An improved total synthesis of UDP-N-acetyl-muramic acid

Biochemical testing for novel inhibitors of Mur ligases requires several commercially unavailable and structurally complex substrates. We describe a modified synthetic strategy for the total chemical synthesis of the MurC ligase substrate UDP-N-acetyl-muramic acid which includes several improvements over published methods, especially with regard to purification procedures. The synthetic strategy is applicable for the synthesis of further Mur ligase substrates.