Absolute configuration planar intermediates

The absolute configuration of the cycloaddition product obtained by the reaction of ketones with activated dienes catalyzed by (S)-t-Bu-BOX-Cu(II) (S)-21b points also to an intermediate in which the geometry around the central copper atom is square-planar similar to 26 above, and that the diene approaches the carbonyl functionality in an endo fashion. 

The absolute configuration of products obtained in the highly stereoselective cycloaddition reactions with inverse electron-demand catalyzed by the t-Bu-BOX-Cu(II) complex can also be accounted for by a square-planar geometry at the cop-per(II) center. A square-planar intermediate is supported by the X-ray structure of the hydrolyzed enone bound to the chiral BOX-copper(II) catalyst, shown as 29b in Scheme 4.24. 

It would usually be assumed that abstraction/recombination reactions such as those illustrated in this section would proceed with racemization at the reacting centers. It has been reported22, however, that photocyclization of amide 1 proceeds with complete retention of absolute configuration. Racemization at the site of abstraction requires orbital rehybridization, passing through a planar intermediate. In this case rehybridization appears to be markedly slowed. This may be an electronic effect due to the heteroatom substituent on the intermediate radical, or simply a steric effect. The structure of product 2 was established by X-ray crystallographic analysis. 

It is obvious that much further work is needed to unravel all the mysteries of enone rearrangements. Not the least of the problems to be explained is the retention of absolute configuration about C-9 in the rearrangement of 35. The shift of C-l from C-9 to C-10 and the shift of C-9 from C-I to C-4 must occur almost synchronously, and the existence as discrete intermediates of either biradical or charge-separated species with a planar C-9 seems unlikely. 

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