Synthesis of the spiroketal fragment of bistramide A via an exocyclic enol ether

An efficient synthesis of the spirocyclic fragment 1 of bistramides is reported. An olefination reaction of lactone 4 with sulfone 5 gave the enol ether 3, which upon cyclization in acidic media provided the spiroketal ring system. This compound was then converted into the C19-C36 fragment of the bistramides via successive Julia-Kocienski and Horner-Emmons olefinations.     

Rhodium‐Catalyzed Dehydrogenative Silylation of Acetophenone Derivatives: Formation of Silyl Enol Ethers versus Silyl Ethers

A series of rhodium–NSiN complexes (NSiN=bis (pyridine‐2‐yloxy)methylsilyl fac‐coordinated) is reported, including the solid‐state structures of [Rh(H)(Cl)(NSiN)(PCy₃)] (Cy=cyclohexane) and [Rh(H)(CF₃SO₃)(NSiN)(coe)] (coe=cis‐cyclooctene). The [Rh(H)(CF₃SO₃)(NSiN)(coe)]‐catalyzed reaction of acetophenone with silanes performed in an open system was studied. Interestingly, in most of the cases the formation of the corresponding silyl enol ether as major reaction product was observed. However, when the catalytic reactions were performed in closed systems, formation of the corresponding silyl ether was favored. Moreover, theoretical calculations on the reaction of [Rh(H)(CF₃SO₃)(NSiN)(coe)] with HSiMe₃ and acetophenone showed that formation of the silyl enol ether is kinetically favored, while the silyl ether is the thermodynamic product. The dehydrogenative silylation entails heterolytic cleavage of the Si?H bond by a metal–ligand cooperative mechanism as the rate‐determining step. Silyl transfer from a coordinated trimethylsilyltriflate molecule to the acetophenone followed by proton transfer from the activated acetophenone to the hydride ligand results in the formation of H₂ and the corresponding silyl enol ether.     

Discovery of a phosphine-mediated cycloisomerization of alkynyl hemiketals: access to spiroketals and dihydropyrazoles via tandem reactions

Reported here are details on the discovery of a phosphine-catalyzed isomerization of hemiketals and subsequent reactions of the cyclic keto enol ether products. The new cycloisomerization complements a previously reported amine-catalyzed process that gave oxepinones from the same hemiketal starting materials. In the absence of functionality (R(2)) on the cyclic keto enol ether, a rapid and facile dimerization occurs, giving spiroketal products. When the enone is substituted (i.e., R(2) = Ph), the cyclic keto enol ether is sufficiently stable so that it can be isolated; it can then be further reacted in the same pot to provide the corresponding dihydropyrazoles. Both the spiroketal and dihydropyrazole products arise by a tandem reaction that begins with the novel cycloisomerization. The method allows for the rapid introduction of complexity in the products from relatively simple starting materials. It should find application in the synthesis of natural product-like molecules.     

Synthetic studies of spiroketal enol ethers: an unexpected oxidation by Martin’s sulfurane

In an attempt to synthesize a spiroketal enol ether natural product, we found that treatment of alcohol 5 with Martin’s sulfurane did not give the anticipated olefin, but instead afforded ketone 15 through an unprecedented oxidation.     

Total Synthesis of Bistramide A and Its 36(Z) Isomers: Differential Effect on Cell Division,Differentiation, and Apoptosis

The total synthesis of bistramide A and its 36(Z),39(S) and 36(Z),39(R) isomers shows that these compounds have different effects on cell division and apoptosis. The synthesis relies on a novel enol ether‐forming reaction for the spiroketal fragment, a kinetic oxa‐Michael cyclization reaction for the tetrahydropyran fragment, and an asymmetric crotonylation reaction for the amino acid fragment. Preliminary biological studies show a distinct pattern of influence of each of the three compounds on cell division, differentiation, and apoptosis in HL‐60 cells, thus suggesting that these effects are independent activities of the natural product.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Reductive Insertion of Alcohols into Aryl Ether Bonds

Palladium on carbon catalyzes C?O bond cleavage of aryl ethers (diphenyl ether and cyclohexyl phenyl ether) by alcohols (R?OH) in H₂. The aromatic C?O bond is cleaved by reductive solvolysis, which is initiated by Pd‐catalyzed partial hydrogenation of one phenyl ring to form an enol ether. The enol ether reacts rapidly with alcohols to form a ketal, which generates 1‐cyclohexenyl?O?R by eliminating phenol or an alkanol. Subsequent hydrogenation leads to cyclohexyl?O?R.     

Coupling Reaction of Enol Derivatives with Silyl Ketene Acetals Catalyzed by Gallium Trihalides

A cross‐coupling reaction between enol derivatives and silyl ketene acetals catalyzed by GaBr₃ took place to give the corresponding α‐alkenyl esters. GaBr₃ showed the most effective catalytic ability, whereas other metal salts such as BF₃?OEt₂, AlCl₃, PdCl₂, and lanthanide triflates were not effective. Various types of enol ethers and vinyl carboxylates as enol derivatives are amenable to this coupling. The scope of the reaction with silyl ketene acetals was also broad. We successfully observed an alkylgallium intermediate by using NMR spectroscopy, suggesting a mechanism involving anti‐carbogallation among GaBr₃, an enol derivative, and a silyl ketene acetal, followed by syn‐β‐alkoxy elimination from the alkylgallium. Based on kinetic studies, the turnover‐limiting step of the reaction using a vinyl ether and a vinyl carboxylate involved syn‐β‐alkoxy elimination and anti‐carbogallation, respectively. Therefore, the leaving group had a significant effect on the progress of the reaction. Theoretical calculations analysis suggest that the moderate Lewis acidity of gallium would contribute to a flexible conformational change of the alkylgallium intermediate and to the cleavage of the carbon?oxygen bond in the β‐alkoxy elimination process, which is the turnover‐limiting step in the reaction between a vinyl ether and a silyl ketene acetal.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Hydrolytic Cleavage of Aromatic C−O Bonds

Metallic palladium surfaces are highly selective in promoting the reductive hydrolysis of aromatic ethers in aqueous phase at relatively mild temperatures and pressures of H₂. At quantitative conversions, the selectivity to hydrolysis products of PhOR ethers was observed to range from 50 % (R=Ph) to greater than 90 % (R=n ‐C₄H₉, cyclohexyl, and PhCH₂CH₂). By analysis of the evolution of products with and without incorporation of H₂¹⁸O, the pathway was concluded to be initiated by palladium metal catalyzed partial hydrogenation of the phenyl group to an enol ether. Water then rapidly adds to the enol ether to form a hemiacetal, which then undergoes elimination to cyclohexanone and phenol/alkanol products. A remarkable feature of the reaction is that the stronger Ph−O bond is cleaved rather than the weaker aliphatic O−R bond.     

A Convergent Total Synthesis of the Telomerase Inhibitor (±)‐γ‐Rubromycin

The total synthesis of the human telomerase inhibitor γ‐rubromycin in its racemic form was accomplished in 3.8 % overall yield. The key feature of this synthesis is an efficient acid‐catalyzed spiroketalization for the construction of the spiroketal core. The required electronically well‐balanced spiroketal precursor was obtained by the convergent assembly of a naphthyl‐substituted aldehyde, an α‐methoxyallyl‐γ‐silyl‐substituted phosphonate as the central C₃ building block, and a highly functionalized aryl Grignard reagent. Another key feature is the late‐stage construction of the isocoumarin moiety and a simultaneous protodesilylation furnishing the known methyl aryl ether protected precursor of γ‐rubromycin.     

A Novel Concept for Combinatorial Chemistry in Solution: Synthesis of Highly Substituted Pyrrolidines by Multicomponent Domino Reactions

The multicomponent domino Knoevenagel hetero‐Diels? Alder hydrogenation process of N‐[(benzyloxy)carbonyl(Cbz)‐protected amino aldehydes with N,N‐dimethylbarbituric acid and the trimethylsilyl enol ethers 1 – 3 leads to the formation of the substituted pyrrolidines 12 – 15 . Under the same conditions, reaction of the trimethylsilyl enol ether 4 , obtained from acetophenone, gave the primary amines 18a , b probably due to a hydrogenolytic cleavage of the intermediately formed pyrrolidines. The zwitterionic products were obtained in high purity simply by precipitation with Et₂O.     

Hydroamination of olefin in a special conjugated spiroketal enol ether system, diastereoselective synthesis of amino-containing tonghaosu analogs

Lithium amide reacted with spiroketal enol ether characterized tonghaosu analog at −78 °C to give the only hydroamination product 4 in a highly regio- and diastereoselective manner. At a higher temperature, −40 °C, the presence of free amine was critical for the hydroamination to take place; otherwise, rearrangement of tonghaosu analog to 2,3-dihydrofuran derivative like 6 was the only reaction.     

Ringerweiterung bei der Reaktion eines 1,3-Cyclohexandions mit Diphenylcyclopropenon

Ring Expansion during the Reaction of a 1,3-Cyclohexanedione with Diphenylcyclopropenone The reaction of 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione ( 1 ) in form of its Na-salt with diphenylcyclopropenone ( 2 ) in DMF yielded the bicyclic triketone 3 (58 %), the structure of which was deduced as an enolizeable bicyclo[5.2.0]nonane-β-diketone from spectral data and from the following reactions: hydrolysis or methanolysis of 3 cleaved the β-dicarbonyl moiety, thereby opening the 4-membered ring to yield the keto acid 9 or its methyl ester 10 . Methylation of 3 afforded the two enol ethers 4 and 5 . The ether 5 readily underwent a thermal electrocyclic ring opening to the monocyclic enol ether 8 , whereas the ether 4 was thermally stable. The same electrocylic ring opening (in boiling benzene) converted 3 (probably via 3b ) to the monocyclic triketone 7 , which was also the hydrolysis product of the ring-opened enol ether 8 . By heating 3 in DMF/H₂O, a partial (56 %) conversion to the lactone 6 took place. The tricyclic intermediate 11 was found useful to rationalize the ring expansion during the formation of 3 from 1 and 2 as well as the corresponding ring contraction during the conversion of 3 into 6 .     

Quenching of metal‐catalyzed living radical polymerization with silyl enol ethers

Various silyl enol ethers were employed as quenchers for the living radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate with the R Cl/RuCl₂(PPh₃)₃/Al(Oi–Pr)₃ initiating system. The most effective quencher was a silyl enol ether with an electron‐donating phenyl group conjugated with its double bond [CH₂C(OSiMe₃)(4‐MeOPh) ( 2a )] that afforded a halogen‐free polymer with a ketone terminal at a high end functionality [F̄_n ∼ 1]. Such silyl compounds reacted with the growing radical generated from the dormant chloride terminal and the ruthenium complex to give the ketone terminal via the release of the silyl group along with the chlorine that originated from the dormant terminal. In contrast, less conjugated silyl enol ethers such as CH₂C(OSiMe₃)Me were less effective in quenching the polymerization. The reactivity of the silyl compounds to the poly(methyl methacrylate) radical can be explained by the reactivity of their double bonds, namely, the monomer reactivity ratios of their model vinyl monomers without the silyloxyl groups. The lifetime of the living polymer terminal was also estimated by the quenching reaction mediated with 2a . © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 4735–4748, 2000     

Total synthesis of 7-ethyl-10-hydroxycamptothecin (SN38) and its application to the development of C18-functionalized camptothecin derivatives

A new chemical synthesis of SN38, the active metabolite of the camptothecin prodrug irinotecan, has been achieved in 12 steps from simple, commercially available starting materials. A mild and efficient FeCl₃‐catalyzed Friedländer condensation was successfully applied to construct the AB ring system. Functionalization of the C ring was accomplished by a vinylogous Mukaiyama reaction of an in situ generated N‐acyliminium intermediate with a silyl enol ether. An intramolecular oxa Diels–Alder reaction efficiently constructed the D and E rings in one step. Successive asymmetric dihydroxylation and I₂‐based hemiacetal oxidation furnished the stereochemistry of SN38 with high enantiopurity. Utilizing the ABC‐ring intermediate and a functionalized silyl enol ether permitted the synthesis of a number of new C18‐functionalized SN38 derivatives. Several of the novel SN38 derivatives that bore a C10 methoxy group were found to exhibit comparable or more potent inhibitory activity against the proliferation of cancer cells relative to SN38.     

A diastereoselective formal synthesis of berkelic acid

A formal synthesis of berkelic acid is reported. The strategy employs the combination of a chiral exocyclic enol ether and an achiral isochromanone to afford the chroman spiroketal core via a base-triggered generation and cycloaddition of an o-quinone methide intermediate. Other key steps include equilibration of the spiroketal, intramolecular benzylic oxidation, and lactone addition/hemiketal reduction; all occur with good diastereoselectivity.     

Synthetic Studies on and Mechanistic Insight into [W(CO)5(L)]‐Catalyzed Stereoselective Construction of Functionalized Bicyclo[5.3.0]decane Frameworks

Stereoselective preparation of a variety of synthetically useful functionalized bicyclo[5.3.0]decane derivatives was achieved by tandem cyclization of 3‐siloxy‐1,3,9‐triene‐7‐yne derivatives based on the electrophilic activation of alkynes catalyzed by [W(CO)₅(L)]. The reaction proceeded smoothly under photoirradiation, and various substrates were cyclized to give the corresponding bicyclic compounds with up to four chiral centers stereospecifically. Reactions of siloxydienes with a silyl substituent as an equivalent of a hydroxyl group also proceeded with wide generality to afford silyl‐substituted bicyclo[5.3.0]decanes, which were highly useful as synthetic intermediates. Stereochemical studies concerning the silyl enol ether moiety suggested that two types of reaction pathway for the formation of seven‐membered rings were present. The reaction of (Z)‐enol silyl ethers proceeded through Cope rearrangement of cis‐divinylcyclopropane intermediates, and that of (E)‐enol silyl ethers by 1,4‐addition of the dienyl tungsten species at the position δ to the metal atom. In the reactions of siloxydiene derivatives with silyl substituents, all possible diastereomers could be synthesized stereoselectively by changing the geometry of the silyl enol ether and enyne moieties.     

Cyclooctanone synthesis via a formal [6+2] cycloaddition reaction of a dicobalt acetylene complex

An efficient formal [6+2] cycloaddition reaction of a new six-carbon unit with enol silyl ether was developed on the basis of a dicobalt hexacarbonyl propargyl cation species. Under the influence of EtAlCl₂, 6-benzoyloxy-2-(triisopropylsilyloxy)-1-hexen-4-yne-dicobalthexacarbonyl reacted with enol triisopropylsilyl ethers to yield 7-(triisopropylsilyloxy)-3-cyclooctyn-1-one-dicobalthexacarbonyl derivatives in good yield. The reactions with cyclic enol silyl ethers as well as acyclic enol silyl ethers exhibited remarkably high diastereoselectivity.     

Synthesis,Structure, and Keto-Enol Tautomerism of 3-R<Superscript>1</Superscript>-5,5-R<Superscript>2</Superscript>,R<Superscript>2</Superscript>-6-R<Superscript>3</Superscript>-2,3,5,6-Tetrahydropyran-2,4-diones

Ethyl esters of 2,4-dibromo-2-R¹-4-R²-3-oxopentanoic and -hexanoic acids react with zinc and aliphatic or aromatic aldehydes under the conditions of the Reformatskii reaction to give 3-R¹-5,5-R², R²-6-R³-2,3,5,6-tetrahydropyran-2,4-diones, which are obtained in three forms: keto, enol with enolization of the keto group, and enol with enolization of the ester group. The keto form is isolated by crystallization from a mixture of CCl₄ and petroleum ether; the first enol form, from MeOH, EtOH, and polar aprotic solvents; and the second enol form, from CHCl₃. The second enol form is oxidized in DMSO to form a keto compound containing a hydroxy group at the 3-position of the heteroring.     

New approaches toward the synthesis of (D-homo) steroid skeletons using Mukaiyama reactions

New, short, and flexible procedures have been developed for syntheses of steroid and D-homo steroid skeletons. A Mukaiyama reaction between the silyl enol ether of 6-methoxytetralone and 2-methyl-2-cyclopentenone or carvone, with transfer of the silyl group to the receiving enone, gave a second silyl enol ether. Addition of a carbocation, generated under Lewis acid conditions from 3-methoxy-2-butenol, 3-ethoxy-3-phenyl-2-propenol or 3-methoxy-2-propenol to this second silyl enol ether gave adducts, which could not be cyclized by aldol condensation to (D-homo) steroid skeletons. The Mukaiyama-Michael reaction of the silyl enol ether of 6-methoxy tetralone with 2-methyl-2-cylopentenone gave a second silyl enol ether, which reacted in high yield with a carbocation generated from 3-hydroxy-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)propene. Ozonolysis of the double bond in this adduct gave a tricarbonyl compound (Zieglers triketone), which has been used before in the synthesis of 9,11-dehydroestrone methyl ether. A second synthesis of C17 substituted CD-trans coupled (D-homo) steroid skeletons has been developed via addition of a carbocation, generated with ZnBr₂ from a Torgov reagent, to a silyl enol ether containing ring D precursor. The obtained seco steroids have been cyclized under formation of the 8-14 bond by treatment with acid. The double bonds in one of the cyclized products have been reduced to a C17-substituted all trans steroid skeleton.     

Alkoxyallene‐ynes: Selective Preparation of Bicyclo[5.3.0] Ring Systems Including a δ‐Alkoxy Cyclopentadienone

The development of an intramolecular rhodium(I)‐catalyzed Pauson–Khand reaction of alkoxyallene‐ynes with a proximal alkoxy group is reported. This reaction, in the presence of a [Rh(cycloocta‐1,5‐diene)Cl]₂/propane‐1,3‐diylbis(diphenylphosphane) system under a CO atmosphere, constitutes a powerful tool for selectively accessing carbo‐ and heterobicyclo[5.3.0] frameworks featuring an enol ether moiety. Through this procedure, a straightforward access to guaiane skeletons with a tertiary hydroxy group at the C10 position was achieved.