Many molecular design tasks benefit from fast and accurate calculations of quantum-mechanical (QM) properties. 3D message-passing neural networks for Δ-quantum machine-learning enable fast access to DFT-level QM properties for drug-like molecules.

We disclose the first total synthesis of (+)-euphorikanin A, an ingenane-derived natural product featuring an unprecedented 5/6/7/3-fused tetracyclic skeleton. Key to the approach is a SmI2-mediated ketyl–enoate reaction that leads to the formation of two rings in a single step. The polarity-reversed cyclization proceeds in excellent yield and high diastereoselectivity. Access to ring B is effected late in the synthesis by implementation of a number of chemoselective transformations, including in situ generation of a vinyl lithium species and subsequent intramolecular attack onto an α-ketolactone.

Many molecular design tasks benefit from fast and accurate calculations of quantum-mechanical (QM) properties. However, the computational cost of QM methods applied to drug-like molecules currently renders large-scale applications of quantum chemistry challenging. Aiming to mitigate this problem, we developed DelFTa, an open-source toolbox for the prediction of electronic properties of drug-like molecules at the density functional (DFT) level of theory, using Δ-machine-learning. Δ-Learning corrects the prediction error (Δ) of a fast but inaccurate property calculation. DelFTa employs state-of-the-art three-dimensional message-passing neural networks trained on a large dataset of QM properties. It provides access to a wide array of quantum observables on the molecular, atomic and bond levels by predicting approximations to DFT values from a low-cost semiempirical baseline. Δ-Learning outperformed its direct-learning counterpart for most of the considered QM endpoints. The results suggest that predictions for non-covalent intra- and intermolecular interactions can be extrapolated to larger biomolecular systems. The software is fully open-sourced and features documented command-line and Python APIs.

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Certain molecular design tasks benefit from fast and accurate calculations of quantum-mechanical (QM) properties. However, the computational cost of QM methods applied to drug-like compounds currently makes large-scale applications of quantum chemistry challenging. In order to mitigate this problem, we developed DelFTa, an open-source toolbox for predicting small-molecule electronic properties at the density functional (DFT) level of theory, using the Δ-machine learning principle. DelFTa employs state-of-the-art E(3)-equivariant graph neural networks that were trained on the QMugs dataset of QM properties. It provides access to a wide array of quantum observables by predicting approximations to ωB97X-D/def2-SVP values from a GFN2-xTB semiempirical baseline. Δ-learning with DelFTa was shown to outperform direct DFT learning for most of the considered QM endpoints. The software is provided as open-source code with fully-documented command-line and Python APIs.