Aldehydes alkyl enol ether derivatives

Unstabilized enolates react with allylic carbonates in the presence of metalacyclic iridium-phosphoramidite catalysts. Although ketones and aldehydes have not yet been used directly as pronucleophiles with this catalyst system, silyl enol ethers [80] and enamines [81] react with linear allylic carbonates to form, after workup, p-branched, y-8 unsaturated ketones (Scheme 13). Both methods form products in high yield, branched selectivity, and enantioselectivity for a range of cinnamyl and alkyl-substituted allylic carbonates. However, the silyl enol ethers derived from aliphatic ketones reacted in lower yields than enamines derived from the same ketones. 

Phenylthioalkylation of silyl enol ethers. Silyl enol ethers of ketones, aldehydes, esters, and lactones can be alkylated regiospecifically by a -chloroalkyl phenyl sulfides in fhe presence of a Lewis acid. Zinc bromide and titanium(IV) chloride are the most effective catalysts. The former is more satisfactory for enol ethers derived from esters and lactongs. ZnBr2 and TiCL are about equally satisfactory for enol ethers of ketones. The combination of TiCL and Ti(0-f-Pr)4 is more satisfactory for enol ethers of aldehydes. Since the products can be desulfurized by Raney nickel, this reaction also provides a method for alkylation of carbonyl compounds. Of more interest, sulfoxide elimination provides a useful route to a,B-unsaturated carbonyl compounds. 

Silyl enol ethers are other ketone or aldehyde enolate equivalents and react with allyl carbonate to give allyl ketones or aldehydes 13,300. The transme-tallation of the 7r-allylpalladium methoxide, formed from allyl alkyl carbonate, with the silyl enol ether 464 forms the palladium enolate 465, which undergoes reductive elimination to afford the allyl ketone or aldehyde 466. For this reaction, neither fluoride anion nor a Lewis acid is necessary for the activation of silyl enol ethers. The reaction also proceed.s with metallic Pd supported on silica by a special method[301j. The ketene silyl acetal 467 derived from esters or lactones also reacts with allyl carbonates, affording allylated esters or lactones by using dppe as a ligand[302]... 

Treatment of aldehydes or ketones with acceptor-substituted carbene complexes leads to formation of enol ethers [1271-1274], oxiranes [1048], or 1,3-dioxolanes [989,1275] by O-alkylation of the carbonyl compound. Carboxylic acid derivatives... 

Aldol and Related Condensations As an elegant extension of the PTC-alkylation reaction, quaternary ammonium catalysts have been efficiently utilized in asymmetric aldol (Scheme 11.17a)" and nitroaldol reactions (Scheme ll.lTb) for the constmction of optically active p-hydroxy-a-amino acids. In most cases, Mukaiyama-aldol-type reactions were performed, in which the coupling of sUyl enol ethers with aldehydes was catalyzed by chiral ammonium fluoride salts, thus avoiding the need of additional bases, and allowing the reaction to be performed under homogeneous conditions. " It is important to note that salts derived from cinchona alkaloids provided preferentially iyw-diastereomers, while Maruoka s catalysts afforded awh-diastereomers. 

Asymmetric alkylation of aldehydes is possible via enamines or azaenolates of imine derivatives (see Section D. 1.1.1.4.). Alkylation is also possible via enol ethers or esters (see Section 1.1.1.3.1.2.), although the use of these methods for asymmetric synthesis has not yet been explored. 

Ethyl a-(bromomethyl)acrylate has proved to be an excellent reagent for conversion of aldehydes and ketones, both acyclic and cyclic, into the corresponding a-methylene-y-butyrolactone derivatives4"9 in a Re-formatsky type reaction. The yield was excellent in the case of several spiro a-methylene-y-butyrolactones.10 Synthetic a-methylene-y-butyrolactone derivatives have been shown to possess antitumor activity.5 6,7 1112 Ethyl a-(bromomethyl)acrylate has also proven of value in the synthesis of alkylated products of enol ethers of cyclohexane-1,3-dione.13... 

It would be a fair summary of the present situation to say that lithium enolates of ketones or esters are now usually preferred to aza-enolates for nucleophilic alkylation, but that lithium derivatives of cyclohexyl or /-butyl imines are preferred for the nucleophilic alkylation of aldehydes. We shall treat lithium enolates later, along with the equally popular silyl enol ethers, but there is one more nitrogen derivative which should come first. 

The pinwheel shape of a f-butyl propionate derived silylketene acetal (see Section 2.4.2.1) was revealed by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Several different catalysts were reported to promote the aldol-type condensation of alkyl enol ethersand silyl enol ethers with aldehydes, acetals and various other electrophiles. In some cases the reaction proceeded with high simple stereoselection. The mechanism of the Lewis acid mediated additions to acetals (see Section 2.4.2.3) was investigated in detail, as well as the uncatalyzed aldol reaction of silyl enol ethers with aldehydes promoted by the hydrophobic effect (see Section 2.4.2.1). 

Applications Based on Deprotonation of Selenoketals R Se CHB — alkyl) and Seleno-orthoesters. Deprotonation, usually with KDA, of selenoketals (PhSe)2CHR (R = alkyl) gives carbanions that react efficiently with common electrophiles [primary alkyP - and benzyl halides, aldehydes, ketones, and (for R = alkyl or H) epoxides ]. A few of the resulting selenoketals have been hydrolysed under very mild conditions. Carbanions derived from selenoketals undergo intramolecular reactions [e.g. (49)] when appropriately substituted, and can be used in the synthesis of silyl enol ethers, e.g. (50). ... 

Some interesting developments have been reported in the area of stereoselective a-substituted jS-hydroxy-ester synthesis (see also ref. 30). Masamune s group has described an alternative preparation of the E-vinyloxyborane (102) which condenses with aldehydes to give erythro-esters (103) of 97% stereochemical purity. By contrast, the Z-dicyclopentylboron analogue of (102) leads exclusively to threo-(103). The -enol ether (104) also reacts with aldehydes in the presence of TiCU to give threo-isomcrs of (103) unfortunately the Z-isomer of (104) reacts with little stereoselectivity, An alternative, completely selective, route to threo-(103) is by mono-alkylation of dianions derived from j8-hydroxy-esters. This latter method appears to have considerable potential in general synthesis. 

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