Amides Birch reduction

Under the conditions of the Birch reduction, IV-Boc amides such as 60 can be reductively alkylated in high yields, presumably via a dianion intermediate which is protonated by ammonia at C-5 leaving an enolate anion at C-2 <96JOC7664>. Quenching the reaction with alkyl halides or ammonium chloride then affords the 3-pyrrolines 61. 

At the outset of our studies of the reactivity of I and II, it was necessary to investigate claims that tertiary henzamides were inappropriate substrates for the Birch reduction. It had been reported that reduction of A,A-dimethylbenzamide with sodium in NH3 in the presence of tert-butyl alcohol gave benzaldehyde and a benzaldehyde-ammonia adduct. We formd that the competition between reduction of the amide group and the aromatic ring was strongly dependent on reaction variables, such as the alkali metal (type and quantity), the availability of a proton source more acidic than NH3, and reaction temperature. Reduction with potassium in NH3-THF solution at —78 °C in the presence of 1 equiv. of tert-butyl alcohol gave the cyclohexa-1,4-diene 2 in 92% isolated yield (Scheme 3). At the other extreme, reduction with lithium in NH3-THF at —33 °C in the absence of tert-butyl alcohol gave benzaldehyde and benzyl alcohol as major reaction products. ... 

Birch reduction of the chiral benzamide 5 generates the amide enolate 6 (Scheme 4). This enolate has been characterized by NMR spectroscopy and by an extensive examination of the effects of changes in alkali metal, solvent, reaction... 

A more traveled route to the absolute configuration represented by cyclohexa-1,4-diene 8 involves Birch reduction-alkylation of benzoxazepinone 9.2.5 heterocycle is best prepared by the base-induced cyclization of the amide obtained from 2-fiuorobenzoyl chloride and (5)-pyrrolidine-2-metha-nol. o The molecular shape of enolate 10 is such that the hydrogen at the stereogenic center provides some shielding of the a-face of the enolate double bond. Thus, alkylation occurs primarily at the 3-face of 10 to give 11 as the major diastereomer. The diastereoselectivity for alkylation with methyl iodide is only 85 15, but with more sterically demanding alkyl halides such as ethyl iodide, allyl bromide, 4-bromobut-1-ene etc., diastereoselectivities are greater than 98 2. 

The development of facial selective addition reactions of cyclohexa-1,4-dienes 7 and 14 has greatly extended the value of the asymmetric Birch reduction-alkylation. For example, amide directed hydrogenation of 15 with the Crabtree catalyst system occurs with outstanding facial selectivity iyw to the amide carbonyl group to give 16 (Scheme 5)."... 

The reluctance of tertiary amides to undergo hydrolysis, especially those produced in the Birch reduction-alkylation with a quaternary center next to the carbonyl group, has inspired the development of a variety of intramolecular transacylation reactions as illustrated by the cleavage of the SEM ether in 16... 

We were interested in applications of the high level of stereocontrol associated with the asymmetric Birch reduction-alkylation to problems in acyclic and heterocyclic synthesis. The pivotal disconnection of the six-membered ring is accomplished by utilization of the Baeyer-Villiger oxidation (Scheme 7). Treatment of cyclohexanones 25a and 25b with MCPBA gave caprolactone amides 26a and 26b with complete regiocon-trol. Acid-catalyzed transacylation gave the butyrolactone carboxylic acid 27 from 26a and the bis-lactone 28 from 26b cyclohexanones 31a and 31b afforded the diastereomeric lactones 29 and 30. ... 

Birch reduction of enantiomcrieally pure benzamides followed by alkylation of the amide enolate was used with remarkable success to obtain chiral cyclohexadiene derivatives22. In this case the chiral auxiliary was located in the benzamide moiety. 

The combined Birch reduction alkylation of chiral, enantiomerically pure aroyl amides of 2-pyrrolidinemethanol (prolinol) or 2-pyrrolidinecarboxylic acid (proline) gives chiral, non-racemic, 1,1-disubstituted 2,5-cyclohexadienes 1 or 2-cyclohexenes 2, respectively, in high diastereomeric ratios. These reactions are useful for the preparation of valuable chiral synthetic intermediates 3 25 29-31-36. 

The deep blue solutions formed by dissolving alkali metals in ammonia do not rapidly generate the amide unless a catalyst is added.9 However, a hydrogen acceptor will also initiate the reaction and this forms the basis of the important Birch reduction of aromatic compounds (equation 2).10... 

Stereoselective l.4-reduction oi the 1.3-butadiene system to olefin 57 lakes place tinder the conditions of the Birch reduction. Intramolecular protonation of the intermediate carbanion at the 18-position to give 57 occurs with high selectivity syn to the hydroxymethy-iene group Conversion into phosphoric acid derivative 58 and cleavage of the phosphoric acid amide group under (he conditions of the Bcnkeser reduction provides compound 5921 Fluonde ion causes the release of free p-amyrin (1) in a final step I Li, NH3(iyTllF (1/1.75), -78 C 93%. 

In preparation for the eventual removal of the undesired oxygen function at C-10 of 313 via a Birch reduction, the phenol 313 was phosphorylated with diethyl phosphorochloridate in the presence of triethylamine to give 314, which underwent stereoselective reduction with sodium borohydride with concomitant N-deacylation to deliver the amino alcohol 315. N-Methylation of 315 by the Eschweiler-Clarke protocol using formaldehyde and formic acid followed by ammonolysis of the ester group and acetylation of the C-2 hydroxyl function afforded 316. Dehydration of the amide moiety in 316 with phosphorus oxychloride and subsequent reaction of the resulting amino nitrile 317 with LiAlH4 furnished 318, which underwent reduction with sodium in liquid ammonia to provide unnatural (+)-galanthamine. 

A new approach to the synthesis of the Erythrina alkaloids involves (134) a Birch reduction of the amide (166) to 167, followed by cyclization, first to 168 with sulfuric acid in DMF, then to the ketolactam (169) with formic... 

The Birch reduction has been applied to electron-deficient pyrroles substituted with a chiral auxiliary at the C(2)-position <1999TL435>. Using either (—)-8-phenylmenthol or (- -)-/ra /-2-(ot-cumyl)cyclohexanol as auxiliaries, high levels of stereoselectivity were obtained. Pyrrole 911, prepared from the l/7-pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid 910 in 90% yield, was reduced under modified Birch conditions (Scheme 176). The best conditions involved lithium metal (3 equiv), liquid ammonia and THE at —78°C. The addition of A, A -bis(2-methoxyethyl)amine (10 equiv) helped to reduce side reactions caused by the lithium amide formed in the reaction <1998TL3075>. After 15 min, the Birch reductions were quenched with a range of electrophiles and in each case 3,4-dehydroproline derivatives 912 were formed in excellent yields and with good diastereoselectivities. 

SMP amide enolates have been employed by several research groups. Alkylation of SMP amide enolates gives a-substituted acids (eq 3). Excellent yields and stereoselectivities are observed in the Birch reduction of aromatic SMP amides with subsequent alkylation (eq 4). ... 

The great majority of applications of the Birch reduction have been centered on aromatic ethers, simple alkylbenzenes and bicyclic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Over the past decade or so, however, there has been increasing attention given to other derivatives. The reductions of aromatic acids and amides have been placed on a systematic basis, while new procedures have been established for substrates which have until recently been regarded as unsuitable candidates for reduction, e.g. aromatic ketones and esters, and even nitriles,... 

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