Synthesis and kinetic analysis of the N-acetylhexosaminidase inhibitor XylNAc-isofagomine.

[reaction: see text] An efficient 10-step preparation from 4-methoxypyridine of (2R,3R,4R)-2-acetamido-3,4-dihydroxypiperidine ("XylNAc-isofagomine") in optically active form is described. Key steps include an enantioselective reduction with catecholborane/(S)-2-methyl-CBS-oxazaborolidine, and a stereoselective pseudo-glycosylation of lithium azide by a cyclic sulfite ester. The title compound showed a Ki = 21 microM when evaluated against the N-acetyl-beta-hexosaminidase from Streptomyces plicatus.