Synthesis of analogues of amaninamide, an amatoxin from the white Amanita virosamushroom

Analogs of amaninamide, due to the absence of a 6-hydroxy group in the tryptophan moiety, are more easily accessible by synthesis than derivatives of alpha-amanitin. Syntheses of bicyclic octapeptide thioethers 1f-1m have been carried out starting from linear Hpi-S-trityl-octapeptides (3), cyclization by intramolecular 2'-indolylthioether formation yielding monocyclic peptides (2) and final cyclization by DCCI. One of the bicyclic thioethers was oxidized to yield the corresponding chromatographically separated (R)- and (S)-sulfoxides, respectively. The products were characterized by RF-values, u.v. and CD spectra as well as by mass (FAB) spectroscopy. The widely differing inhibitory activities on RNA polymerase II (or B) from calf thymus are listed.