2-Alkyl -thiones alkylation

Auto-association of A-4-thiazoline-2-thione and 4-alkyl derivatives has been deduced from infrared spectra of diluted solutions in carbon tetrachloride (58. 77). Results are interpretated (77) in terms of an equilibrium between monomer and cyclic dimer. The association constants are strongly dependent on the electronic and steric effects of the alkyl substituents in the 4- and 5-positions, respectively. This behavior is well shown if one compares the results for the unsubstituted compound (K - 1200 M" ,). 4-methyl-A-4-thiazoline-2-thione K = 2200 M ). and 5-methyl-4-r-butyl-A-4-thiazoline-2-thione K=120 M ) (58). 

Nucleophilic reactivity of the sulfur atom has received most attention. When neutral or very acidic medium is used, the nucleophilic reactivity occurs through the exocyclic sulfur atom. Kinetic studies (110) measure this nucleophilicity- towards methyl iodide for various 3-methyl-A-4-thiazoline-2-thiones. Rate constants are 200 times greater for these compounds than for the isomeric 2-(methylthio)thiazole. Thus 3-(2-pyridyl)-A-4-thiazoline-2-thione reacts at sulfur with methyl iodide (111). Methyl substitution on the ring doubles the rate constant. This high reactivity at sulfur means that, even when an amino (112, 113) or imino group (114) occupies the 5-position of the ring, alkylation takes place on sulfiu. For the same reason, 2-acetonyi derivatives are sometimes observed as by-products in the heterocyclization reaction of dithiocarba-mates with a-haloketones (115, 116). 

Curiously enough, bulky substituents on nitrogen increase this reactivity towards methyl iodide (119). This has been related to a steric decompression of the thiocarbonyl group in the transition state. Furthermore, knowledge of the ratio of conformers in the starting 4-alkyl-3-i-Pr-A-4-thiazoline-2-thiones and in the resulting 4-alkyl-3-i-Pr-2-methylthiothi-azolium iodides combined with a Winstein-Holness treatment of the kinetic data indicates that in the transition state, the thiocarbonyl bond is approximately 65% along the reaction coordinate from the initial state... 

The effect of an o>-phenyl group as a function of the alkyl chain length has been studied in 3-(through-space interaction has been evidenced on the reactivity of the thiocarbonyl group. 

The nucleophUic reactivity in neutral medium has been used extensively to prepare various thioethers of thiazole (122). In acidic medium, alkylation may be performed with alcohols (123, 124). An unexpected reaction encountered was the decarboxylation of 2-mercapto-4-methyl-5-thiazolecarboxyhc acid (60) when treated with butyl alcohol under acidic conditions (Scheme 27) (123). Reaction between A-4-thiazoline-2-thione... 

Under conditions, the reaction of tetra-o-acetyl-o-glucopyranosyl bromide with A-4-thiazoline-2-thione provides the glycosylamine (76) (N-alkylation) (Scheme 36) (163). However, treatment of 5-... 

The rearrangement discovered by Kolosova et al. probably involves such reactivit (159). This reaction provides a good preparative method for various 5-amino-methylthiazoles (Scheme 43). No mechanism is proposed in the report, and it is not easy to understand how the C-5 enamine-like position competes with the very nucleophilic thiocarbonyl group of the formed A-4-thiazoline-2-thione. An alternative mechanism could start with ethanol addition at C-2. leading to the A-4-thiazoline (90) (Scheme 44). In this intermediate, C-5 nucleophilic reactivity would be favored bv the true enaminic structure. After alkylation on C-5,... 

The most useful synthetic method involves the reaction of A-4-thiazoline-2-thione with the appropriate alkylating agent (see Section I.l.C). An example is given Scheme 54. 

Nucleophilic reactivity of exocyclic sulfur appears in acidic medium. 2-AryI thiazolyl sulfones are obtained from the corresponding sulfides by oxidation with HjO- in HOAc at 100°C (272). The same oxidation takes place with alkyl sulfides (203. 214, 273-275) and dithiazolylsulfides (129). However, the same reaction with 2-benzylthio derivatives gives benzylal-cohol and the related A-4-thiazoline-2-thione (169). 

The methylthio group is removed by treatment with zinc powder in HCl (276) to give the 2-unsubstituted thiazole. The action of aluminum-mercury amalgam in methanol on various thioethers is reported to yield the expected thiazole (108) when Rj is an alkyl group and the corresponding A-4-thiazoline-2-thione (109) when Rj PhCH - (Scheme 55) (169). 

Quantum chemistry methods allow the prediction of the ultraviolet transitions in good agreement with the experimental values in the case of thiazole and its three methyl derivatives (Table 1-18). A very weak absorption has been indicated at 269.5 nm that could correspond to an n- TT transition given by calculation at 281.5 nm (133). Ultraviolet absorption spectroscopy has been investigated in connection with steric interactions in the A-4-thiazoline-2-thione (74) series (181). It was earlier demonstrated by NMR technique that 4-alkyl-3 isopropyl-A-4-thiazoline-2-thiones exist in solution as equilibrium mixtures of two conformers (75 and 76), the relative populations of which vary with the size of R4 (182) for R4 = rBu the population of rotamer A is 100%, whereas for R4 = Me it is only 28%. Starting from the observed absorption wavelength for... 

Sulfur is reactive ia many forms. Mercaptides are alkylated to thioethers, and thioethers react further to give sulfonium salts, R2S" CH20S0 2-Suitable thiones also alkylate. Thioachdone (34) and thiourea (35) are examples the first gives the alkylmetcaptoacridine and the second gives the isothiourea. 

Mercapto derivatives of furan, thiophene, selenophene (77ACS(B)198) and pyrrole (72AJC985) all exist predominantly in the thiol form. 2-Mercaptobenzothiophene is also a thiol (70JCS(C)243i) whereas 2-mercaptoindole is mainly indoline-2-thione (89) (69CPB550). The finely balanced nature of this system is indicated by the fact that a 3-aryl, but not a 3-alkyl, substituent will stabilize the 2-thiol form, whereas for 3-aryl-fV-methyl derivatives the 2-thione tautomer is preferred (71CC836). 

Pyrrolethiols, readily obtained from the corresponding thiocyanates by reduction or treatment with alkali, rapidly oxidize to the corresponding disulfides. They are converted into thioethers by reaction with alkyl halides in the presence of base. Both furan- and thiophene-thiols exist predominantly as such rather than in tautomeric thione forms. 

Sulfur may also be alkylated under appropriate conditions. On formation, the N-/3-chloroethylthiazolidine-2-thione (307) underwent spontaneous ring closure to the tetrahy-drothiazolo[2,3-6]thiazolylium chloride (308) (71CHE1534) and a similar reaction occurred in the imidazole series. 

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