Stereoselective synthesis of (2E) 3‐amino‐2‐(1H‐benzimidazol‐2‐yl)acrylate and symmetric bisacrylates by transamination reactions

A range of various amines 2(a–i) was tested in transamination reactions using ethyl 2‐(1H‐benzimidazol‐2‐yl)‐3‐dimethylamino‐acrylate 1a. The (E)‐s‐cis/trans conformation of some representative products 4 was analyzed by ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectra. The C‐2/C‐3 bond of the compounds 3(a–i) is strongly polarized by a push‐pull effect. In the same manner, reactions of ethyl 2‐(benzoxazol‐2‐yl)‐3‐dimethylamino‐acrylate 1c with 1,4‐diaminobenzene 2i, ethylenediamine 2i, and 1,5‐diaminomaphthalene 2k have been investigated and gave directly the corresponding symmetric bis‐acrylates 4(a–c) in good yields. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 10: 446–454, 1999