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New acetylenes isolated from the bark of Heisteria acuminata
C M Kraus1, A Neszmélyi, S Holly
1Institute of Pharmaceutical Biology, University of Munich, Germany.
Abstract:
Five new linear acetylenic compounds, namely, pentadeca-6,8,10-triynoic acid (1), octadeca-8,10,12-triynoic acid (2), trans-pentadec-10-en-6,8-diynoic acid (3), cis-hexadec-11-en-7,9-diynoic acid (4), and cis-octadec-12-en-7,9-diynoic acid (5), were isolated from the bark of Heisteria acuminata by bioassay-guided fractionation, using cyclooxygenase (COX) and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) assays as models for antiinflammatory activity. The structures of compounds 1-5 were established by NMR, MS, IR, and Raman spectroscopy. These isolated compounds were found to be potent inhibitors of COX. Compounds 4 and 5 were the most potent inhibitors of 5-LO, whereas the other compounds only showed a weak inhibition at the same concentration.
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In nature, compounds containing both carbon and hydrogen are known as "hydrocarbons". Aliphatic hydrocarbons are compounds whose molecules contain saturated single bonds (i.e., alkanes) or unsaturated double or triple bonds. Alkenes contain carbon–carbon double bonds and have a structural formula CnH2n. Unsaturated hydrocarbons containing carbon–carbon triple bonds are called "alkynes" and are structurally represented by the formula CnH2n-2.
The simplest alkyne is ethyne, or...
Nomenclature of Alkynes
Acidity of 1-Alkynes
The acidic strength of hydrocarbons follows the order: Alkynes > Alkenes > Alkanes. The strength of an acid is commonly expressed in units of pKa — the lower the pKa, the stronger the acid. Among the hydrocarbons, terminal alkynes have lower pKa values and are, therefore, more acidic. For example, the pKa values for ethane, ethene, and acetylene are 51, 44, and 25, respectively, as shown here.
Preparation of Alkynes: Alkylation Reaction
Alkylation of terminal alkynes with primary alkyl halides in the presence of a strong base like sodium amide is one of the common methods for the synthesis of longer carbon-chain alkynes. For example, treatment of 1-propyne with sodium amide followed by reaction with ethyl bromide yields 2-pentyne.
Preparation of Alkynes: Dehydrohalogenation
Alkynes can be prepared by dehydrohalogenation of vicinal or geminal dihalides in the presence of a strong base like sodium amide in liquid ammonia. The reaction proceeds with the loss of two equivalents of hydrogen halide (HX) via two successive E2 elimination reactions.
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