In recent years, olefin cross metathesis (CM) has emerged as a powerful and convenient synthetic technique in organic chemistry; however, as a general synthetic method, CM has been limited by the lack of predictability in product selectivity and stereoselectivity. Investigations into olefin cross metathesis with several classes of olefins, including substituted and functionalized styrenes, secondary allylic alcohols, tertiary allylic alcohols, and olefins with alpha-quaternary centers, have led to a general model useful for the prediction of product selectivity and stereoselectivity in cross metathesis. As a general ranking of olefin reactivity in CM, olefins can be categorized by their relative abilities to undergo homodimerization via cross metathesis and the susceptibility of their homodimers toward secondary metathesis reactions. When an olefin of high reactivity is reacted with an olefin of lower reactivity (sterically bulky, electron-deficient, etc.), selective cross metathesis can be achieved using feedstock stoichiometries as low as 1:1. By employing a metathesis catalyst with the appropriate activity, selective cross metathesis reactions can be achieved with a wide variety of electron-rich, electron-deficient, and sterically bulky olefins. Application of this model has allowed for the prediction and development of selective cross metathesis reactions, culminating in unprecedented three-component intermolecular cross metathesis reactions.

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New methodology for the selective cross-metathesis (CM) of terminal olefins employing ruthenium benzylidene 1 is described. 1 CM with symmetric internal olefins was found to provide a useful means for homologating terminal olefins to protected allylic alcohols, amines, and esters. Due to the limited commercial availability of symmetric internal olefins, a two-step CM procedure was developed in which terminal olefins were first homodimerized prior to the CM reaction. Terminal olefins with allylic methyl substituents were observed to provide CM products in diminished yield albeit with markedly improved trans-selectivity. Reaction rates were measured for CM reactions utilizing butenediol and allyl alcohol derivatives, and the results demonstrated distinct advantages in reaction rate and stereoselectivity for reactions employing the disubstituted olefins. In the course of studies of substrates with allylic oxygen substituents, a new CM application was discovered involving the metathesis of acrolein acetal derivatives with terminal olefins. Acrolein acetals, including asymmetric variants derived from tartaric acid, proved to be exceptionally robust and trans-selective CM substrates. In related work, a pinacol-derived vinyl boronate was also found to be a reactive CM partner, providing a novel means for converting terminal olefins into precursors for the Suzuki coupling reaction.

Familial combined hyperlipidemia (FCHL, MIM-144250) is a common, multifactorial and heterogeneous dyslipidemia predisposing to premature coronary artery disease and characterized by elevated plasma triglycerides, cholesterol, or both. We identified a mutant mouse strain, HcB-19/Dem (HcB-19), that shares features with FCHL, including hypertriglyceridemia, hypercholesterolemia, elevated plasma apolipoprotein B and increased secretion of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins. The hyperlipidemia results from spontaneous mutation at a locus, Hyplip1, on distal mouse chromosome 3 in a region syntenic with a 1q21-q23 FCHL locus identified in Finnish, German, Chinese and US families. We fine-mapped Hyplip1 to roughly 160 kb, constructed a BAC contig and sequenced overlapping BACs to identify 13 candidate genes. We found substantially decreased mRNA expression for thioredoxin interacting protein (Txnip). Sequencing of the critical region revealed a Txnip nonsense mutation in HcB-19 that is absent in its normolipidemic parental strains. Txnip encodes a cytoplasmic protein that binds and inhibits thioredoxin, a major regulator of cellular redox state. The mutant mice have decreased CO2 production but increased ketone body synthesis, suggesting that altered redox status down-regulates the citric-acid cycle, sparing fatty acids for triglyceride and ketone body production. These results reveal a new pathway of potential clinical significance that contributes to plasma lipid metabolism.