As dienophiles

Cycloaddition Reactions. Methacrylates have been widely used as dienophiles in Diels-Alder reactions (22—24). 

A large number of pyridazines are synthetically available from [44-2] cycloaddition reactions. In one general method, azo or diazo compounds are used as dienophiles, and a second approach is based on the reaction between 1,2,4,5-tetrazines and various unsaturated compounds. The most useful azo dienophile is a dialkyl azodicarboxylate which reacts with appropriate dienes to give reduced pyridazines and cinnolines (Scheme 89). With highly substituted dienes the normal cycloaddition reaction is prevented, and, if the ethylenic group in styrenes is substituted with aryl groups, indoles are formed preferentially. The cycloadduct with 2,3-pentadienal acetal is a tetrahydropyridazine derivative which has been used for the preparation of 2,5-diamino-2,5-dideoxyribose (80LA1307). 

Small unsaturated rings are usually very reactive undergoing ring opening in a number of ways, and this characteristic has been utilized in heterocyclic synthesis. In their role as dienophiles or dipolarophiles, the initial cycloaddition is usually followed by a valence tautomerism resulting in a six-membered or larger ring system. Several examples exist, however, where this does not occur, and these are described below. 

Various trifluoromethyl containing a, -unsaturated acids, esters, ketones, and nitriles have been used as dienophiles Details regarding regiochermstry and stereochemistry have been reported [2S, 98, 99] (equations 82-84)... 

Polyfluoro-2-acylimmopropanes exhibit an interesting dichotomy of reactivity they react as dienophiles with cyclopentadiene but as heterodienes with acrolein [112] (equation 93)... 

Polyfluoroalkyl- and Perfluoroalkyl-Substituted CO and CN Multiple Bonds as Dienophiles in [4+2] Cycloaddition Reactions... 

One of the features of Diels-Alder reactions with most alkyl and aryl nitriles that has made them rather unattractive as dienophiles is the requirement of very high reaction temperatures Again, only when electron-withdrawing substituents are directly bonded to the nitnle function do [4+2] cycloaddition reactions occur at reasonably low temperatures [ 48, 231, 232] A high yield [4+2] cycloaddition was observed on reaction of 4,4-bis(trifluoromethyl) 1 thia-3-aza-l,3-butadienes with trifluoroacetonitrile at 150 °C [225]... 

Cycloaddition reactions where bis(trifluoromethyl)-substituted hetero-1,3-dienes act as dienophiles have been descnbed for open-chain and cyclic dienes [115, 126, 127] The balance of the diene -dienophile activity of bis(tnfluoro-methyl)-substituted hetero-l,3-dienes can be influenced strongly by the substituents bonded to the inuno nitrogen atom For instance, A/-(arylsulfonyl) denvatives of tnfluoroacetaldimine and hexafluoroacetone imine do not act as dienes but exhibit only the dienophile reactivity of electron deficient imines [5 229, 234,235, 236 237] (equation 52)... 

In contrast, when ot,P-unsaturated multiple bond systems act as dienophiles in concerted [4+2] cycloaddition reactions, they react across the C=C double bond Periselectivity as well as regiochemistry are explained on the basis of the size of the orbital coefficients and the resonance integrals [25S]... 

Enamines have been observed to act both as dienophiles (46-48) and dienes (47,49) (dienamines in this case) in one-step, Diels-Alder type of 1,4 cycloadditions with acrylate esters and their vinylogs. This is illustrated by the reaction between l-(N-pyrrolidino)cyclohexene (34) and methyl t/-a i-2,4-pentadienoate (35), where the enamine acts as the dienophile to give the adduct 36 (47). In a competitive type of reaction, however, the... 

Arynes are intermediates in certain reactions of aromatic compounds, especially in some nucleophilic substitution reactions. They are generated by abstraction of atoms or atomic groups from adjacent positions in the nucleus and react as strong electrophiles and as dienophiles in fast addition reactions. An example of a reaction occurring via an aryne is the amination of o-chlorotoluene (1) with potassium amide in liquid ammonia. According to the mechanism given, the intermediate 3-methylbenzyne (2) is first formed and subsequent addition of ammonia to the triple bond yields o-amino-toluene (3) and m-aminotoluene (4). It was found that partial rearrangement of the ortho to the meta isomer actually occurs. 

A -Alkyl-l,2-dihydropyridines that are not stabilized by electron-withdrawing groups on the ring could behave as dienophiles towards alkynes. For example, N-methyl-l,2-dihydropyridine 41a reacts with dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate (32) to give [2 + 2] cycloaddition product 42, which rearranges to give the azocine derivative 43 [74JCS(P1)2496],... 

The Asymmetric Diels-AIder Reaction of a,jS-Unsaturated Aldehydes as Dienophiles 1.2.1.1 Aluminum... 

The Asymmetric Diels-Alder Reaction of a,/ -Unsaturated Esters as Dienophiles... 

Several highly enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions are known for which the di-enophile does not fit any of the above classes. Corey and coworkers applied the chiral aluminum reagent 36 with a C2-symmetric stilbenediamine moiety (videsu-pra) to the Diels-Alder reaction of maleimides as dienophiles [54] (Scheme 1.68). In most asymmetric Diels-Alder reactions the reactants are usually relatively simple dienes such as cyclopentadiene or monosubstituted butadienes, and unsym-... 

Among the many chiral Lewis acid catalysts described so far, not many practical catalysts meet these criteria. For a,/ -unsaturated aldehydes, Corey s tryptophan-derived borane catalyst 4, and Yamamoto s CBA and BLA catalysts 3, 7, and 8 are excellent. Narasaka s chiral titanium catalyst 31 and Evans s chiral copper catalyst 24 are outstanding chiral Lewis acid catalysts of the reaction of 3-alkenoyl-l,2-oxazolidin-2-one as dienophile. These chiral Lewis acid catalysts have wide scope and generality compared with the others, as shown in their application to natural product syntheses. They are, however, still not perfect catalysts. We need to continue the endeavor to seek better catalysts which are more reactive, more selective, and have wider applicability. 

Diels-Alder reactions in which nitroalkenes act as dienophiles are acceleratedin thepresence of 4 M l.iClOi) in nitromethane This acceleration is higher than that observed when l.iClO is used in diethyl ether The diastereoselecdve Diels-Aider reaction using homochiial nitroalkenes shown in Eq 8 31 has been demonstrated... 

In contrast to those unreactive dienes that can t achieve an s-cis conformation, other dienes are fixed only in the correct s-cis geometry and are therefore highly reactive in the Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction. 1,3-Cyclopentadiene, for example, is so reactive that it reacts with itself. At room temperature, 1,3-cycIopentadiene dimerizes. One molecule acts as diene and a second molecule acts as dienophile in a self Diels-Alder reaction. 

Methyl-7-(trimethylsilyl)oxepin and 4-methyl-4//-l,2,4-triazole-3,5-dione as dienophile undergo a Diels-Alder reaction in which the 4,6-diene structure of the seven-membered ring react. Contrary to the aforementioned reactions, the primary adduct 12 is stable and does not rearrange to a carbonyl compound.222... 

Diels-Alder Reactions with Oxepin as Dienophile... 

Interestingly, in the inverse-electron-demand Diels-Alder reactions of oxepin with various enophiles such as cyclopentadienones and tetrazines the oxepin form, rather than the benzene oxide, undergoes the cycloaddition.234 236 Usually, the central C-C double bond acts as dienophile. Oxepin reacts with 2,5-dimethyl-3,4-diphenylcyclopenta-2,4-dienone to give the cycloadduct 6 across the 4,5-C-C double bond of the heterocycle.234 The adduct resists thermal carbon monoxide elimination but undergoes cycloreversion to oxepin and the cyclopenta-dienone.234... 

Trifluoromethyl-l,3-dioxin-4-ones can act as the enone component in [2 + 2] or as dienophiles in Diels-Alder reactions and are potential synthons for enantiomerically pure trifluoromethyl aliphatics [92JCS-(Pl)1393). 

V-Acyliminium ions act as dienophiles in [4 + 2] cycloaddition reactions with conjugated dienes13, while A-acylimimum ions that (can) adopt an x-cis conformation are able to act as heterodienes in an inverse electron demand Diels-Alder process with alkenes or alkynes3 (see Section D. 1.6.1.1.). 

Based on the high dienophilicity of acyclic vinyl sulfones one should expect thiete dioxides to exhibit similar properties. Indeed, several Diels-Alder (2 +4) cycloadditions with thiete dioxide as dienophile are known. For example, 1,3-butadiene and 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran react with 3-chloro- or 3-bromo-thiete dioxides to afford the corresponding 1 1 Diels-Alder cycloadducts255 277 (equation 105). 

Since the first demonstration of a cycloaddition reaction of a, /f-unsaturated sulfones in 1938 by Alder and coworkers85, a variety of a, /3-unsaturated sulfones have been prepared and used as dienophiles. For example, when a mixture of p-tolyl vinyl sulfone and 2,3-dimethylbutadiene in benzene is heated at 145-150 °C for 10 h in a sealed tube, crystals of the cycloadduct (134) are obtained (equation 102). Other examples of this intermolecular cycloaddition reaction are given in Table 12. 

Due to the low reactivity of ethylene and acetylene as dienophiles, forcing conditions, such as high temperature and high pressure, are necessary for [4 + 2]cycloaddition. The hazards associated with handling acetylene under these conditions are well known and... 

It has been established that alkoxy alkenylcarbene complexes participate as dienophiles in Diels-Alder reactions not only with higher rates but also with better regio- and stereoselectivities than the corresponding esters [95]. This is clearly illustrated in Scheme 51 for the reactions of an unsubstituted vinyl complex with isoprene. This complex reacts to completion at 25 °C in 3 h whereas the cycloaddition reaction of methyl acrylate with isoprene requires 7 months at the same temperature. The rate enhancement observed for this complex is comparable to that for the corresponding aluminium chloride-catalysed reactions of methyl acrylate and isoprene (Scheme 51). 

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