Aldol reaction cyclohexenones from

Additions to Cyclohexenones. Intramolecular additions in cyclohexene systems also provide access to natural products. Thus the photocyclization of enone (27) affords the adduct (28) which is suggested as a route to the nortaxane or taxane skeleton. Intramolecular reaction of the enone (29) affords two products (30, 70%) and (31, 14%). The identity of the major products was determined by X-ray crystallography and is the result of hemiacetalisation of the original (2-f-2)-adduct (32). The minor product (31) is formed from the major by a yie TTo-Aldol reaction. ... 

I, 5-dicarbonyl compounds and their interesting and varied chemistry, e.g., the formation of cyclohexenones from aldol condensation of the products. As an extension of the de Mayo reaction (the photocycloaddition of enolated /i-diketones to double bonds) enol esters, enol ethers, vinylogous esters and amides, and dioxinone have been employed as the enone components. Some intermolecular examples have already been discussed in Section 1.6.1.4.2.1.6. (cf. Table 4, entries 2 and 3) and some intramolecular systems are collected in Table 5, entries 10,... 

A gold-catalysed 3 + 2-cycloaddition-hydrolytic Michael addition-retro-aldol reaction of propargyl esters tethered to cyclohexadienones gives tetrahydrofuranones, diox-atricycloundecenones, and furofurans (Scheme 112). The product cyclohexenones or cyclohexanones with a y-quaternary centre result from multiatom transpositions... 

The Robinson annulation involves two reactions occurring in tandem a Michael reaction followed by an aldol condensation (loss of water is normally expected in this reaction so the aldol product is typically dehydrated to give an a,P-unsaturated cyclohexenone product). The reaction of an enolate as a nucleophile attacking the beta carbon of methyl vinyl ketone as the electrophile (a Michael reaction) forms the first carbon-carbon bond in the Robinson annulation and results in a 1,5-dicarbonyl product. The methyl group from MVK serves as the nucleophile for the second part of the reaction when it finds a carbonyl electrophile six atoms away to undergo an intramolecular aldol reaction. After dehydration, an a,P-unsaturated cyclohexenone product is formed. Ultimately, two new carbon-carbon bonds are formed within the cyclohexenone moiety. 

Although problems of regiochemistry are inherent, the aldol condensation of diketones has found vide application. Typical examples are syntheses of cyclopentenones and cyclohexenones from 1,4- and 1,5-diketones, respectively. The concept is illustrated by a synthesis of jasmone 12 (Eq. (12)) [28] and of the homosteroid derivative 13, the latter arising under thermodynamic control in a Robinson annelation reaction (Eq. (13)) [29]. 

The first step of the Robinson annulation is simply a Michael reaction. An enamine or an enolate ion from a jS-keto ester or /3-diketone effects a conjugate addition to an a-,/3-unsaturated ketone, yielding a 1,5-diketone. But as we saw in Section 23.6,1,5-diketones undergo intramolecular aldol condensation to yield cyclohexenones when treated with base. Thus, the final product contains a six-membered ring, and an annulation has been accomplished. An example occurs during the commercial synthesis of the steroid hormone estrone (figure 23.9). 

The reaction itself is rather attractive and useful as a synthetic tool, because of its practical simplicity. Indeed, 1,5-dicarbonyl compounds can be readily prepared from olefin and 1,3-dicarbonyl compound in a one-pot reaction. Subsequent aldolization of the resulting 1,5-dicarbonyl compounds would furnish cyclohexenones. The reaction mechanism and stereochemistry of the de Mayo reaction has been comprehensively reviewed7), and the basic strategy of which has also been developed and extended. The following examples would demonstrate some applications and variations of the de Mayo reaction. 

A particularly important example is the Robinson annulation, a procedure which constructs a new six-membered ring from a ketone.83 84 The reaction sequence starts with conjugate addition of the enolate to methyl vinyl ketone or a similar enone. This is followed by cyclization involving an intramolecular aldol addition. Dehydration frequently occurs to give a cyclohexenone derivative. Scheme 2.10 shows some examples of Robinson annulation reactions. 

The third and fourth steps in the synthesis of Hagemann s ester from ethyl acetoacetate and formaldehyde (Problem 23.50) are an intramolecular aldol cyclization to yield a substituted cyclohexenone, and a decarboxylation reaction. Write both reactions, and show the products of each step. 

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