

Despite the impressive list of clever synthetic routes presented, Dr Vicente highlights that more sustainable and efficient routes are still needed for future developments – so why not take a look and get synthesising? The article is free to access for four weeks:

Recent advances in indole syntheses: New routes for a classic target
Rubén Vicente
Org. Biomol. Chem., 2011, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB05750B, Perspective

Nature has designed many biogenic systems with exquisite symmetries and complexities on the nanometer scale, such as viruses, ferritins and enzyme complexes. These structures have acted as building blocks on which researchers have been able to develop bionanoparticles with a wide variety of applications including biosensors, electronic nanodevices,  drug delivery agents and vaccine carriers, amongst others. 

In this OBC Perspective Qian Wang and colleagues highlight some of the recent progress in the chemical modification and molecular engineering of these bionanoparticles with the aim of sparking new discussions and inspiring the development of many new materials in the future.

Interested? Then why not read this comprehensive review now. It is free to download for the next four weeks!

Altering the landscape of viruses and bionanoparticles
L. Andrew Lee, Huong Giang Nguyen and Qian Wang
Org. Biomol. Chem., 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C1OB05700F