Addition reactions of ethoxycarbonylnitrene and ethoxycarbonylnitrenium ion to allylic ethers

Ethoxycarbonylnitrene (EtOCON) generated by α-elimination adds cleanly to allylic ethers giving substituted aziridines. Similar addition via nitrenium ion (EtOCONH⁺) gives derivatives of β-amino alcohols.     

Unexpected and expeditious entry into trifluoromethyl aziridines from substituted beta-dicarbonyl compounds

[Reaction: see text]. One-pot aziridinations were obtained starting from substituted 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl beta-dicarbonyl compounds with nosyloxycarbamates in the presence of an excess of CaO as base. The unexpected ring closure reaction takes place at room temperature, leading to the N-protected alpha-trifluoromethyl aziridines with good yields. The reaction pathway seems to be influenced by the choice of the base.     

Chiral bidiaziridines by a two-step domino aziridination of meso-α-diimines

Chiral racemic α-diimines, tested in aziridination reactions with NsONHCO₂Et, for the first time led to the synthesis of (±)-bidiaziridines, stereoselectively derived from the corresponding meso (E-s-trans-E)-α-diimines. Moreover, a minor bidiaziridine isomer, probably a meso form that was lost under classical work-up conditions, can be obtained by adding water to the crude mixtures at the end of amination reactions. The results definitively prove that the imine aziridination by carbamates is a two-step domino process. The structures of the compounds were determined using 2D NMR on purified bidiaziridines.     

Functionalised enones as starting materials for the construction of aziridine scaffolds

alpha-Substituted beta-keto esters have been transformed by means of a straightforward procedure into aziridine-1,2-dicarboxylates, which have been efficiently converted into alkenyl aziridine-1,2-dicarboxylates through Wittig olefination reaction. The possibility of aziridine ring elaborations and the presence of an olefin function make these new molecules suitable scaffolds for further derivatisation into potential bioactive targets.     

O-Arylsulfonyl hydroxylamines via a decarboxylative rearrangement

(E)-O-Arylsulfonyl-N-(2-nitroalk-2-enyl)hydroxylamines were easily obtained in good yields starting from (E)-nitro allylic alcohols, the crucial step being an inorganic base-catalyzed decarboxylative rearrangement of proposed labile unsaturated carbamates. A possible mechanism for the outcome of the reaction, characterized by the unusual retention of the sulfonyloxy group, is proposed.     

Domino reactions for the synthesis of various α-substituted nitro alkenes

Efficient one-pot methods for the synthesis of variously functionalised conjugated nitro alkenes have been reported. Despite the utility in different fields of these compounds, only a few multi-step syntheses have been reported in the literature, giving the target compounds in low overall yields. α-Nitro acrylates or cinnamates, α-nitro α,β-unsaturated ketones and, most importantly, aromatic and heteroaromatic (E)- 2-nitro allylic alcohols, compounds characterised by a well-known anticancer activity, were obtained in high yields and high diastereomeric purity by a domino condensation-dehydration process.     

Reagent-controlled diastereoselective aminations with a new chiral nosyloxycarbamate

The synthesis of a new chiral nosyloxycarbamate derived from Helmchen's auxiliary is described. Reactions performed with this aminating reagent successfully give the formation of diastereomeric allylic carbamates or diastereomeric aziridines starting from different kinds of olefins.     

N-acetyl-DL-leucinate cobalt(II), nickel(II) and zinc(II) complexes

Summary Complexes of the type M(AcLeu)₂ · B₂ (M = Co^II, Ni^II or Zn^II; B = H₂O, py, 3-pic, 4-pic; AcLeu =N-acetyl-DL-leucinate ion) and M(AcLeu)₂ B (M = Co^II or Zn^II and B = o-phen) were prepared and investigated by means of magnetic and spectroscopic measurements. The i.r. spectra of all the complexes are consistent with bidentate coordination of the amino acid to the metal ion. The room temperature solid state electronic spectra indicate that the symmetry of this species is closer toD _4h and that MO₆ and MO₄N₂ chromophores are present in the M(AcLeu)₂ · 2 H₂O and M(AcLeu)₂B_n · x H₂O (B = py, 3-pic, 4-pic, n=2 and x=0 for M = Ni^II; B = o-phen, n=1 and x=0 for M = Co^II; B = py, 3-pic, 4-pic, n=1 and x=1 for M = Co^II) complexes, respectively. By comparing the Dq values of the amino acid and those of other N-substituted amino acids previously studied, a spectrochemical series of the the cobalt(II) and nickel(II) complexes is proposed. The¹ H n.m.r. spectra of the zinc(II) complexes confirm the proposed stereochemistry.     

Amination of CF3-enones with nosyloxycarbamates

CF3-enones showed a different reactivity in amination reactions with nosyloxycarbamates. 4-Oxazolines or vinyl carbamates were obtained as unique products depending on the nature of double-bond substituents and on the choice of carbamates and bases. Starting from trans-trifluoroacetyl olefins carrying a heterocyclic residue or the p-methoxyphenyl group on the double bond, a rare loss of CF3CO was observed when the aminations were performed under heterogeneous conditions using CaO as the base.