A Aminoketones

This synthesis of the pyrrole ring system, due to Knorr, consists in the condensation of an a-aminoketone with a 1,3-diketone or the ester of a p-keto-acid, a-Aminoketones are unstable in the free state, readily undergoing self-condensation consequently they must be prepared, by the reduction of an a-nitroso (or oximino) ketone, in the presence of the 1,3-diketone or p-ketoester, to ensure rapid interaction. 

The usefulness of the Knorr synthesis arises from the fact that 1,3-dioxo compounds and a-aminoketones are much more easily accessible in large quantities than rational 1,4-difunctional precursors. Such practical syntheses are known for several important hetero-cycles. They are usually limited to certain substitution patterns of the target molecules. 

The synthesis of a-aminoketones can be achieved using a-halogenated ketones as starting material. These latter are converted into the hexamethylene tetraminium salts by the method of Mannich and Hahn (42). This reaction proceeds in two steps ... 

Another procedure for obtaining a-aminoketones is by reduction of a-nitrosoketones in the presence of the required carboxylic acid. Acylaminoketones are prepared either by reacting acids with the chlorhydrate of a-aminoketones according to the method of Pictet and Gauss (41) or by the action of acid anhydrides upon a-amino acids (550). 

Knorr Synthesis. Condensation of an a-aminoketone with a carbonyl compound was first reported by Knott (20). This reaction and its modifications are among the most important and widely used methods for the synthesis of pyrroles. 

Because the a-aminoketone is subject to self-condensation, the condensation with a P-dicarbonyl derivative (6) is usually carried out by generating the a-aminoketone in situ through reduction of an oximino derivative (7) 2iac ia glacial acetic acid is used as the reductant. For example, Knorr s pyrrole... 

The principal difficulty associated with this type of synthesis is in the availability of a-aminoacyl compounds, e.g. a-aminoaldehydes, a-aminoketones, etc., and most type B syntheses rely on the generation of these compounds in situ, where the self-condensation occurs spontaneously. A large number of research groups have addressed themselves to this problem and a variety of routes are now available. 

Treatment of a-hydroxy-ketones or -aldehydes with ammonium acetate (65BSF3476, 68BSF4970) results in the formation of dihydropyrazines, presumably by direct amination of the hydroxyketone followed by self-condensation (79AJC1281). Low yields of pyrazines have been noted in the electrolysis of ketones in admixture with KI and ammonia, and again it appears probable that the a-aminoketone derived by way of the a-iodoketone is the intermediate (69CI(L)237>. 

A number of reductive procedures have found general applicability. a-Azidoketones may be reduced catalytically to the dihydropyrazines (80OPP265) and a direct conversion of a-azidoketones to pyrazines by treatment with triphenylphosphine in benzene (Scheme 55) has been reported to proceed in moderate to good yields (69LA(727)23l). Similarly, a-nitroketones may be reduced to the a-aminoketones which dimerize spontaneously (69USP3453279). The products from this reaction are pyrazines and piperazines and an intermolecular redox reaction between the initially formed dihydropyrazines may explain their formation. Normally, if the reaction is carried out in aqueous acetic acid the pyrazine predominates, but in less polar solvents over-reduction results in extensive piperazine formation. 

An alternative approach to the use of a-aminoketones involves acetals (72JOC221) and pyrazine-2,3-diones have been synthesized by this route (Scheme 58). The acetals are readily available from the phthalimido derivatives via the a-chloroketones. Hemiacetals have also served as a starting point for pyrazine synthesis, although in most cases hemiacetals are too labile to be easily prepared examples are common in the 2-amino-2-deoxy sugar series 2-amino-2-deoxy-D-glucose for example dimerizes to the pyrazine (101) when generated in situ from the hydrochloride salt (68JAP6813469). 

Other methods of generating a-aminoketones in situ are common, if somewhat less general than the methods already described. 2-Nitrovinylpyrrolidine, which is readily available, yields 2,3-bis(3-aminopropyl)pyrazine on reduction and this almost certainly involves ring opening of the intermediate enamine to an a-aminoketone which then dimerizes under the reaction conditions (Scheme 59) (78TL2217). Nitroethylene derivatives have also served as a-aminoketone precursors via ammonolysis of the derived epoxides at elevated temperatures (Scheme 60) (76S53). Condensation of 1,1-disubstituted hydrazine derivatives with a-nitro-/3-ethoxyethylene derivatives has been used in the synthesis of l,4-dialkylamino-l,4-dihydropyrazines (Scheme 61) (77S136). 

An unusual approach to the lumazine nucleus was found in the photochemical transformation of 6-azido-l,3-dimethyluracil (289) with various amino compounds (78JA7661). Irradiation of (289) in the presence of ethyl a-amino acid esters forms 7-substituted 7,8-dihydrolumazin-6-ones (288), and with a-aminoketones 6-substituted 7,8-dihydro-lumazines (290) are formed (equation 103). 

The 1-azirine ring also undergoes a number of reactions in which the heterocycle plays the role of the nucleophile. Although the basicity of the nitrogen atom in the azirine ring is much lower than in simple aliphatic amines, this system can still function as a nucleophilic reagent. One example of this involves the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of 1-azirines to a-aminoketones (200) which represents a well-established reaction. In fact, in many reactions of 1-azirines where acid catalysis is used, formation of a-aminoketones is difficult to avoid (67JA44S6). 

One of the more important approaches to 1-azirines involves a similar base-induced cycloelimination reaction of a suitably functionalized ketone derivative (route c. Scheme 1). This reaction is analogous to route (b) (Scheme 1) used for the synthesis of aziridines wherein displacement of the leaving group at nitrogen is initiated by a -carbanionic center. An example of this cycloelimination involves the Neber rearrangement of oxime tosylate esters (357 X = OTs) to 1-azirines and subsequently to a-aminoketones (358) (71AHC-(13)45). The reaction has been demonstrated to be configurationally indiscriminate both syn and anti ketoxime tosylate esters afforded the same product mixture of a-aminoketones... 

BREDERECK Imidazole synthesis Synthesis o( imidazoles Irom (ormamide (acetamide) and a-diketones, a-ketols, a-aminoketones, a-oziminoketones... 

G A S T A L 0 I Pyrazine Synthesis Pyrazme synthesis from a-oximmokeiones via a-aminoketones... 

ROBINSON - GABRIEL OxazoleSynthesis Oxazole synthesis from amides of a-aminoketones... 

The previous sections have dealt with stable C=N-I- functionality in aromatic rings as simple salts. Another class of iminium salt reactions can be found where the iminium salt is only an intermediate. The purpose of this section is to point out these reactions even though they do not show any striking differences in their reactivity from stable iminium salts. Such intermediates arise from a-chloroamines (133-135), isomerization of oxazolidines (136), reduction of a-aminoketones by the Clemmensen method (137-139), reductive alkylation by the Leuckart-Wallach (140-141) or Clarke-Eschweiler reaction (142), mercuric acetate oxidation of amines (46,93), and in reactions such as ketene with enamines (143). 

Clemmensen reductions of a-aminoketones that proceed with ring enlargement or ring contraction are presumed to proceed by an iminium intermediate. This reaction has been examined in detail (137-139), and an example is given in the conversion of (94) to an iminium intermediate (95), which is reduced to 96. 

Formation of pyrroles by condensation of ketones with a-aminoketones... 

By a condensation reaction of an a-aminoketone 1 with a ketone 2, a pyrrole 3 can be obtained. This reaction is known as the Knorr pyrrole synthesis. 

The aminoketone 1, required as starting material, can be obtained by a Neber rearrangement from a A -tosylhydrazone. Another route to a-aminoketones starts with the nitrosation of an a-methylene carbonyl compound—often in situ—to give the more stable tautomeric oxime 7, which is then reduced in a subsequent step to yield 1 ... 

With excess ketone, the preparation of the aminoketone and subsequent condensation to a pyrrole can be conducted in one pot. In a side-reaction a-aminoketones can undergo a self-condensation to give pyrazines 8 ... 

A similar microwave-assisted cyclization in the presence of ammonium acetate of an a-ketoamide, obtained by acylation of an a-aminoketone, was recently described for the synthesis of the antifungal agent Nortopsedin D [46]. The problem of the instabiUty of the a-amino ketones was successfully resolved by in situ acylation of the amine derived from Staudinger reaction of the azide 50 with a phosphine (Scheme 16). This ketoamide was... 

Rather than preforming the a-amino ketimines to be reduced, it is often advantageous to form in situ the more reactive iminium ions from a-aminoketones and primary amines or ammonium salts in the presence of the reducing agent, e.g., sodium cyanoborohydride. Use of this procedure (reductive amination) with the enantiopure a-aminoketone 214 and benzylamine allowed the preparation of the syn diamines 215 with high yields and (almost) complete diastereoselectivities [100] (Scheme 32). Then, the primary diamines 216 were obtained by routine N-debenzylation. Similarly, the diamine 217 was prepared using ammonium acetate. In... 

Scheme 32 Reductive amination of chiral a-aminoketones with sodium cyanoborohydride...

The preparation of 2 4-dimethyl-3 5-dicarbethoxypyrrole (II) is an example of the Knorr synthesis of pyrrole derivatives, involving the reaction of an a-aminoketone (or a derivative thereof) with a reactive methylene ketone (or a derivative thereof). The stages In tlie present synthesis from ethyl acetoacetate (I) may be represented as follows ... 

Patent applications from Pfizer disclosed 1,5-diaryl-pyrazoles bearing bioisosteric replacements for the 3-carboxamide moiety. One application showed that the amide could be replaced by a-aminoketones as exemplified by compound (416) [284]. The corresponding alcohols and their ethers were also described, including compounds that allowed the amine substituent and ether to form a ring system, such as a morpholine unit. This application also allowed for the replacement of the 1,5-diaryl-pyrazole by a 1,2-diaryl-imidazole bearing a 3-carbonyl substituent, as exemplified by compound (417). A further patent application from Pfizer claims compounds in which imidazoles replace the 3-carboxamide moiety in the 1,5-diaryl-pyrazole... 

A suggested scheme for the formation of oxazoles from a-aminoketones.3... 

Isothiazoles can be prepared from thionyl chloride and a-aminoketones, a-iminoketones, a-iminonitriles, or acrylonitriles the reactions concerned have been discussed.62... 

Strecker aldehyde are generated by rearrangement, decarboxylation and hydrolysis. Thus the Strecker degradation is the oxidative de-amination and de-carboxylation of an a-amino acid in the presence of a dicarbonyl compound. An aldehyde with one fewer carbon atoms than the original amino acid is produced. The other class of product is an a-aminoketone. These are important as they are intermediates in the formation of heterocyclic compounds such as pyrazines, oxazoles and thiazoles, which are important in flavours. 

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