Synthesis of sphingosine-1-phosphate and dihydrosphingosine-1-phosphate

The syntheses of D-erythro-sphingosine-1-phosphate and DL-erythro-sphinganine-1-phosphate are described starting from the commercially available D-erythro-sphingosine and DL-erythro-sphinganine. The phosphate group is introduced via phosphoramidite chemistry using bis(2-cyanoethyl)-N,N-diisopropylamino-phosphoramidite as the monophosphorylating reagent. The procedure generates the phosphorylated sphingoid bases in three steps and 32-39% overall yields.