Stereoselective Synthesis of the β-Anomer of 4‘-Thionucleosides Based on Electrophilic Glycosidation to 4-Thiofuranoid Glycals

Three types of 4-thiofuranoid glycal with different 3,5-O-silyl protecting groups were prepared and their electrophilic glycosidation was investigated. The 3,5-bis-O-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-4-thiofuranoid glycal (5) was obtained through mesylation of 2-deoxy-4-thio-D-erythro-pentofuranose (4) and subsequent base-promoted elimination, while thermal elimination of sulfoxide derivatives was suitable for the preparation of 3,5-O-(tetraisopropyldisiloxane-1,3-diyl) (9) and 3,5-O-(di-tert-butylsilylene) (11) 4-thioglycals. The glycosidation reactions of these 4-thioglycals were carried out, in the presence of either PhSeCl or NIS, by using silylated derivatives of uracil, thymine, cytosine, and N(6)-benzoyladenine. Among the three 4-thioglycals, 11 was found to be an excellent glycosyl donor, forming the desired beta-anomer exclusively irrespective of the nucleobase employed.