A series of dibenzyl α‐hydroxyphosphonates and the corresponding α‐hydroxyphosphonic
acids, mostly new compounds, have been synthesized. The dibenzyl α‐hydroxyphosphonates
have been obtained in the Pudovik reaction of substituted benzaldehydes and dibenzyl
phosphite in the presence of triethylamine as the catalyst. The amount of the solvent
was minimized during the reaction, and the workup involved crystallization from the
reaction mixture. A new protocol was developed to transform the dibenzyl 1‐hydroxyphosphonates
to the corresponding phosphonic acids by catalytic hydrogenation. The derivatives
prepared were screened as potential cytotoxic agents against Mes‐Sa human uterine
sarcoma cell line.
