Reactions of α,β‐Enones with Diazo Compounds. Part 4

In this study, (E)‐ and (Z)‐enones carrying only a phenyl substituent at their C(β) atom were treaced with dimethyl diazomalonate in the presence of (acetylacetonato)copper(II). According to the configuration of the starting enones, the products were dioxole or dihydrofuran derivatives, significant heterocycles in natural products.     

Reactions of α,β‐Unsaturated Thioamides with Diazo Compounds

Several reactions of the α,β‐unsaturated thioamide 8 with diazo compounds 1a – 1d were investigated. The reactions with CH₂N₂ ( 1a ), diazocyclohexane ( 1b ), and phenyldiazomethane ( 1c ) proceeded via a 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition of the diazo dipole at the C?C bond to give the corresponding 4,5‐dihydro‐1H‐pyrazole‐3‐carbothioamides 12a – 12c , i.e., the regioisomer which arose from the bond formation between the N‐terminus of the diazo compound and the C(α)‐atom of 8 . In the reaction of 1a with 8 , the initially formed cycloadduct, the 4,5‐dihydro‐3H‐pyrazole‐3‐carbothioamide 11a , was obtained after a short reaction time. In the case of 1c , two tautomers 12c and 12c ′ were formed, which, by derivatization with 2‐chlorobenzoyl chloride 14 , led to the crystalline products 15 and 15 ′. Their structures were established by X‐ray crystallography. From the reaction of 8 and ethyl diazoacetate ( 1d ), the opposite regioisomer 13 was formed. The monosubstituted thioamide 16 reacted with 1a to give the unstable 4,5‐dihydro‐1H‐pyrazole‐3‐carbothioamide 17 .     

Reactions of α,β‐Enones with Diazo Compounds,Part 3

Carbonyl ylides arising from ethyl acetodiazoacetate/dimethyl diazomalonate and α,β‐enones with mainly s‐cis conformations underwent disrotatory cyclization to produce dihydrofuran derivatives. This process proved to be sensitive to steric effects. The corresponding ylides arising from rather s‐trans α,β‐enals yielded dioxole derivatives. The mechanisms of the reactions are discussed.     

β‐Lactam Preparation via Staudinger Reaction with Activated Dimethylsulfoxide

An efficient synthesis of β‐lactams has been expediently accomplished. These β‐lactams were synthesized by the Staudinger reaction of several substituted imines with various carboxylic acids using activated DMSO at ambient temperature. The imines and substituted acetic acids contain alkyl, aryl, hetero aryl, polycyclic, and 3‐electron‐withdrawing group underwent [2 + 2] ketene‐imine cycloaddition reaction smoothly to obtain the desired β‐lactams in good to excellent yields. This method is cheap, simple, convenient, and efficient, and the products are easily isolated.     

Asymmetric Catalytic [2,3] Stevens and Sommelet–Hauser Rearrangements of α‐Diazo Pyrazoleamides with Sulfides

Catalytic enantioselective [2,3] Stevens and Sommelet–Hauser rearrangements of α‐diazo pyrazoleamides with sulfides were achieved by utilizing chiral N,N′‐dioxide/nickel(^II) complex catalysts. These rearrangements proceeded well under mild reaction conditions, providing rapid and facile access to a series of functionalized 1,6‐dicarbonyls or sulfane‐substituted phenylacetates with high to excellent enantioselectivities. The catalytic system shows excellent stereocontrol, discriminating between the heterotopic lone pairs of sulfur and controlling both the 1,3‐proton transfer and the [2,3]‐σ rearrangement.     

Reaction of Cα,O-dilithiooximes with functionalized carbonyl compounds. Part 2 . Reaction with α-chloroketones and α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and ketones

The reaction of Cα,O-Dilithiooximes 2 and α-chloroketones afforded 5-(hydroxymethyl)-Δ²-soxazolines 4 . α,β-Unsaturated aldehydes and ketones reacted with 2 to give the corresponding acyclic 1,2-addition products 5 . The latter were cyclized with phosphorus pentoxide to 5-vinyl-Δ²-isoxazolines 6 .     

Catalytic Kinetics and Mechanism Transformation of Fe(acac)3 on the Urethane Reaction of 1,2‐Propanediol with Phenyl Isocyanate

The urethane reaction of 1,2‐propanediol with phenyl isocyanate was investigated with ferric acetylacetonate (Fe(acac)₃) as a catalyst. In situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor the reaction, and catalytic kinetics of Fe(acac)₃ was studied. The reaction rates of both hydroxyl groups were described with a second‐order equation, from which the influence of the Fe(acac)₃ concentration and reaction temperature was discussed. It was very surprising that the relationship between 1/C and t became constant when reaction temperature increased, which indicated that there was no reactive distinction between the two hydroxyl groups. Although the phenomenon differed with the variation of temperature, it was unaffected by the Fe(acac)₃ concentration. It was attributed to the transformation of the reaction mechanism with the increase in temperature. Furthermore, activation energy (E_a), enthalpy (ΔH*), and entropy (ΔS*) for the catalyzed reaction were determined from Arrhenius and Eyring equations, which testified to the transformation of the reaction mechanism.     

Rhodium(II)-Catalyzed Decomposition of β,γ-Unsaturated Diazo Compounds

The Rh^II-catalyzed decomposition of β,γ-unsaturated diazo ketones 1 in the presence of MeOH leads via vinylogous Wolff rearrangement to γ,δ-unsaturated esters 6 (Schemes 1 and 2). A modest asymmetric induction is achieved when the reaction is carried out with chiral tetrakis(pyrrolidinecarboxylato)- or tetrakis(oxazolidinonato)dirhodium(II) complexes. Vinyl and phenyl diazoacetates 11 and 20 , respectively, or 1-diazo-3-phenyl-propan-2-one ( 25 ), when subjected to the same reaction conditions, react by OH insertion with MeOH (Schemes 3–5). In the absence of MeOH, phenyl diazoacetates 20 and 25 undergo intramolecular CH insertion to 22 and 26 , respectively. Intramolecular CH insertion occurs with N-aryldiazoamides 23 even in the presence of MeOH (Scheme 5).     

The Reaction of Singlet Oxygen with α- and β-Pinenes

The reaction of photogenerated singlet oxygen with α- and β-pinenes has been carefully re-examined. α-Pinene almost exclusively (99.3% yield) furnishes trans-3-hydroperoxy-pin2(10)-ene. However, detectable amounts of the three other possible products are also found, viz., cis-3-hydroperoxypin-2 (10)-ene (?0.8%), and cis- and trans-2-hydroperoxypin-3 (4)-ene (?0.04%). β-Pinene gives 99.9% of 10-hydroperoxypin-2 (3)-ene and a trace (?0.01%) of norpinan-2-one. Rates of reaction and product composition are treated by modal analysis and reflect the operation of steric and stereoelectronic factors in a reactant-like transition state.     

Oxidative Rearrangement Coupling Reaction for the Functionalization of Tetrahydro‐β‐carbolines with Aromatic Amines

The observation of an unexpected oxidative rearrangement coupling reaction led to the development of a novel method for the efficient functionalization of tetrahydro‐β‐carbolines (THβCs). The treatment of THβCs with photogenerated singlet oxygen (¹O₂) afforded unstable dioxetanes, which underwent further transformation to form new bonds in the presence of trifluoroacetic acid. This operationally simple protocol exhibits broad functional‐group tolerance and is suitable for the late‐stage functionalization of complex druglike molecules.     

Indium Tribromide Catalyzed Coupling Reaction of Enol Ethers with Silyl Ketene Imines toward the Synthesis of β,γ‐Unsaturated Nitriles

Herein, a coupling reaction of enol ethers with silyl ketene imines in the presence of catalytic amounts of InBr₃ and Me₃SiBr is described. Kinetic studies have revealed that an indium catalyst and Me₃SiBr accelerated the coupling process and the regeneration of the catalyst, respectively. Various types of enol ethers and silyl ketene imines are applicable. In addition, a formal synthesis of verapamil was achieved by using this novel coupling reaction.     

Reactivity of 3‐Methylbenzenediazonium Ions with Gallic Acid. Kinetics and Mechanism of the Reaction

We investigated the kinetics and mechanism of the reaction between the 3‐methylbenzenediazonium ions (3MBD), and gallic acids (=3,4,5‐trihydroxybenzoic acid; GA) in aqueous buffer solution under acidic conditions by employing spectrometric, electrochemical, and chromatographic techniques and computational methods. To discern which of the three OH groups of GA is the first one undergoing deprotonation, the geometries of the resulting dianions were optimized by using B3LYP hybrid density‐functional theory (DFT) and a 6‐31G(++d,p) basis set, and the results suggest that the OH group at the 4‐position is the first one which is deprotonated. The variation of the observed rate constant, k_obs, with the acidity at a given [GA] follows an upward curve suggesting that the reaction takes place with the dianionic form of gallic acid, GA^2?, and rate enhancements of ca. 23000 fold are obtained on going from pH 3.5 up to pH 7.5. At relatively high acidities, the variation of k_obs with [GA] is linear with an intercept very close to the value for the thermal decomposition of 3MBD; however, a decrease in the acidity leads to saturation‐kinetics profiles with nonzero, pH‐dependent intercepts. The saturation‐kinetics patterns found suggest the formation of an intermediate in a rapid pre‐equilibrium step, but the nonzero, pH‐dependent intercepts cause the double reciprocal plots of 1/k_obs vs. 1/[GA] to curve. This prompts us to propose an alternative reaction mechanism comprising consecutive equilibrium processes involving the bimolecular, reversible formation of a highly unstable (Z)‐diazo ether which undergoes isomerization to the (E)‐isomer through a unimolecular step. The results obtained indicate the complexity of reactions of arenediazonium ions with nucleophilic arenes containing three or more OH groups.