A-halo, reactivity

Synthesis Since a-halo-carbonyl compounds are very reactive electrophiles, we can use a short cut ... 

This reaction is of synthetic value in that a halo acids are reactive sub strates m nucleophilic substitution reactions... 

The most widely used method for the synthesis of thiazoles (see Chapter 4.19) is of this type and involves the reaction of a-halo compounds (Y = halogen in Scheme 2) with a reactive component containing an —C(=S)— structural entity. Reaction of the a-... 

Nucleophilic substitution by ammonia on a-halo acids (Section 19.16) The a-halo acids obtained by halogenation of carboxylic acids under conditions of the Hell-Volhard-Zelinsky reaction are reactive substrates in nucleophilic substitution processes. A standard method for the preparation of a-amino acids is displacement of halide from a-halo acids by nucleophilic substitution using excess aqueous ammonia. 

The organozinc compound 2 is less reactive than an organomagnesium compound the addition to an ester carbonyl group is much slower than the addition to an aldehyde or ketone. Nevertheless the addition of 2 to the carbonyl group of unreacted a-halo ester 1 is the most frequently observed side-reaction ... 

Because most carbenes are so reactive, it is often difficult to prove that they are actually present in a given reaction. The lifetime of formylcarbene was measured by transient absorption and transient grating spectroscopy to be 0.15-0.73 ns in dichloromethane. In many instances where a carbene is apparently produced by an a elimination or by disintegration of a double-bond compound, there is evidence that no free carbene is actually involved. The neutral term carbenoid is used where it is known that a free carbene is not present or in cases where there is doubt. a-Halo organometallic compounds (R2CXM) are often called carbenoids because they readily give a elimination reactions (e.g., see 12-37). ° ... 

The reaction of an a-halo sulfone with a base to give an alkene is called the Ramberg-Bdcklund reaction. The reaction is quite general for a-halo sulfones with an (x hydrogen, despite the unreactive nature of a-halo sulfones in normal 8 2 reactions (p. 437). Halogen reactivity is in the order I>Br>Cl. Phase-transfer catalysis has been used. In general, mixtures of cis and trans isomers are obtained, but usually the less stable cis isomer predominates. The mechanism involves formation of an episulfone, and then elimination of SO9. There is much evidence for... 

Alkylation of enamines requires relatively reactive alkylating agents for good results. Methyl iodide, allyl and benzyl halides, a-halo esters, a-halo ethers, and a-halo ketones are the most successful alkylating agents. The use of enamines for selective alkylation has largely been supplanted by the methods for kinetic enolate formation described in Section 1.2. 

Another transformation of BENA is observed in the reactions of Nu having a lower nucleophilicity toward silicon (path (b)). This reaction produces the cation B as the key intermediate, which is more reactive than nitrosoalkene (511). As a result, two by-products, viz., a-siloxy oxime (504) and a-halo oxime (514), are generated along with the target salt (512). ... 

Dehalogenation.1 DMBI effects dehalogenation of a-halo carbonyl compounds in a variety of ethereal solvents with formation of DMBI+X in generally high yield. The order of relative reactivity is Br > Cl > F (halides) and primary > secondary > tertiary (for the a-substituted position). In combination with HO Ac (1 equiv.) the reagent also reduces acyl chlorides to aldehydes (70-90% yield). 

Another feature of carbenoid-type reactivity is the cyclopropanation (reaction c). Again, this reaction does not only take place in vinylidene but also in alkyl carbenoids . On the other hand, the intramolecular shift of a /3-aryl, cyclopropyl or hydrogen substituent, known as the Fritsch-Buttenberg-Wiechell rearrangement, is a typical reaction of a-lithiated vinyl halides (reaction d) . A particular carbenoid-like reaction occurring in a-halo-a-lithiocyclopropanes is the formation of allenes and simultaneous liberation of the corresponding lithium halide (equation 3). ... 

Radical cyclization is an effective approach to the synthesis of isoquinolines (Scheme 8). In some cases these offer an alternative to the palladium-catalyzed reactions with aryl halide intermediates <99EJOC1925, 99TL1125>. For example, the radical cyclization of the iodide 37 onto the vinylsulfide moiety was followed by a cascade cyclization to form the benzo[n]quinolizidine system <99TL1149>. In some cases the radical cyclization can take place without the need for a halo intermediate. The reactive intermediate of 38 was formed on the nitrogen as an amidyl radical, which underwent tandem cyclizations to the lycorane system <99TL2125, 99SL441>. 

For a review of a-halo ketones, including reactivity, see Verh6 De Kimpc, in Patai Rappoport, Ref. 88. pt. 1, pp. 813-931. This review has been reprinted, and new material added, in De Kimpe Verhg The Chemistry of a-Haloketones, a-Haloaldehydes, and a-Haloimines, Wiley New York, 1988, pp. 225-368. 

A recent procedure which utilizes the pivaloyl derivative of o-bromoaniline as one of the fragments is also a type llac approach. The compound is converted to its dilithio derivative at -78 °C. Reaction with a-halo ketones then affords indole hydrates by N-alkylation and reaction of the o-lithiated position with the carbonyl group dehydration subsequently yields indoles (equation 108) (81TL1475). The (V-trifluoroacetyl and N-t-butoxycarbonyl derivatives of o-bromoaniline exhibit similar reactivity. 

Direct alkylation of indoles under neutral conditions has been observed for especially reactive alkyl halides. 3-Methylbutenyl bromide gives the 3-substituted indole in acetic acid-sodium acetate at room temperature (equation 170) (69TL2485). At higher temperature in acidic solution, 1,2-dimethylindole undergoes bisallylation (equation 171) (67CJC2628). a-Halo ketones including bromoacetone, 3-bromo-2-butanone and 2-chlorocyclohexanone can alkylate 2-substituted indoles in aqueous acetic acid, but the acidic conditions used in these reactions would probably be destructive of indole itself (72JOC2010). 

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