Alcohols synthesis from oxiranes

The remarkable stereospecificity of TBHP-transition metal epoxidations of allylic alcohols has been exploited by Sharpless group for the synthesis of chiral oxiranes from prochiral allylic alcohols (Scheme 76) (81JA464) and for diastereoselective oxirane synthesis from chiral allylic alcohols (Scheme 77) (81JA6237). It has been suggested that this latter reaction may enable the preparation of chiral compounds of complete enantiomeric purity cf. Scheme 78) ... 

Alcohols with a nucleofuge leaving group in the r-position can be cyclized to give oxetanes. Thus the cyclodehydrohalogenation of halo alcohols occurs in an analogous way to the oxirane synthesis from y -halogenated alcohols (see p 20). Oxetanes can be prepared from 1,3-diols via monoarene sulfonates ... 

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. 

An elegant de novo total asymmetric synthesis of (-l-)-DNJ, based on the RCM approach, was proposed by Poisson (Scheme 38). It was initiated from oxirane 193 (ee>99%), obtained by the Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation of alcohol 192 with subsequent Payne rearrangement. 

A 6-endo cyclization by a y-epoxy alcohol can be accomplished through the presence of an appropriately disposed electron-withdrawing group, as found in the total synthesis of (+)-phonomactin. Treatment of the hydroxy-epoxy ketone 30 (R = H) with HC1 afforded the bicyclic compound 31, containing a pyran-4-one ring, in which nucleophilic attack of the y-OH group occurred at the oxirane carbon distal from the unfavorable electronic effect of the carbonyl group (Scheme 8.7) [20a]. 

O-Alkylation of 4-hydroxy-3-morpholino-l,2,5-thiadiazole 132 has been achieved with the chiral cyclic chloro-methyl sulfite 133 which subsequently suffers ring opening on treatment with simple alcohols <2001RCB436> or alkylamines <2002RJ0213> to afford the timolol analogues 134 with very little racemization (Scheme 20). This indicated an almost exclusive attack of the oxy anion on the exocyclic carbon atom and is a significant improvement on the previous oxirane method, which suffers from racemization. An alternative biocatalytic asymmetric synthesis of (A)- and (R)-timolol has also appeared <2004S1625>. 

Although alcohols are oxidized by tetra-n-butylammonium persulphate when the reaction is conducted in dichloromethane, tetrahydropyranyl ethers have been produced (>90%) when attempts to oxidize the alcohol are conducted in tetrahydro-pyran (see Chapter 10) [ 19], Tetrahydrofuranyl ethers have been prepared by an analogous method [20,21 ]. Base-mediated elimination of halo acids from P-halo alcohols under phase-transfer catalysed conditions produce oxiranes in high yield (70-85%). The reaction has particular use in the synthesis of epihalohydrins from p,y-dihalo alcohols [22],... 

Chiral alkenyl and cycloalkenyl oxiranes are valuable intermediates in organic synthesis [38]. Their asymmetric synthesis has been accomplished by several methods, including the epoxidation of allyl alcohols in combination with an oxidation and olefination [39a], the epoxidation of dienes [39b,c], the chloroallylation of aldehydes in combination with a 1,2-elimination [39f-h], and the reaction of S-ylides with aldehydes [39i]. Although these methods are efficient for the synthesis of alkenyl oxiranes, they are not well suited for cycloalkenyl oxiranes of the 56 type (Scheme 1.3.21). Therefore we had developed an interest in the asymmetric synthesis of the cycloalkenyl oxiranes 56 from the sulfonimidoyl-substituted homoallyl alcohols 7. It was speculated that the allylic sulfoximine group of 7 could be stereoselectively replaced by a Cl atom with formation of corresponding chlorohydrins 55 which upon base treatment should give the cycloalkenyl oxiranes 56. The feasibility of a Cl substitution of the sulfoximine group had been shown previously in the case of S-alkyl sulfoximines [40]. 

In a new method of ring enlargement of oxiranes to oxetanes, the intramolecular Williamson reaction is the essential last step. Reaction of an oxirane with selenomethyl-lithium reagents, followed by bromination, gives y-bromo alcohols, which can be cyclized by base to oxetanes. Since the oxiranes can be prepared readily from ketones and the selenomethyllithium reagent, this is also a synthesis of oxetanes from ketones (80TL585). 

F. A. J. Meskens, Methods for the Preparation of Acetals from Alcohols or Oxiranes and Carbonyl ( (impounds, Synthesis 1981, 501. 

Iodocyclization.1 This reagent converts various unsaturated alcohols into ethers and unsaturated carboxylic acids into lactones. It is particularly useful for synthesis of 2-(l-iodomethyl)oxiranes from allylic alcohols and of 2-(l-iodomethyl)oxetanes from homoallylic alcohols. 

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