[figure: see text] In a number of Bactrocera species the penultimate step in the biosynthesis of spiroacetals is shown to be the hydroxylation of an alkyltetrahydropyranol followed by cyclization. The monooxygenases that catalyze this side chain hydroxylation show a strong preference for oxidation four carbons from the hemiketal center, to produce the spiroacetal. The hydroxy spiroacetals observed in Bactrocera appear to derive from direct oxidation of the parent spiroacetals and not from alternate precursors.
Indospicine is a non-proteogenic amino acid that accumulates as the free amino acid in livestock grazing Indigofera plant species and causes both reproductive losses and hepatotoxic effects. An efficient synthetic route to l-indospicine from l-homoserine lactone is described. The methodology is applicable for the synthesis of both deuterium labelled isotopomers and structural analogues for utilisation in biological studies. The key steps are a zinc mediated Barbier reaction with acrylonitrile and a Pinner reaction that together introduce the target amidine moiety.
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