Aldol condensation related reactions

In contrast to the "classical solution" we have just discussed, we will now consider the aldol condensation -one of the most important carbon-carbon bond formation reactions [3], in both the laboratory and Nature l - as an example of the "contemporary solution" to the problem of acyclic stereoselection. As a reversible reaction, the design of highly stereoselective aldol and related reactions demands that all the stereochemical aspects involved in the C-C bond formation are kinetically controlled. 

Trichlorotitanium enolates are directly prepared from a ketone, TiCU, and a tertiary amine [122,123] and undergo aldol reactions with aldehydes [124-129], ketones [129], and imines [130,131], Intramolecular condensation with esters is also known [132-137], Although these reactions, based on a titanium enolate [16], which often results in high diastereoselectivity in aldol and related reactions [122], will not be discussed in detail in this article, the success of the alkylation of this titanium enolate with SNl-active electrophiles should be discussed owing to the high Lewis acidity of the metal center [123], Equation (37) shows stereoselective alkylation with an orthoacetate, which is usually inert to alkali metal enolates [138], Aminoalkylation of trichlorotitanium enolates with (a-chloroalkyl)amine has been performed analogously [139,140],... 

Mukaiyama aldol and related reactions. In the condensation with this catalyst to... 

Volume 1 of a series of texts on carbon-carbon bond formation has been advertiseda section deals, for example, with the aldol and related reactions. The importance of the aldol reaction has already been illustrated in the above-mentioned syntheses of polyethers applications of boron enolates in stereoselective aldol condensations have been discussed and exemplified by Evans et al. ... 

For Aldol and Related Reactions. The TMSI/(TMS)2NH combination can be used for the synthesis of polycyclic cyclobutane derivatives by tandem intramolecular Michael-aldol reaction. TMSI-induced diastereoselective synthesis of tetrahy-dropyranones by a tandem Knoevenagel-Michael reaction, has also been developed. More recently, the facile synthesis of a,a bis(substituted benzylidene)cycloalkanones has been reported, using TMSI (in situ generated) mediated cross-aldol condensations (eq 53). ... 

Whereas the examples above used substrate control for stereoselective transannular aldol or related reactions, reagent control has also been reported for the transannular aldol reactions. One example is synthesis of the musk ordorants (R)-muscone and (R,Z)-5-muscenone by Knopff and co-workers. It involved enantioselective formation of 73 by the transannular aldol condensation of the symmetrical macrocyclic 1,5-diketone 72 using sodium ephedrate for desymmetrization (Scheme 20.19). The reaction was assumed to proceed by a reversible transannular aldol reaction followed by an enantioselective dehydration reaction. 

With simpler, less stabilized, enols and enolates, the same selectivity issues arise in this addition process as we saw for aldol and related reactions—these reactions are related to the aldols, but a double bond simply intervenes as an electron relay. Consider the example shown in Figure 17.68. We have chosen a nucleophile that can enolize readily and an a,p-unsaturated aldehyde that can t enolize. The enal is more electrophilic than the ketone, so self-condensation of the ketone is not... 

The azlactones of a-benzoylaminocinnamic acids have traditionally been prepared by the action of hippuric acid (1, Ri = Ph) and acetic anhydride upon aromatic aldehydes, usually in the presence of sodium acetate. The formation of the oxazolone (2) in Erlenmeyer-Plochl synthesis is supported by good evidence. The method is a way to important intermediate products used in the synthesis of a-amino acids, peptides and related compounds. The aldol condensation reaction of azlactones (2) with carbonyl compounds is often followed by hydrolysis to provide unsaturated a-acylamino acid (4). Reduction yields the corresponding amino acid (6), while drastic hydrolysis gives the a-0X0 acid (5). ... 

Pyrimidinopyrazines related to folic acid have been investigated in some detail for their antimeta-bolic and antineoplastic activities. A related compound, which lacks one nitrogen atom, has been described as an antiproliferative agent, indicating it too has an effect on cell replication. Aldol condensation of the benzaldehyde 99 with ethyl acetoacetate gives the cinnamate 100. This is then reduced catalytically to the acetoacetate 101. Reaction of that keto ester with 2,4,6- triami-nopyrimidine gives the product 102 which is subsequently chlorinated (103) and subjected to hydrogenolysls. There is thus formed piritrexim (104) [17]. 

Besides the domino Michael/SN processes, domino Michael/Knoevenagel reactions have also been used. Thus, Obrecht, Filippone and Santeusanio employed this type of process for the assembly of highly substituted thiophenes [102] and pyrroles [103]. Marinelli and colleagues have reported on the synthesis of various 2,4-disubstituted quinolines [104] and [l,8]naphthyridines [105] by means of a domino Michael addition/imine cyclization. Related di- and tetrahydroquinolines were prepared by a domino Michael addition/aldol condensation described by the Hamada group [106]. A recent example of a domino Michael/aldol condensation process has been reported by Brase and coworkers [107], by which substituted tetrahydroxan-thenes 2-186 were prepared from salicylic aldehydes 2-184 and cycloenones 2-185 (Scheme 2.43). 

Kambe and Yasuda19 discovered the effectiveness of the fluoride as a Henry reaction catalyst. Since then, the use of diverse fluorides is a common method to catalyze nitro aldol condensations, since they provide mild conditions that are particularly convenient for sensitive products as carbohydrates. The most common fluorides are potassium fluoride20 and tetrabutyl ammonium fluoride.21 A recent example relates to the TBAF catalyzed addition of nitroethanol to the D-glucose derivative 18, to give nitro sugars 19 (Scheme 8).22... 

R3 R2 and R2 Ri gauche interactions however, for the same set of substituents, an increase in the steric requirements of either Rj or R3 will influence only one set of vicinal steric interactions (Rj R2 or R3 R2). Some support for these conclusions has been cited (eqs. [6] and [7]). These qualitative arguments may also be relevant to the observed populations of hydrogen- and nonhydrogen-bonded populations of the aldol adducts as well (see Table 1, entries K, L). Unfortunately, little detailed information exists on the solution geometries of these metal chelates. Furthermore, in many studies it is impossible to ascertain whether the aldol condensations between metal enolates and aldehydes were carried out under kinetic or thermodynamic conditions. Consequently, the importance of metal structure and enolate geometry in the definition of product stereochemistry remains ill defined. This is particularly true in the numerous studies reported on the Reformatsky reaction (20) and related variants (21). 

Related reactions, catalyzed by tetra-n-butylammonium fluoride (TBAF), have been reported (74). Under the influence of 5 to 10 mol % of TBAF (THF, -78°C), enolsilane 75 afforded the erythro and threo adducts 76E and 76T whose ratios were time dependent (5 min, E T =1 2 10.5 hr, E T =1 3) (74). The reaction of enolsilane 77 at various temperatures has also been reported (2). At -78 C (1 hr) complete kinetic erythro diastereoselection was observed under the conditions reported by Noyori (74), but at higher temperatures product equilibration was noted (2). It is significant that the kinetic aldol condensation of this tetraalkylammonium enolate exhibits complete erythro selection as noted for the analogous lithium derivative. 

An exceptionally mild procedure for the cross-condensation of aldimines and enolsilanes has been described (eq. [67]) (80). This titanium tetrachloride-mediated reaction is predicated on the previous analogies provided by Mukaiyama for related aldol condensations (73a). Depending on aldimine structure and reaction time, either -lactams or their penultimate amino esters may be isolated from the reaction. The authors postulate that these reactions are proceeding via titanium enolates derived from ligand exchange by... 

Usually, the formation of a new chiral centre involves the conversion of a prochiral sp carbon atom into one with sp hybridisation, the methods most generally used being the aldol and related condensations, pericyclic reactions (especially the Diels-Alder reaction), epoxidation, cyclopropanation and additions to double bonds (hydrogenation and hydroboration). Another possibility is the conversion of a prochiral sp carbon atom into a chiral centre, as for instance in the a-substitution (alkylation, halogenation, etc.) of a ketone. 

Diastereoselective aldol condensations and related reactions. The geometry of enolates... 

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. 

The use of classical condensation reactions is important. Thus, the Dieckmann reaction (equation 38) and the Thorpe-Ziegler cyclization (equation 39) have been used for almost a century for the preparation of a wide range of monocyclic and benzo-fused heterocycles. The aldol condensation and related reactions have also been fairly widely exploited, especially for the synthesis of 4-quinolones (the Camps reaction, e.g. equation 40), and various extensions of this general approach are described in the monograph chapters. 

ZC91). A related reaction, with even more curious consequence, is shown in equation (33) (73CJC839). However, aldol condensation of thiochromanones with aldehydes in the presence of weak bases proceeds exactly as for carbocyclic systems (79MI22501). 

In a reaction which is mechanistically related to the Skraup reaction an a,/ -unsaturated carbonyl compound, generated by way of an acid-catalysed aldol condensation, reacts with a primary aromatic amine in the presence of acid to yield a quinoline derivative (Doebner-Miller reaction). For example, when aniline is heated with paraldehyde (which depolymerises to acetaldehyde during the reaction) in the presence of hydrochloric acid the final product is 2-methyl-quinoline (101) (quinaldine, Expt 8.40). Retrosynthetic analysis for the 1,2-dihydroquinoline reveals crotonaldedhyde as the unsaturated carbonyl component which is in turn formed from acetaldehyde (see Section 5.18.2, p. 799). 

Thus, IQ may arise from creatinine, 2-methylpyridine and formaldehyde or a related Schiff base, formed from glycine through Strecker degradation. The initial step may be a Mannich reaction or an aldol condensation. By analogy MelQ may arise from creatinine, alanine and 2-methylpyridine, and MelQx from creatinine, glycine and 2,5-dimethylpyrazine according to the scheme in Figure 1. 

The pioneer work in this field was carried out on polystyrene-supported acid catalysts [161]. Thereafter, several works on the use of sulfonic, strong acidic cation exchangers as acid catalysts were reported for alkylation, hydration, etherification, esterification, cleavage of ether bonds, dehydration, and aldol condensation [162,168-171], Besides, industrial applications of these materials were evaluated with reactions related to the chemistry of alkenes, that is, alkylation, isomerization, oligomerization, and acylation. [163,169], Also, Nation, an acid resin which has an acid strength equivalent to concentrated sulfuric acid, can be applied as an acid catalyst. It is used for the alkylation of aromatics with olefins in the liquid or gas phases and other reactions however, due to its low surface area, the Nation resin has relatively low catalytic activity in gas-phase reactions or liquid-phase processes where a nonpolar reactant or solvent is employed [166],... 

A large number of reactions have been presented in this chapter. However, all of these reactions involve an enolate ion (or a related species) acting as a nucleophile (see Table 20.2). This nucleophile reacts with one of the electrophiles discussed in Chapters 8, 18, and 19 (see Table 20.3). The nucleophile can bond to the electrophilic carbon of an alkyl halide (or sulfonate ester) in an SN2 reaction, to the electrophilic carbonyl carbon of an aldehyde or ketone in an addition reaction (an aldol condensation), to the electrophilic carbonyl carbon of an ester in an addition reaction (an ester condensation) or to the electrophilic /3-carbon of an a,/3-unsaturated compound in a conjugate addition (Michael reaction). These possibilities are summarized in the following equations ... 

The epoxide can be prepared from an alkene and the amide from a carboxylic acid. The new target. 2-ethyl-2-hexenoic acid, has a CC double bond in conjugation with the carbonyl group of the carboxylic acid. Whenever a compound with an ,/3-unsaturated carbonyl group is encountered, it is worthwhile to consider the possibility of using an aldol condensation (see Section 20.5) or a related reaction to prepare it. To examine this possibility, the aldehyde that will provide the carboxylic acid upon oxidation is disconnected at the double bond. Because both fragments produced by this disconnection are the same, it is apparent that an aldol condensation of butanal can be employed to prepare this compound. The synthesis was accomplished as shown in Figure 23.5. 

Condensation reactions of the aldol type play an important part in heterocyclic chemistry. There are a large number of condensation reactions that are closely related to the aldol condensation. Each of these reactions has its own name Claisen, Dieckmann, Doebner, Knoevenagel, Perkin, to mention a few, but the chemistry is essentially the same as that of the aldol condensation. 

Moving from rearrangements, condensation reactions were also presented. Condensation reactions occur when two reactive species condense with one another forming a new compound. The first was the aldol condensation (Scheme 8.9). Later, a more complex application of the aldol condensation was presented in the form of the Robinson annula-tion (Scheme 8.10). For both of these reactions, the underlying lessons relate to the ability to induce reactions and incorporate substitutions at carbon atoms adjacent to carbonyl groups. Similar reactivities of such carbon atoms can be utilized for alkylation (SN2) and acylation (addition-elimination) reactions as illustrated in Scheme 8.11. 

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