lCQ]Ellagic acid with a chemical purity of 98.9% and radiochemical purity of 99.9% was synthesized with an overall yield of 16% (both chemically and radiochemically). Reaction of 14CO2 with lithiated 3.43-trimethoxybenzene and demethylation of the resulting 3.4,5-trimethoxyben~c acid was followed by esterifcation and coupling of methyl gallate into ellagic acid. Two efficient coupling methods were employed: direct aeration and aeration of methyl gallate in the presence of the phenolic oxidase, tyrosinme. The latter method produced the highest yield and purity. This preparation produced [1a]ellagic acid with a specific activity of 20 mCi/mmol. The yields of labeled 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoic acid and ellagic acid based on Bal4COj were 65% and 16%. respectively.
Ellagic acid [1] is a gallic acid dimer that occurs in plants, fruits, and nuts, either in its free form, or in a series of ellagitannins, or as a glucoside. It has been shown to inhibit cancer induced by several types of chemical carcinogens including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, N-nitrosamines, aflatoxin, and aromatic amines. It has been extracted from a number of fruits, including strawberries; however, its presence in the extracts was determined only by hplc connected with a diode array detector. In the present report, ellagic acid was isolated as a tetrahexanoyl derivative 2 from Fragaria ananassa and identified by 13C and 1H nmr and ms. The 13C-nmr shifts of the aromatic carbons adjacent to a hexanoyloxy group were assigned using two new synthetic model compounds: 3,3'-dihexanoyloxydiphenic-2,2',6,6'-dilactone [3] and 4,4'-dihexanoyloxydiphenic-2,2',6,6'-dilactone [4]. Two new derivatives of ellagic acid [1],3,3'-di-beta-D-glucopyranosylellagic acid decaacetate [5] and 3,3'-di-n-octyl-4,4'-dihexanoylellagic acid [7], were also synthesized. Both derivatives were less effective as inhibitors of benzo[a]pyrene tumorigenesis in the lungs of strain A/J mice than ellagic acid.
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