Oxirane is a three-membered ring compound consisting of one oxygen atom and two carbon atoms. Oxirane is present in natural products such as cryptocin, which has anticancer properties, and azidomycin, trienone, and epoxidomycin, which have shown activity against drug-resistant leukemias and AIDS-related lymphomas. Other oxirane containing bioactive molecules have anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive, and antitumor activities. Oxiranes are a strained ring susceptible to various nucleophilic, ring-opening or rearrangement reactions, so they are considered to be one of the most important intermediates in organic synthesis.
Tetrahydroisoquinoline is an organic compound with the chemical formula C9H11N. It is classified as a secondary amine, obtained from isoquinoline by hydrogenation. The tetrahydroisoquinoline moiety forms the backbone of several natural, synthetic and semi-synthetic drugs approved for the treatment of cancer, pain, gout and various neurodegenerative diseases.