Alcohols, allylic with aziridines reaction

The metal catalyst is not absolutely required for the aziridination reaction, and other positive nitrogen sources may also be used. After some years of optimization of the reactions of alkenes with positive nitrogen sources in the presence of bromine equivalents, Sharpless et al. reported the utility of chloramine-T in alkene aziridinations [24]. Electron-rich or electron-neutral alkenes react with the anhydrous chloramines and phenyltrimethylammonium tribromide in acetonitrile at ambient temperature, with allylic alcohols being particularly good substrates for the reaction (Schemes 4.18 and 4.19). 

The asymmetric oxidation of organic compounds, especially the epoxidation, dihydroxylation, aminohydroxylation, aziridination, and related reactions have been extensively studied and found widespread applications in the asymmetric synthesis of many important compounds. Like many other asymmetric reactions discussed in other chapters of this book, oxidation systems have been developed and extended steadily over the years in order to attain high stereoselectivity. This chapter on oxidation is organized into several key topics. The first section covers the formation of epoxides from allylic alcohols or their derivatives and the corresponding ring-opening reactions of the thus formed 2,3-epoxy alcohols. The second part deals with dihydroxylation reactions, which can provide diols from olefins. The third section delineates the recently discovered aminohydroxylation of olefins. The fourth topic involves the oxidation of unfunc-tionalized olefins. The chapter ends with a discussion of the oxidation of eno-lates and asymmetric aziridination reactions. 

Asymmetric epoxidation, dihydroxylation, aminohydroxylation, and aziridination reactions have been reviewed.62 The use of the Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation method for the desymmetrization of mesa compounds has been reviewed.63 The conformational flexibility of nine-membered ring allylic alcohols results in transepoxide stereochemistry from syn epoxidation using VO(acac)2-hydroperoxide systems in which the hydroxyl group still controls the facial stereoselectivity.64 The stereoselectivity of side-chain epoxidation of a series of 22-hydroxy-A23-sterols with C(19) side-chains incorporating allylic alcohols has been investigated, using m-CPBA or /-BuOOH in the presence of VO(acac)2 or Mo(CO)6-65 The erythro-threo distributions of the products were determined and the effect of substituents on the three positions of the double bond (gem to the OH or cis or trans at the remote carbon) partially rationalized by molecular modelling. 

The commonest of these for oxirane opening are amines and azide ion [amide ions promote isomerization to allylic alcohols (Section 5.05.3.2.2)]. Reaction with azide can be used in a sequence for converting oxiranes into aziridines (Scheme 49) and this has been employed in the synthesis of the heteroannulenes (57) and (58) (80CB3127, 79AG(E)962). 

The (3-elimination of epoxides to allylic alcohols on treatment with strong base is a well studied reaction [la]. Metalated epoxides can also rearrange to allylic alcohols via (3-C-H insertion, but this is not a synthetically useful process since it is usually accompanied by competing a-C-H insertion, resulting in ketone enolates. In contrast, aziridine 277 gave allylic amine 279 on treatment with s-BuLi/(-)-spar-teine (Scheme 5.71) [97]. By analogy with what is known about reactions of epoxides with organolithiums, this presumably proceeds via the a-metalated aziridine 278 [101]. 

The stereochemistry of the first step was ascertained by an X-ray analysis [8] of an isolated oxazaphospholidine 3 (R = Ph). The overall sequence from oxi-rane to aziridine takes place with an excellent retention of chiral integrity. As the stereochemistry of the oxirane esters is determined by the chiral inductor during the Sharpless epoxidation, both enantiomers of aziridine esters can be readily obtained by choosing the desired antipodal tartrate inductor during the epoxidation reaction. It is relevant to note that the required starting allylic alcohols are conveniently prepared by chain elongation of propargyl alcohol as a C3 synthon followed by an appropriate reduction of the triple bond, e. g., with lithium aluminum hydride [6b]. 

Stereoselective addition of allyl metal reagents to various functionalities is an important reaction in organic synthesis [32, 33]. The allylation of epoxides and aziridines with allyltin reagent is catalyzed by Lewis acids. Even though many Lewis acids have been reported to catalyze this reaction, Bi(OTf)3 is distinct because it avoids the formation of byproducts and is also environmentally more compatible. It catalyzes the reaction of aryl epoxides with tetraallyltin to afford the corresponding homoallyllic alcohol [34]. 

The nitrogen heterocycles, aziridines, can be made by displacement of an alcohol by an amine after activation. In their synthesis of the antitumour and antibiotic compound 30, whose active region is the aziridine, J. P. Michael and group opened the cyclic sulfite 28 with azide ion. Reaction occurred at the allylic position and with inversion. Activation of the alcohol as a mesylate gave 29 and reduction of the azide to an amine was followed by base-catalysed cyclisation, again with inversion.4... 

Although the reaction in Scheme 10 is a highly efficient procedure, a two-step process was required to prepare aziridines from olefins. Two more convenient methods for the one-step aziridination using CT were discovered by the authors in 1998, one of which involves the iodine-catalyzed aziridination of unfunctionalyzed olefins with CT trihydrate [7b] (Scheme 11). The bromine-catalyzed aziridination of unfunctionalyzed olefins and allylic alcohols with anhydrous CT was reported at the same time [7c], though in this case phenyltrimethylammonium tribromide (PTAB), and not Br2, was used as a catalyst (Scheme 12). These two reactions are applicable to a wide range of olefins, and are considered to proceed by almost the same pathway. 

Amino alcohols. By decomposition of allylic azidoformates to produce bicyclic oxazolidinone substrates for ring opening reactions, a stereoselective entry into jyn-1,2-amino alcohols is delineated. Thus, after treatment of the aziridines with organocopper species, trani-4,5-disubstituted oxazolidin-2-ones (14 examples, 55-91%) are obtained. 

Elimination. Sometimes zinc dust alone is inadequate for achieving organic reactions. Surface modification can have dramatic effects. The Zn-Cu couple is useful for the synthesis of chiral allylic alcohols from epoxy tosylates and of ally-lamines from 2-(bromomethyl)aziridines (with sonication). 

Carbon-Oxygen Bond Formation. CAN is an efficient reagent for the conversion of epoxides into /3-nitrato alcohols. 1,2-cA-Diols can be prepared from alkenes by reaction with CAN/I2 followed by hydrolysis with KOH. Of particular interest is the high-yield synthesis of various a-hydroxy ketones and a-amino ketones from oxiranes and aziridines, respectively. The reactions are operated under mild conditions with the use of NBS and a catalytic amount of CAN as the reagents (eq 25). In another case, N-(silylmethyl)amides can be converted to A-(methoxymethyl)amides by CAN in methanol (eq 26). This chemistry has found application in the removal of electroauxiliaries from peptide substrates. Other CAN-mediated C-0 bondforming reactions include the oxidative rearrangement of aryl cyclobutanes and oxetanes, the conversion of allylic and tertiary benzylic alcohols into their corresponding ethers, and the alkoxylation of cephem sulfoxides at the position a to the ester moiety. 

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