The present invention concerns a method for preparing unprotected hydroxy compounds or acylated derivatives thereof by conversion of silyl alkyl-protected hydroxy compounds. The invention also relates to novel intermediates useful in the method and for other purposes.
Within certain fields of synthetic chemistry, in particular within the field of preparation of glycosides, there exists a need for methods and intermediates making possible easy and high-yielding preparation of e.g. oligosaccharides and glycosides. Thus, the availability of e.g. suitably protected sugar "building blocks" and reactions capable of joining such "building blocks" on the one hand with one another and on the other hand with suitable aglycon units would greatly simplify the preparation of a wide variety of oligosaccharides, glycosides and glycoconjugates useful as i.a. synthetic biological receptors of the type described in Danish patent application No. 176/85 filed Jan. 14, 1985.
Recently, Lipshutz et al, Tetrahedron Letters, 1981, 22, p. 4603, reported the preparation of 2-trimethylsilylethyl glycosides and their subsequent cleavage by LiBF.sub.4 to the corresponding free sugar using LiBF.sub.4 or a 1:1 mixture of LiF/BF.sub.3.Et.sub.2 O. However, Lipshutz does not indicate whether the cleavage product (or some intermediate) could have conserved its anomeric stereostructure.