CuCl-catalyzed radical cyclisation of N-α-perchloroacyl-ketene-N,S-acetals: a new way to prepare disubstituted maleic anhydrides

The copper-catalyzed radical cyclization (RC) of N-α-perchloroacyl cyclic ketene-N,X(X=O, NR, S)-acetals was studied. While the RC of N-acyl ketene-N,O-acetals was unsuccessful, the 5-endo cyclization of the other ketene acetals provided much better results, with the following order of cyclization efficiency: hexa-atomic cyclic ketene-N,NR-acetals<penta-atomic cyclic ketene-N,S-acetals<hexa-atomic cyclic ketene-N,S-acetals. Invariably the catalytic cycle begins with the formation of a carbamoyl methyl radical. This leads to a cascade of reactions, including a radical polar crossover step, which ends with the formation of the maleimide nucleus, or precursors of this. Products from the RC of the hexa-atomic cyclic ketene-N,S-acetals, were efficiently transformed into disubstituted maleic anhydrides.     

Trihaloacetaldehyde N,O-acetals: useful building blocks for dihalomethylene compounds

The reaction of trifluoroacetaldehyde N,O-acetals with more than 2 equiv of alkyllithiums at −78 °C resulted in regiospecific defluorinative alkylation with unusual regioselectivity to give α,α-difluoroketone N,O-acetals in excellent yield. In contrast, under similar conditions, trichloroacetaldehyde N,O-acetals gave simple mono-dechlorinated product without the alkyl transfer reaction from alkyllithiums to the generated intermediates.     

Stereoselective radical cyclizations of N-(2-halobenzoyl)-cyclic ketene-N,X(X=O, S)-acetals

2-Alkyloxazolines and 2-alkylthiazolines react with 2-halobenzoyl chlorides to form N-(2-halobenzoyl)-cyclic ketene-N,O-acetals and N-(2-halobenzoyl)-cyclic ketene-N,S-acetals in excellent yields, respectively. These ketene acetals readily undergo stereocontrolled aryl radical cyclizations to afford the central six-membered rings of substituted-2,3,10,10α-tetrahydrooxazolo[3,2-b]isoquinolin-5-ones and their 2,3,10,10α-tetrahydrothiazolo[3,2-b]isoquinolin-5-one analogs. The tertiary N,O- and N,S-radicals formed upon aryl radical reaction at the ketene-N,X(X=O, S)-acetal double bond appear to have reasonable stability. The stereoselectivity in hydrogen abstractions by these intermediate radicals from both Bu₃SnH and (Me₃Si)₃SiH was investigated. The N,S-heterocyclic fused ring products may have potential medical value.     

Neighbouring-group participation as the key step in the reactivity of acyclic and cyclic salicyl-derived O,O-acetals with 5-fluorouracil. Antiproliferative activity, cell cycle dysregulation and apoptotic induction of new O,N-acetals against breast cancer cells

The reaction between o-(hydroxymethyl)phenoxyacetaldehyde dimethyl acetals, or 3-methoxy-2,3-dihydro-5H-1,4-benzodioxepins with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), has been studied. The intramolecular cyclization may be explained through a neighboring group attack to give a 2-(5-fluorouracil-1-yl)oxyranium ion that can be attacked by the silylated benzylic hydroxy group to yield the benzannelated seven-membered O,N-acetals. The formation of a macrocyclic trans-bis(5-FU O,N-acetal) is also reported. Such a compound arrested the human MCF-7 breast cancer cells at the G_o/G₁ phase of the cell cycle. On the contrary, the acyclic nitro O,N-acetal seems to work as a 5-FU prodrug, because it arrested cancer cells at the S phase as the well-known prodrug Ftorafur does.     

One pot synthesis of α,α-bis(N-arylamido) lactams via iodide-catalyzed rearrangement of β,β-bis(N-arylamido) cyclic ketene-N,O-acetals

Five and six-membered cyclic ketene-N,O-acetals, generated in situ from 2,3-dimethyl-2-oxazolinium iodide or 2,3-dimethyl-2-oxazinium iodide and triethylamine, reacted with aryl isocyanates in refluxing THF producing α,α-bis(N-arylamido) lactams via the iodide-catalyzed rearrangement of β,β-bis(N-arylamido) cyclic ketene-N,O-acetal intermediates. The cyclic ketene-N,O-acetal generated in situ from 2,3,4,4-tetramethyl-2-oxazolinium iodide reacted with isocyanates to give β,β-bis(N-arylamido) cyclic ketene-N,O-acetals, which do not readily rearrange. The two methyls at C-4 hindered the nucleophilic attack of iodide on C-5, which is required for rearrangement.     

Facile and convenient synthesis of functionalized propargylic alcohols and amines: an InBr3-Et3N reagent system promotes the alkynylation of aldehydes and N,O- or N,S-acetals

The use of a novel InBr₃-Et₃N reagent system to promote the alkynylation of not only a variety of aromatic/heterocyclic or bulky aliphatic aldehydes but also N,O- or N,S-acetals is described. The use of N-silyl-N,O-acetals and 1-alkynes could lead to the direct production of primary propargylic amines in good yields.     

A rapid and convergent synthesis of α,α-difluoro-β-hydroxyketones through regiospecific defluorinative alkylation reaction

Both the defluorinative alkylation reaction of trifluoroacetaldehyde N,O-acetals using alkyllithiums and the following C-C bond formation with carbonyls as electrophiles were accelerated by a suitable diamine additive such as (−)-sparteine to give α,α-difluoro-β-hydroxyketone N,O-acetal products in an excellent yield. We also found that N-benzyl-N,O-acetal group of the resultant products can be removed under palladium-catalyzed hydrogenolysis conditions giving rise to the corresponding α,α-difluoro-β-hydroxyketones. The present two-step procedure is a useful and novel synthetic approach for functionalized α,α-difluoroketones.     

Chemo- and diastereoselective control for a flexible approach to (5S,6S)-6-alkyl-5-benzyloxy-2-piperidinones

Chemo- and diastereoselective transformation of the N,O-acetals and their chain tautomers (4/5), readily derived from protected 3-hydroxyglutarimide 1a, was studied. It was uncovered that while the reaction with a combination of boron trifluoride etherate/zinc borohydride led to cyclic products (5S,6S/R)-6-alkyl-5-benzyloxy-2-piperidinones 3/2, and 6 in modest chemo- and diastereoselectivities, the reaction of 4/5 with zinc borohydride led exclusively to the formation of the ring-opening products 6 in excellent anti-diastereoselectivities. On the basis of the latter reaction, a flexible approach to (5S,6S)-6-alkyl-5-benzyloxy-2-piperidinones 3 was disclosed.     

A new synthesis of key intermediates for the assembly of polycyclic ethers: Yb(OTf)3-promoted formation of O,S-acetals from α-fluorosulfides and alcohols

We report a new reaction for the direct construction of O,S-acetals, key intermediates in the assembly of fused polycyclic ethers. α-Fluorosulfides and secondary alcohols were coupled by the action of Yb(OTf)₃ to generate O,S-acetals in high yield. The neutral and selective nature of the reaction should be useful for synthesizing natural and artificial polyethers with multisensitive functionalities.     

Reductive coupling of aromatic N,N-acetals using zinc and chlorotrimethylsilane

The reductive coupling of aromatic N,N-acetals and N,O-acetal activated by chlorotrimethylsilane proceeded smoothly in the presence of zinc to give the corresponding diamines in good yields.     

An efficient synthesis of highly substituted pyrroles from β-oxodithiocarboxylates

α-Oxoketene-N,S-acetals, prepared by the reaction of alkyl glycinate hydrochlorides with β-oxodithiocarboxylates followed by alkylation, underwent cyclization in presence of chloromethyleneiminium salt derived from POCl₃/DMF to afford alkyl-3-aryl-4-formyl-5-(alkylsulfanyl)-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxylates in excellent yields. Alkyl-3-aryl-5-(alkylsulfanyl)-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxylates were formed in moderate yields when the same N,S-acetals were treated with DBU.     

Electrochemical oxidation of catechols in the presence of ketene N,O-acetals: indole formation versus α-arylation

Anodic oxidation of catechols has been investigated in the presence of ketene N,O-acetals using cyclic voltammetry and constant current electrolysis methods. The results show that in the presence of ketene N,O-acetals, the anodic oxidation of 4-methylcatechol affords α-arylated products in satisfactory yields. Meanwhile, indoles can be synthesized from simple 3-substituted catechols or catechol itself following an ECEC mechanism. In addition, either α-arylation or indole formation could be the dominant pathway by simply modifying the composition of the electrolyte solution.     

Synthesis of highly functionalized 2,5-disubstituted pyrrolidines via an aza-Morita-Baylis-Hillman-type reaction

An aza-Morita-Baylis-Hillman-type reaction of Michael acceptors with 5-substituted cyclic N,O-acetals derived from pyrrolidines has been investigated. It has been found that the combination of Me₂S and TMSOTf work well with unhindered and reactive enals and enones whilst the use of quinuclidine and TMSOTf is superior for more hindered Michael acceptors. The reactions lead to 2,5-trans-disubstituted pyrrolidines with good to excellent diastereoselectivity. The origin of the selectivity is discussed.     

Ring opening of cyclic N,O-acetals with allyltrimethylsilane under Lewis acidic conditions

Five and six-membered cyclic N,O-acetals with N-carboxyalkyl and sulfonyl groups undergo clean and high yielding ring opening with allyltrimethylsilane in the presence of strong Lewis acids to give homoallylic amine derivatives.     

Synthesis of N-acyl-N,O-acetals from N-aryl amides and acetals in the presence of TMSOTf

Secondary amides undergo in situ silyl imidate formation mediated by TMSOTf and an amine base, followed by addition to acetal acceptors to provide N-acyl-N,O-acetals in good yields. An analogous, high-yielding reaction is observed with 2-mercaptothiazoline as the silyl imidate precursor. Competing reduction of the acetal to the corresponding methyl ether via transfer hydrogenation can be circumvented by the replacement of CY₂NMe with 2,6-lutidine under otherwise identical reaction conditions.     

Stereoselective 1,5-rearrangement of vinylketene-N,O-acetals: novel vinylogous Ferrier reaction

Vinylketene-N,O-acetals underwent Lewis acid-induced 1,3- or 1,5-rearrangement to afford the corresponding C-alkylated products. 1,5-Rearrangement proceeded predominantly in dichloromethane, and it is quite interesting to achieve an unprecedented high degree of asymmetric induction in such a remote position. Crossover experiments indicated that the reaction proceeded through an ion pair intermediate.     

Ring size and substituent steric effects in cyclic ketene-N,O/S-acetal trifluoroacetylations

Trifluoroacetylations of cyclic ketene-N,O/S-acetals exhibit a ring size effect. The five-membered rings 2,4,4-trimethyl-2-oxazoline, 2-methyl-2-oxazoline, and 2-methyl-2-thiazoline, each form cyclic ketene-N,O/S-acetal intermediates which then react with trifluoroacetic anhydride to give β-monotrifluoroacetylation products. Conversely, the six-membered ring 2-methyl-2-oxazine gives its β,β-bistrifluoroacetylation product. In situ-generated five-membered ring N-Me cyclic ketene-N,O-acetals, 3,4,4-trimethyl-2-methylene-oxazolidine, and 3-methyl-2-methylene-oxazolidine, and six-membered ring 3-methyl-2-methylene-1,3-oxazinane were each β,β-bistrifluoroacetylated. However, 3-methyl-2-methylene-oxazolidine also afforded a γ-lactam by an iodide-catalyzed rearrangement of its β,β-bistrifluoroacetylated derivative. In situ-generated 3-methyl-2-methylene-thiazolidine gives both β-mono- and β,β-bistrifluoroacetylation products and no lactam, in contrast to its N,O-analog 3-methyl-2-methyleneoxazolidine.     

Synthesis of an O-acyl isopeptide by using native chemical ligation to efficiently construct a hydrophobic polypeptide

By using dimethylformamide to suppress the O-to-N acyl migration, we efficiently synthesized an O-acyl isopeptide by native chemical ligation of a peptide-thioester and a Cys-O-acyl isopeptide. The reaction mixture was then loaded onto an octadecylsilane reverse-phase HPLC column, and the isopeptide was purified by using a linear gradient of CH₃CN in 0.1% aqueous trifluoroacetic acid. The recovery rate of the O-acyl isopeptide was considerably higher than that of the corresponding native polypeptide. Synthesis of O-acyl isopeptides via native chemical ligation, with O-to-N acyl migration as the final step to give the native form, has potential as an efficient method of constructing hydrophobic polypeptides.     

New results of the free radical ring-opening polymerization

The reaction of 5-ring ketene-O, N-acetals with peroxides was investigated. It was shown that benzoyl peroxide adds to monomers 5a and 5b by ring opening, giving the corresponding linear diester amides 6a and 6b , respectively. The ketene-O,N-acetal 5c adds benzoyl peroxide, without ring opening, by addition to the exomethylene group, giving the cyclic-O,N-acetal diester 6c . With phthaloyl peroxide cyclic esteramides 7 and oligomeric products are formed. The chemical structures of the addition products were confirmed by NMR spectra and elemental analysis. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Determination of phosphorus:glycerol:acyl ratios in phospholipids

Phospholipids (1–5 mg) are mixed with methyl heptadecanoate as an internal standard. One part of the sample is reduced with Vitride in tetrahydrofuran in a sealed tube at 50 2C for 1 hr. The reaction products are acetylated in the same tube by treatment with acetic acid-acetic anhydride at 140 °C. After 1 hr total O-acyl and after 16 additional hours glycerol are determined as the fully acetylated compounds by gas-liquid chromatography.Another part of the sample is subjected to acidic hydrolysis and total O-acyl and N-acyl groups are determined by GLC as fatty-acid methyl esters. The aqueous phase is heated to 100 °C with 6 N HCl for 72 hr and phosphorus is measured colorimetrically.