Efficient synthesis of a linear octyl pentaarabinofuranoside, a substrate for mycobacterial EmbA/EmbB proteins

The efficient synthesis of a linear pentasaccharide with the structure 1, β-D-Araf-(1 → 2)-α-D-Araf-(1 → 5)-α-D-Araf-(1 → 5)-α-D-Araf-(1 → 5)-α-D-Araf-(1 → 5), as its octyl glycoside has been achieved through a convergent [3 + 2] coupling strategy. The difficult-to-obtain 1,2-cis-β-arabinofuranosidic bond at the non-reducing end of the target molecule was stereoselectively constructed by the use of a 2-quinolinecarbonyl-directed 1,2-cis glycosylation method.