Dithiane additions to vinyl epoxides: steric control over the SN2 and SN2' manifolds

High chemoselectivity can be achieved in the addition of lithium dithiane anions to vinyl epoxides exploiting the steric nature of the dithiane substituent. Unencumbered dithiane anions afford SN2 adducts, whereas sterically encumbered anions lead primarily to SN2' adducts. Furthermore, the SN2' addition occurs syn to the vinyl epoxide.     

(+)-Rimocidin synthetic studies. Construction of an advanced C(1-18) polyol fragment

[structure: see text] The synthesis of an appropriately functionalized advanced C(1-18) polyol fragment of the mycosamine-glycosylated polyene macrolide, (+)-rimocidin (1), has been achieved in a highly efficient manner. Highlights of the strategy include the S(N)2/S(N)2' addition of dithiane anions to vinyl epoxides and the multicomponent linchpin union of 2-TBS-1,3-dithiane with two advanced epoxides.     

Deprotonation-electrophile trapping of terminal epoxides

Organolithium-induced deprotonation of terminal epoxides in the presence of appropriate diamine ligands allows trapping with a range of electrophiles, yielding functionalised di- and tri-substituted epoxides in good yields and with control of stereochemistry at the epoxide.     

Substituted epoxides by lithiation of terminal epoxides

Diamine-ligand-assisted direct hydrogen-lithium exchange allows the generation of nonstabilized (H-substituted) oxiranyllithium species and their subsequent trapping by Bu(3)SnCl and carbonyl-based electrophiles. This reaction provides a new concise route to alpha,beta-epoxystannanes and substituted epoxides.     

Palladium-catalyzed synthesis of nucleoside adducts from bay- and fjord-region diol epoxides

Palladium-catalyzed C-N bond formation has been utilized to synthesize covalent 2'-deoxyadenosine (dA) and 2'-deoxyguanosine (dG) adducts of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) series 1 (syn) and benzo[c]phenanthrene (BcPh) series 2 (anti) diol epoxides. For this, (+/-)-10 alpha-amino-7 beta,8 alpha,9 beta-trisbenzoyloxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydro BaP and (+/-)-1 beta-amino-2 alpha,3 alpha,4 beta-trisbenzoyloxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro BcPh were coupled with 6-halo-9-[3,5-bis-O-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-beta-D-erythro-pentofuranosyl]purine and O6-benzyl-3',5'-bis-O-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-2-bromo-2'-deoxyinosine, using a (+/-)-BINAP-Pd complex and Cs2CO3. For the synthesis of the dA adducts, both the 6-chloro- as well as the 6-bromopurine nucleoside derivatives were analyzed for the C-N coupling reaction with the hydrocarbon amino tribenzoates. With the BaP amino tribenzoate, the 6-chloronucleoside provided satisfactory results, whereas the 6-bromo analogue proved to be superior with the BcPh amino tribenzoate. Overall, lower yields of the dA adducts were obtained with the more hindered fjord-region BcPh amino tribenzoate as compared to the bay-region BaP amino tribenzoate. In contrast to reactions leading to the dA adducts, the C-N reactions of both BaP and BcPh amino tribenzoates with the 2-bromo-2'-deoxyinosine derivative proceeded in comparable yields. This seems to indicate that such Pd-catalyzed adduct forming reactions at the C-6 position may be influenced by steric constraints of the amine component, whereas those at the C-2 position are less sensitive. Diastereomeric adduct pairs were separated and characterized by spectral methods and by comparisons to adducts produced by direct displacement reactions as well as those formed from DNA alkylation by diol epoxides.     

Rhodium-catalyzed ring opening of vinyl epoxides with alcohols and aromatic amines

[Rh(CO)(2)Cl](2) is an effective catalyst for the ring opening of vinyl epoxides with alcohols and aromatic amines under neutral conditions at room temperature. The reaction occurs with excellent diastereo- and regioselectivity (>20:1) giving the trans-1,2-amino alcohols or alkoxy alcohols for a wide range of substrates. The regio- and stereochemistry of these reactions is complementary to that typically obtained with palladium-catalyzed ring openings of vinyl epoxides.     

Remarkable selectivity in addition of alcohols to epoxydienes of 5,7 bicyclic and 5,7,6 tricyclic systems

Acid-catalyzed addition of alcohols to tricyclic dienyl epoxides such as 4 or bicyclic vinyl oxiranes such as 17 exclusively occurred at the vinyl terminus of unsaturated system through a typical S(N)2' process affording 1,6- and 1,4-dioxygenated derivatives, respectively.     

Enamines from terminal epoxides and hindered lithium amides

A new reactivity mode of lithium amides with epoxides leads to hindered enamines. The reaction of some of these enamines with unactivated primary and secondary alkyl halides is described, which expands the range of electrophiles that one can use in the synthesis of mono-alkylated aldehydes.     

Reaction of vinyl epoxides with palladium-switchable bisnucleophiles: synthesis of carbocycles

The selective activation of substrates I, potential bisnucleophiles, was achieved by using different palladium catalysts. The synthetic potential of this strategy has been demonstrated in the regiodivergent synthesis of carbocycles from substrates of type I, bearing malonate-type pronucleophiles and an alkenyl stannane, with vinyl epoxides. A selective palladium-catalyzed reaction of I with the vinyl epoxide gives rise to an allylic alcohol, which, after activation as a carbonate, led to the cyclization product by a second palladium-catalyzed reaction. The transmetalation process is favored with palladium-catalysts without phosphines or arsines as the ligands. On the other hand, the use of palladium complexes with PPh3 as the ligand inhibits the transmetalation pathway and promotes the nucleophilic attack of the malonate-type anions on the intermediate (eta 3-allyl)-palladium complexes.     

Study on the stereochemical control of dihydroxylation of vinyl epoxides and their derivatives

The results obtained from a study on the stereochemical control in the dihydroxylation of the double bond of vinyl epoxides and their derivatives (bromo derivatives, azido derivatives and vinyl aziridines) are presented herein. A significant diastereoselectivity was observed for the bromo derivatives, azido derivatives and N-protected vinyl aziridines, whereas vinyl epoxides and unprotected vinyl aziridines showed no diastereoselectivity. The results obtained are generally consistent with the Kishi model.     

Catalytic activity of salenCo(III)OAc complex in the reaction of addition of carboxylic acids to terminal epoxides

The catalytic activity and regioselectivity were studied of the salenCo(III)OAc complex in the reaction of addition of aliphatic carboxylic acids to a series of terminal epoxides (epichlorohydrin, 1,2-epoxybutane, propylene oxide, tert-butyl glycidyl ether and 2,3-epoxypropyl phenyl ether). The reduction in the activity in the order: acetic > acrylic > methacrylic acid was found. The regioselectivity of the addition was independent on carboxylic acid nature and depended on the nature of the epoxide. The best regioselectivity for the addition to epichlorohydrin was observed. The catalytic activity and regioselectivity of salenCo(III)OAc were compared with those for chromium(III) acetate catalyst.     

One-pot synthesis of thia-Michael products from thio acids, epoxides, and electron-deficient alkenes promoted by a silica gel/Et3N combined catalyst

An efficient method for the one-pot production of thia-Michael adducts using thio acids, epoxides, and electron-deficient alkenes is described. Epoxides quickly underwent nucleophilic ring-opening with thio acids on the silica gel surface at room temperature under solvent-free conditions to yield β-hydroxy thioester intermediates. After addition of an electron-deficient alkene and a catalytic amount of Et₃N to the reaction mixture, the β-acyloxy mercaptans were generated in situ and subsequently underwent thia-Michael addition reactions to produce the corresponding adducts in good to excellent yields.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides

Nickel-catalyzed, intramolecular and intermolecular reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides affords synthetically useful homoallylic alcohols of defined alkene geometry. Very high regioselectivity is generally observed, and cyclizations proceed with complete selectivity for endo epoxide opening. This catalytic reaction represents the first use of a non-pi-based electrophile in a growing class of nickel-catalyzed, multicomponent coupling reactions, and is the first catalytic method of reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides that is effective for both intermolecular and intramolecular cases, and mechanistically distinct from these, possibly involving a nickella(II)oxetane.     

Regioselective and divergent opening of vinyl epoxides with ethoxyacetylene

A divergent protocol for nucleophilic opening of vinyl epoxides with ethoxyacetylide has been developed and demonstrated to give complete regioselectivity depending on reaction conditions.     

CO2 adducts of N-heterocyclic carbenes: thermal stability and catalytic activity toward the coupling of CO2 with epoxides

Thermal stability of CO2 adducts of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) was studied by means of in situ FTIR method with monitoring of the nu(CO2) region of the infrared spectra under various conditions. 1,3-Bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazolinium-2-carboxylate (SIPr-CO2) shows higher thermal stability compared with 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazolium-2-carboxylate (IPr-CO2). The presence of free CO2 can significantly inhibit the decomposition of NHC-CO2 adducts, while the addition of an epoxide such as propylene oxide has a negative effect on stabilizing these adducts. As zwitterionic compounds, NHC-CO2 adducts were also proved to be effective organic catalysts for the coupling reaction of CO2 and epoxides to afford cyclic carbonates, for which a possible mechanism was proposed. Among these NHC-CO2 adducts, the relatively unstable IPr-CO2 exhibits the highest catalytic activity. The presence of an electrophile such as SalenAlEt could greatly improve the catalytic activity of IPr-CO2 due to intermolecular cooperative catalysis of the binary components.     

A new multicomponent reaction catalyzed by a [Lewis Acid](+)[Co(CO)(4)](-) catalyst: stereospecific synthesis of 1,3-oxazinane-2,4-diones from epoxides, isocyanates, and CO

The use of mechanistic information to develop a new, catalytic multicomponent reaction is described. The complex [(salph)Al(THF)2]+[Co(CO)4]- (1, salph = N,N'-o-phenylenebis(3,5-di-tert-butylsalicylideneimine), THF = tetrahydrofuran), which is known to carbonylate epoxides, aziridines, and beta-lactones, was used to catalyze the synthesis of 1,3-oxazinane-2,4-diones from epoxides, isocyanates, and CO. Under optimized conditions, the reaction was both selective and high-yielding. 1,3-Oxazinane-2,4-diones were synthesized from a variety of epoxides and isocyanates, including some epoxides that do not undergo simple ring-expansion carbonylation. The best results were obtained using highly electrophilic isocyanates. The mechanism of the multicomponent reaction was investigated using labeling and stereochemistry, and the data obtained were consistent with the 1-catalyzed formation of beta-lactone and 1,3-oxazinane-2,4-dione from a common intermediate.     

Electrotelluration: a new approach to tri- and tetrasubstituted alkenes

A novel electrotelluration process is described in which a Michael addition of an alkyl or aryl tellurolate anion occurs onto an activated alkyne with subsequent trapping of a vinyl anion with electrophiles (aldehydes and ketones) other than a proton. This process provides an efficient regio- and stereospecific route to tri- and tetrasubstituted alkenes. Methodologically significant examples of this chemistry were studied in which aryl and alkyl tellurolate anions were added to omega-keto alkynyl esters in a Michael reaction, and the incipient vinyl anions were trapped intramolecularly by the internal aldehydes. The reactive centers were tethered by different lengths of alkyl chains to form highly functionalized five-, six-, seven-, and eight-membered rings in modest to good yields.     

An efficient catalytic ylide route to vinyl epoxides

The ylide epoxidation catalyzed by telluronium salts provides a simple and extremely efficient route to vinyl epoxides in excellent yields. Both aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes work well. The best results were obtained by using 2 mol% of telluronium salts with Cs₂CO₃ in t-BuOH.     

Indium-mediated consecutive 1,2-shift reaction and regioselective allylation of vinyl epoxides

Allyl indium, prepared from allyl bromide and indium metal in aprotic solvent, reacts with terminal vinyl epoxides at room temperature to afford various bishomoallyl alcohols in moderate to high yields via consecutive 1,2-shift reaction and regioselective allylation.     

Studies of rhodium-catalyzed ring opening of vinyl epoxides

The stereoselective 6-endo mode cyclization of vinyl epoxides has been achieved by the use of a catalytic amount of [Rh(CO)₂Cl]₂ affording six-membered heterocycle systems, such as piperidines and tetrahydropyrans. The scope and limitations of the reaction are discussed.