Annelated Imidazoles

Condensed benzimidazoles of the type 6-5-7 and higher homologues 80HC(40,2)463. 

Condensed benzimidazoles with bridges between 1-N and 7-C 80HC(40,2)505. 

Dihydrobenzimidazoles, benzimidazolones, benzimidazolethiones, and related compounds 81HC(40,1)331. 

Imidazoquinazolines, synthesis, reactivity, biological activity of 90-AKZ245. 

Levamizole (imidazo[2,l-b]thiazole drug), synthesis and chemical properties 89KFZ206, 89KFZ801. 

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Heteropentalenes with annelated imidazole or 1,2,4-triazole ring and one bridge nitrogen atom 98AHC(69)271. 

With imidazole being an essential pharmacophore, the solid-phase synthesis of non-annelated imidazoles has been reported in several publications ]50-52]. Houghten et al. devised a plethora of imidazole syntheses, but used exclusively the experimentally difficult HF cleavage ]53-55, and citations therein]. The preparation of 1,2,4-trisubstituted imidazoles via the solid-phase synthesis of N-alkyl-N-(]3-keto)amides using a carbazate linker has been demonstrated [67]. An approach for the preparation of 2-substituted azoles in a traceless fashion using a polystyrene-carbamyl chloride resin has been described by Deng and Hlasta [58]. 

A thermodynamic analysis (86UP1) of the effect of annelation on the acid-base properties of the couples imidazole/benzimidazole and pyra-zole/indazole in aqueous solution has shown that this effect is essentially determined by the enhanced electronic delocalization in the case of the anions of the benzazoles. The differential steric hindrance to solvation, on the other hand, does not seem to play a significant role. 

The electrochemical generation of a nitrilimine provides an entrance to a wide range of heterocyclic systems via anodic oxidation of aldehyde hydra-zones. The same reaction was used for annelation of various heterocyclic systems,86 e.g., substituted pyridines, quinolines, isoquinolines, indoles, imidazoles, benzimidazoles, and benzotriazoles. 

The imidazolyl-annelated dihydroisoquinoline 78 was accessible from the cyclization of imidazole 79. The outcome of intramolecular substitutions on pyridines turned out to be strongly dependent on the linker between the aromatic cores (Scheme 30). With a c/.v-configured alkene in place, as in 80, the expected benzoisoquinoline 81 was isolated in excellent yield. The frans-configured alkene and the saturated C2-alkane were shown to be less suitable tethers due to the formation of side products. 

While cycloaddition approaches have been discussed extensively in this chapter, there are certain substitution patterns that are not amendable to such approaches. In these cases, the more traditional annelative approaches are necessary. For example, the 5,6-dihydropyrrolo[3,4-rf]imidazol-4(3//)-one (286) is obtained from the diamine (285) and triethyl orthoformate. If formamide is used in excess, 6-(formamidomethylene)-5,6-dihydropyrrolo[3,4-d]imidazol-4(3//)-one (287) is obtained (Scheme 53) <70JPS1732>. A variant of the Thorpe cyclization was employed in the preparation of 3-amino-4//-pyrrolo[3,4-c]isoxazoles (289) from a-cyanooximes (288) (Equation (66)) <68JMC453>. 3-Acyltetramic acid (290 X = NR2) and 3-acyltetronic acid (292 X = O) hydrazones undergo ready cyclization in refluxing xylene with catalytic p-toluenesulfonic acid to afford 4-oxo-l,4-dihydro-6/f-pyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrazoles (291) and 4-oxo-l,4-dihydro-6//-furo[3,4-c]pyrazoles (293), respectively (Equation (67)) <82SC43l>. The novel synthesis of 5-amino-6a-hydroxydihydro-6//-pyrrolo[2,3-j]isoxazole (296) from 3,4-disubstituted 4-(amino)isoxazol-(4//)-ones (294) is hypothesized to occur by the cyclization of the ketene aminal intermediates (295) (Scheme 54) <91S127>. 

The use of cycloaddition reactions for the synthesis of partially reduced heterocyclic systems was shown to be an attractive approach to dihydrobenzimidazoles, dihydroquinazolines, and dihydro-//n-benzopurines (Scheme 14) <86JOC6i6>. The dihydroxylation of the Diels-Alder adduct dimethyl 3,6-dihydrophthalate (128) with 0s04 and NMO followed by protection of the diol as the iso-propylidene derivative afforded compound (129). Saponification, dehydration with ethoxyethyne, and rearrangement with TMS—N3 effected conversion to the substituted tetrahydroisatoic anhydride (130), and subsequent treatment with formamidine acetate yielded compound (131). The substituents at the 6,7-positions of compound (131) were not amenable, however, for annelation of an imidazole. 

Numerous structures containing the thiocarbonyl ylide dipole are conceivable. Incorporation of the thiocarbonyl ylide dipole into a bicyclic heterocyclic system is possible by the conversion of the cyclic thione (203) into the ring-fused mesoionic system (204). The thiocarbonyl ylide dipole (205) undergoes cycloaddition with both alkenic and alkynic electron-poor dipolarophiles in refluxing benzene or xylene so that, after extrusion of hydrogen sulfide or sulfur, respectively, from the initial 1 1 cycloadducts (206) and (207), a ring-fused pyridinone is formed. The method has been used for the annelation of pyridinones to the imidazole, 1,2,4-triazole, thiazole and 1,3,4-thiadiazole systems... 

We consider azoles as five-membered heteroaromatic compounds and their annelated derivatives containing at least two endocyclic heteroatoms, one of which is nitrogen (pyrazole, imidazole, 1,2,3-triazole, 1,2,4-triazole, oxazole, thiazole, selenazoles, tetrazole, indazole, benzimidazole, benzoxazole, benzothiazole, ben-zoselenazoles, benzotriazole, etc.). 

While some of the mechanistic details for the examples described in this chapter have not yet been fully elucidated, it is clear from the scope of the examples discussed herein that the photochemistry of enaminones and enamidones is a fascinating research area. The novel sequence for the annelation of imidazole rings onto a preexisting structure, the synthesis of perhydroindoles via vinylogous amide [2 + 2] photocycloaddition chemistry and the enamide cyclization reactions all underscore the enormous utility of these chromophores in the development of new reactions and novel synthetic methods. 

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