Date of Award
2018
Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Status
Version of Record
Submission Date
October 2026
Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]
Lepore, Salvatore D.
Abstract
We report the development of a general route to the synthesis of [4.3.1], [3.3.1], an especially [3.2.1] bicyclic compounds structurally related to vitisinol D, a natural product. This allows for diastereoselective synthesis of bicyclic compounds with five adjacent chiral centers. This route was employed in a preliminary SAR investigation into the neuroprotectant effect of small molecules in an in vivo experiment measuring the degree of restorative effect of synaptic transmission in the neuromuscular junction of Drosophila melanogaster larvae under acute oxidative stress. One of the compounds exhibited intriguing potential as a neuroprotectant and outperformed resveratrol in restoring synaptic function under oxidative stress. The hypothesis that bridged bicyclic compounds may hold promise as drug scaffolds due to their conformational rigidity and ability to orient functional appendages in unique orientations is developed. The second focus is a mechanistic investigation into a tetrabutylammoniumcatalyzed cycloaddition as evidence of a novel ammonium-alkyne interaction. A carbamate nitrogen adds to a non-conjugated carbon–carbon triple bond under the action of an ammonium catalyst leading to a cyclic product. Studies in homogeneous systems suggest that the ammonium agent facilitates cyclitive nitrogen–carbon bond formation through a cation–π interaction with the alkyne unit. Using Raman spectroscopy, this cation–π interaction is directly observed for the first time. DFT modeling elucidated the mechanistic factors in this cycloaddition. A teaching experiment was developed based on this mechanistic investigation. Control experiments were employed to demonstrate the testing of two alternative mechanistic hypotheses. Cyclization reactions were performed with a soluble base (sodium phenoxide) with and without tetrabutylammonium bromide under homogeneous conditions. Students observed that ammonium salt accelerates the reaction. They were encouraged to develop a testable hypothesis for the role of the ammonium salt in the cyclization mechanism: typical phase transfer or other. IR spectroscopy was used to directly observe a dose dependent shift of the alkyne stretching mode due to a cation−π interaction. Undergraduates were able to employ the scientific method on a contemporary system and see how data are generated and interpreted to adjudicate between rival hypotheses in a way that emulates authentic and current research in a lab setting.
Extent
206 p.
Recommended Citation
St.Germain, Elijah, "Synthesis and Bioactivity Investigation of Bridged Bicyclic Compounds and a Mechanistic Investigation of a Propargyl Hydrazine Cycloaddition Catalyzed by an Ammonium Salt" (2018). Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2010 - 2019. 2026.
https://digitalcommons.fau.edu/etd_general_6/2026
Identifier
FA00013100
Comments
Includes bibliography.|Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.