Electron ionization-induced fragmentation of N-(alkoxymethyl)anilides

Electron ionization-induced fragmentation patterns of the series of N-(alkoxymethyl)acetanilides and related formanilides and benzanilides have been studied. The main fragmentation reaction observed for all compounds studied is the loss of an alkyl radical from the N-alkoxymethyl group leading to the appropriate protonated N-acylformanilide derivatives. This reaction is accompanied by unusually high kinetic energy release. Other important fragmentations common for majority of the compounds studied are (i) loss of an aldehyde molecule derived from an alkoxyl group yielding an appropriate N-acyl-N-methylaniline, (ii) elimination of a C(n)H(2n)O(2) fragment derived from N-alkoxymethyl group and carbonyl group oxygen atom and (iii) formation of N-methyleneaniline radical cation.     

Electron ionization-induced fragmentation of N- and O-alkoxymethylated carbostyril and phenanthridinone

Unimolecular fragmentation patterns of N-alkoxymethylated carbostyril and phenanthridinone and their O-alkoxymethyl isomers were studied. The main fragmentation reaction observed for the studied compounds is the elimination of an aldehyde molecule. The main products of this reaction are the appropriate N-methyl derivatives, but ions with other structures are also formed. This reaction is supposed to proceed via 1,3-H shift in the alkoxymethyl group in the case of the N-alkoxymethyl derivatives and by a multi-step mechanism for O-alkoxymethylated compounds. Another important fragmentation common for all studied compounds is the loss of an alkyl radical from N- and O-alkoxymethyl groups, yielding the appropriate stable isomeric cations, which, according to the results of the further fragmentation, undergo fast equilibration reaction via an ion–neutral complex. This process is accompanied by the unusually high kinetic energy release value. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

NHC-catalyzed intramolecular redox amidation for the synthesis of functionalized lactams

A very efficient NHC-catalyzed lactamization reaction is reported. For most cases, the ring expansion reaction proceeds to cleanly furnish five- and six-membered N-Ts and N-Bn lactams, without the need for further purification. Evidence is presented suggesting a dual role for the stoichiometric base: (1) deprotonation of the triazolium precatalyst and (2) activation of the nitrogen leaving group through hydrogen bonding.     

Unprecedented copper-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition of organometallic reagents to alpha,beta-unsaturated lactams

For the first time, an excellent enantioselectivity has been obtained in the conjugate addition of hard organometallic reagents to alpha,beta-unsaturated lactams bearing appropriate protecting-activating groups on the nitrogen.     

Radical carbonylation of ω-alkynylamines leading to α-methylene lactams. Synthetic scope and the mechanistic insights

Tin hydride mediated radical carbonylation and cyclization reaction was investigated using a variety of ω-alkynyl amines as substrates. In this reaction α-methylene and α-stannylmethylene lactams having five to eight membered rings were obtained as principal products. In cases where the nitrogen has a substituent capable of giving stable radicals, such as an α-phenethyl group, the lactam ring formation again took place with extrusion of an α-phenethyl radical. Coupled with the subsequent protodestannylation procedure (TMSCl plus MeOH), these reactions provide a useful entry to α-methylene lactams with incorporation of CO as a lactam carbonyl group. In cases where the amines do not have a substituent acting as a radical leaving group, a reaction course involving a 1,4-H shift is chosen so as to liberate tin radicals ultimately. Thus the proposed mechanism involves (i) nucleophilic attack of amine nitrogen onto a carbonyl group of α,β-unsaturated acyl radicals/α-ketenyl radicals via lone pair-π* interaction, which leads to zwitterionic radical species, (ii) the subsequent proton shift from N to O to give hydroxyallyl radicals, (iii) 1,4-hydrogen shift from O to C, and (iv) β-scission to give lactams with liberation of tin radicals. DFT calculations reveal that the 1,4-hydrogen shifts, the key step of the reaction mechanism, can proceed under usual reaction conditions. On the other hand, an S(H)i type reaction to give lactams may be the result of the β-scission of the similar zwitterionic radical intermediates. DFT calculations also predict that an S(H)i type reaction would result when the intermediate has a good (radical) leaving group such as a phenethyl group.     

Facile Installation of 2‐Reverse Prenyl Functionality into Indoles by a Tandem N‐Alkylation–Aza‐Cope Rearrangement Reaction and Its Application in Synthesis

An unprecedented tandem N‐alkylation–ionic aza‐Cope (or Claisen) rearrangement–hydrolysis reaction of readily available indolyl bromides with enamines is described. Due to the complicated nature of the two processes, an operationally simple N‐alkylation and subsequent microwave‐irradiated ionic aza‐Cope rearrangement–hydrolysis process has been uncovered. The tandem reaction serves as a powerful approach to the preparation of synthetically and biologically important, but challenging, 2‐reverse quaternary‐centered prenylated indoles with high efficiency. Notably, unusual nonaromatic 3‐methylene‐2,3‐dihydro‐1H‐indole architectures, instead of aromatic indoles, are produced. Furthermore, the aza‐Cope rearrangement reaction proceeds highly regioselectively to give the quaternary‐centered reverse prenyl functionality, which often produces a mixture of two regioisomers by reported methods. The synthetic value of the resulting nonaromatic 3‐methylene‐2,3‐dihydro‐1H‐indole architectures has been demonstrated as versatile building blocks in the efficient synthesis of structurally diverse 2‐reverse prenylated indoles, such as indolines, indole‐fused sultams and lactams, and the natural product bruceolline D.     

Synthesis of N-Fmoc-(2S,3S,4R)-3,4-dimethylglutamine: An application of lanthanide-catalyzed transamidation

N-Fmoc-(2S,3S,4R)-3,4-dimethylglutamine (6) was synthesized from tert-butyl N-Boc-(2S,3S,4R)-dimethylpyroglutamate (13). This synthesis involved selective deprotection of a Boc group from a lactam nitrogen in the presence of a tert-butyl ester, Fmoc protection of the lactam, and a lanthanide-catalyzed transamidation reaction of the Fmoc-protected lactam, using ammonia and dimethylaluminum chloride. The scope of Lewis acid-catalyzed transamidation of acylated lactams was explored through the variation of lanthanide, lactam, acyl group, amine, and aluminum reagent. The reactivity of various metal triflates was found to vary in the following qualitative order: Yb approximately Sc > Er approximately Eu approximately Sm > Ce approximately Ag(I) > Cu(II) approximately Zn. Intriguingly, catalysis was only observed when ammonia was the nitrogen nucleophile; addition of other amidoaluminum complexes to acyl lactams was found to be insensitive to the addition of lanthanides.     

Practical Electrochemical Anodic Oxidation of Polycyclic Lactams for Late Stage Functionalization

Electrochemistry provides a powerful tool for the late‐stage functionalization of complex lactams. A two‐stage protocol for converting lactams, many of which can be prepared through the intramolecular Schmidt reaction of keto azides, is presented. In the first step, anodic oxidation in MeOH using a repurposed power source provides a convenient route to lactams bearing a methoxy group adjacent to nitrogen. Treatment of these intermediates with a Lewis acid in dichloromethane permits the regeneration of a reactive acyliminium ion that is then reacted with a range of nucleophilic species.     

Anchimeric Assistance in the N-Alkylation of 5-alkoxymethyl-2-pyrrolidinone Derivatives

5-Substituted 2-pyrrolidinones are normally difficult to alkylate at nitrogen. The presence of an alkoxymethyl group at C5, however, facilitates alkylation by a neighboring group effect.     

Synthesis of lactams by radical substitution reaction of alpha,beta-unsaturated acyl radicals at amine nitrogen

[reaction: see text] Substitution at nitrogen by alpha,beta-unsaturated acyl radicals took place accompanied by elimination of an alpha-phenethyl radical. This reaction led to the development of a new carbonylative annulation method for five- to seven-membered ring lactams.     

Catalytic Ring Expansion of Cyclic Hemiaminals for the Synthesis of Medium‐Ring Lactams

A mild and efficient intermolecular ring‐expansion approach was developed for the synthesis of medium‐ring lactams by using siloxy alkynes. Key to success is the suitable combination of a superior catalyst and an exceptional nitrogen‐protecting group. Control experiments indicated that the reaction is remarkably selective toward the desired lactam formation, even with many possible non‐productive pathways.     

A DFT study of the ambiphilic nature of arylpalladium species in intramolecular cyclization reactions

The remarkable structure-dependent reactivity observed in the cyclization of (2-haloanilino)-ketones with Pd-catalysts has been studied computationally within the density functional theory framework. The experimental reaction products ratio may be explained through the formation of a common palladaaminocyclobutane intermediate which can undergo a nucleophilic addition reaction and/or an enolate α-arilation process. The evolution of this metallacycle to the final products depends on two factors, the length of the tether joining the amino and the carbonyl groups, and the electronic nature of the substituent directly attached to the nitrogen atom. Thus, shorter chains (2 CH(2)) facilitate the nucleophic addition reaction by approximating the reactive aryl and Pd-coordinated carbonyl groups whereas longer chains (3 CH(2)) favor the enolate α-arylation proccess. For electron-withdrawing groups attached to the aniline nitrogen atom, the nucleophilic addition pathway becomes slightly disfavored, mainly due to the electron-withdrawing effect of the CO(2)Me group which avoids the delocation of the LP in the π-system, thus decreasing the nucleophilicity of the reactive arylic carbon atom. In contrast, the enolate α-arylation reaction is facilitated by the CO(2)Me group. This is translated into a small computed barrier energy difference of these competitive reaction pathways which should lead to a mixture of reaction products as experimentally found.     

An improved procedure for the Beckmann rearrangement of cyclobutanones

γ-Lactams are important building blocks for the synthesis of biologically active molecules and can easily be accessed via Beckmann rearrangement of cyclobutanones. However, Beckmann fragmentation is often a competing reaction for these strained ketones. We found that performing the Beckmann rearrangement with Tamura’s reagent in the presence of aqueous HCl suppresses the undesired fragmentation reaction. This improved procedure was applied to a broad scope of substrates affording monocyclic, bicyclic, tricyclic or spirocyclic lactams.Our experimental results and DFT calculations suggest that the mechanism of the rearrangement probably involves a tetrahedral intermediate and doesn’t proceed via oxime fragmentation as in a classical Beckmann rearrangement.     

Density functional theory study of the hydrogen bond interaction between lactones, lactams, and methanol

The structure and relative stability of methanol complexes with various cyclic ketones, lactones, lactams, and N-methyl lactams from three- to seven-membered rings have been investigated using the density functional theory method. The geometries, harmonic frequencies, and energies were calculated at the B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level. Three stable structures, cis-a, cis-b, and trans, with respect to the ring oxygen (nitrogen) atom, were found to be local minima of the potential energy surface. For lactones and N-methyl lactams, the most stable structure is trans; it is stabilized, as in cyclic ketones, through the conventional hydrogen bond (HB) interaction between the basic carbonyl oxygen and the acidic methanolic hydrogen and an unconventional HB interaction between the methanolic oxygen and the CH hydrogen, in the alpha position of the carbonyl group. For unsubstituted lactams, the cis-a structure, stabilized through a HB interaction between the NH group and the methanol oxygen in addition to the conventional HB interaction, is the most stable. The topological properties of the electron density ratify the existence of conventional (N,O-H. . .O) and unconventional (C-H. . .O) hydrogen bonding. A good correlation was found between the HB distances and the electron density at the HB critical point. The unsubstituted lactams yield more stable complexes with methanol than N-methyl lactams, lactones, and cyclic ketones. In the most stable complexes, both components behave simultaneously as a HB donor and as a HB acceptor.     

Fragmentation and rearrangement patterns of phospho-ureas. Possible consequences for biotin activation

Analysis by electron impact and metastable ions (MIKE technique) of the fragmentation patterns for one acyclic and two cyclic N-phosphorylated ureas reveals for the first case an isomerization from nitrogen to the ureido oxygen atom of the phosphoryl group and subsequent fragmentation. For the other two cases, fragments result from P? N bond breaking and ring-opening. Possible involvement in the biotin-ATP activation process is discussed.     

Enantioselective intramolecular benzylic ch bond amination: efficient synthesis of optically active benzosultams

'Salen' along: The iridium(III)-salen complex 1 efficiently catalyzes the title reaction of 2-ethylbenzenesulfonyl azides to give five-membered sultams with high enantioselectivity. Other 2-alkyl-substitued substrates lead to five- and six-membered sultams with high enantioselectivity; the regioselectivity depends upon the substrate and the catalyst used. EDG=electron-donating group.     

A modular reaction pairing approach to the diversity-oriented synthesis of fused- and bridged-polycyclic sultams

A reaction pairing strategy centered on utilization of a reaction triad (sulfonylation, S(N)Ar addition and Mitsunobu alkylation) generating skeletally diverse, tricyclic and bicyclic benzofused sultams is reported. Pairing sulfonylation and S(N)Ar reactions yields bridged, tricyclic and bicyclic benzofused sultams. Application of the Mitsunobu reaction in a sulfonylation-Mitsunobu-S(N)Ar pairing allows access to benzthiazocine-1,1-dioxides, while a simple change in the order of pairing to sulfonylation-S(N)Ar-Mitsunobu affords structurally different, bridged tricyclic benzofused sultams.     

Construction of Quaternary Carbon Center by Catalytic Asymmetric Alkylation of 3‐Arylpiperidin‐2‐ones Under Phase‐Transfer Conditions

A highly enantioselective synthesis of δ‐lactams having a chiral quaternary carbon center at the α‐position has been developed through an asymmetric alkylation of 3‐arylpiperidin‐2‐ones under phase‐transfer conditions. In this transformation, a 2,2‐diarylvinyl group on the δ‐lactam nitrogen atom plays a crucial role as a novel protecting group and an achiral auxiliary for improving both yield and enantioselectivity of the reaction.     

A new route to the improved synthesis of 1-(alkoxymethyl)-5-alkyl-6-(arylselenenyl)uracils

A new route to C-6-selenenyl analogs of compound 1a from 5-alkyl-6-chlorouracils 6a-b has been described. A mild and highly efficient synthesis of 1-(alkoxymethyl)-5-alkyl-6-(arylselenenyl)uracils 8a-e has been accomplished from 6a-b in good yields using a two step procedure. Silylation of 5-alkyl-6-chlorouracils 6a-b using N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide followed by regioselective alkylation of the silylated intermediate with ethyl or benzyl chloromethyl ether in dichloromethane afforded the desired 1-(alkoxymethyl)-5-alkyl-6-chlorouracils 7a-d in 88–94% yields. Compounds 7a-d readily underwent addition-elimination reaction with an appropriate arylselenol in the presence of ethanolic sodium hyroxide to produce the corresponding 1-(alkoxymethyl)-5-alkyl-6-(arylselenenyl)uracils 8a-e in excellent yields (94–99%).     

Alkyl Group Migration during Fragmentation of N-(Alkoxymethyl)sulfonamides Following Electron Ionization

Fragmentation patterns upon electron ionization of some N -(alkoxymethyl)sulfonamides are described. It is observed that the molecular ions of these compounds undergo a new rearrangement reaction resulting in the loss of a molecule of formaldehyde. A mechanism for this reaction involving an ion/neutral complex is proposed.