Azirine carbonylation

The dramatic effect observed on the reaction diastereoselectivity upon addition of a Lewis acid to 2H-azirine 127 was explained by a bidentate coordination of the Lewis acid to the 2H-azirine nitrogen and the carbonyl group. This chelation would lead to hindered rotation around the 2H-azirine carbonyl single bond and thus greater stereoselectivity. The increased reaction rate also indicates coordination of the Lewis acids to the 2H-azirine which leads to a lowering of the LUMO energy level and thus an increased reactivity toward the electron-rich diene (Scheme 32). 

The a-methylene-/3-lactam 103 is obtained by the carbonylation of the inethyleneaziridine 102 under mild conditions[91]. The azirine 104 undergoes an interesting dimerization-carbonylation to form the fused )3-lactam 105[92]. 

For isoxazoles the first step is the fission of the weak N—O bond to give the diradical (51) which is in equilibrium with the vinylnitrene (52). Recyclization now gives the substituted 2//-azirine (53) which via the carbonyl-stabilized nitrile ylide (54) can give the oxazole (55). In some cases the 2H-azirine, which is formed both photochemically and thermally, has been isolated in other cases it is transformed quickly into the oxazole (79AHC(2.5)U7). 

Photolysis of 2,3-diphenyl-A -azirine (442) generates benzonitrile ylide (443). Irradiation in the presence of ethyl cyanoformate resulted in a mixture of the oxazoline (444) and the imidazole (445) by 1,3-dlpolar cycloaddition to the carbonyl and nitrile group, respectively (72HCA919). 

The photochemical addition of azirines to the carbonyl group of aldehydes, ketones, and esters is also completely regiospecific (77H(6)143). Besides the formation of the isomeric oxazolines (50) from (39) and ethyl cyanoformate, there is also formed the imidazole (51) from addition to C=N in the expected regioselective manner. Thioesters lead to thiazolines (52), while isocyanates and ketenes produce heterocycles (53). 

The protonated azirine system has also been utilized for the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds (67JA44S6). Thus, treatment of (199) with anhydrous perchloric acid and acetone or acetonitrile gave the oxazolinium perchlorate (207) and the imidazolinium perchlorate (209), respectively. The mechanism of these reactions involves 1,3-bond cleavage of the protonated azirine and reaction with the carbonyl group (or nitrile) to produce a resonance-stabilized carbonium-oxonium ion (or carbonium-nitrilium ion), followed by attack of the nitrogen unshared pair jf electrons to complete the cyclization. 

Azirine, trans-2-methyl-3-phenyl-racemization, 7, 33, 34 1-Azirine, 2-phenyl-reactions, 7, 69 with carbon disulfide, S, 153 1-Azirine, 3-vinyl-rearrangements, 7, 67 Azirines, 7, 47-93 cycloaddition reactions, 7, 26 fused ring derivatives, 7, 47-93 imidazole synthesis from, 5, 487-488 photochemical addition reactions to carbonyl compounds, 7, 56 photolysis, 5, 780, 7, 28 protonated... 

Azirines (three-membered cyclic imines) are related to aziridines by a single redox step, and these reagents can therefore function as precursors to aziridines by way of addition reactions. The addition of carbon nucleophiles has been known for some time [52], but has recently undergone a renaissance, attracting the interest of several research groups. The cyclization of 2-(0-tosyl)oximino carbonyl compounds - the Neber reaction [53] - is the oldest known azirine synthesis, and asymmetric variants have been reported. Zwanenburg et ah, for example, prepared nonracemic chiral azirines from oximes of 3-ketoesters, using cinchona alkaloids as catalysts (Scheme 4.37) [54]. 

The presence of a 2-substitutent in 3-phenylazirines (17, R —H in Scheme 21) modifies the mode of reaction with molybdenum carbonyl.47 In contrast to pyrazine formation for (17, R =H see Section V,C,2), the alkenyl azirine (18, Scheme 22) is transformed in excellent yield into 2-phenyl-5-carboxy-methylpyrrole. This product probably arises by intramolecular cyclization within an intermediate dienylnitrene intermediate, and related reactions have been devised to synthesize isoxazoles (see Section IV,E,2) and pyrazoles (see Section IV,D,1).47 The molybdenum carbonyl-promoted formation of 2,5-disubstituted pyrroles47 has analogy in uncatalyzed thermal, but not photochemical decomposition of 3-phenyl-2//-azirine 2-acrylate.49... 

There are a few reports on the use of oximes as electrophilic amination reagents. Since 1984, ketone O-sulfonyloxknes have found applicability as amino transfer reagents to car-banions. In the reaction of organometaUic compounds with oximes, carbanions attack the carbonyl carbon of the oxime, giving Af-substituted hydroxylamines as addition products (Scheme 53, path a). However, a number of scattered reports have been also published on the formation of aziridines by a-deprotonation, followed by addition (path b) or formation of azirines by a-deprotonation before addition (path c). Addition of carbanions to azirines also yields aziridines, which are hydrolyzed to a-aminoalcohols. 

The synthesis of metal-coordinated 1-azirines and the reactions of azirines induced by metals have opened a new area in the chemistry of this small ring heterocycle. Many of the reactions encountered bear resemblance to previously discussed thermally and photo-chemically induced reactions of 1-azirines. The reaction of a series of diiron enneacarbonyls in benzene results in coupling and insertion to give diimine complexes and ureadiiron complexes as well as pyrroles and ketones (76CC191). A mechanism for the formation of these products which involves initial 1,3-bond cleavage and generation of a nitrene-iron carbonyl complex as an intermediate was proposed. 

Dimerization reactions of 1-azirines with several transition metal complexes have been studied (76TL2589). Reaction of 2-arylazirines (289) with an equimolar amount of a Group VI metal carbonyl gives 2,5-diarylpyrazines (290) in good yield. On the other hand, these compounds are converted to 2-styrylindoles (291) with rhodium carbonyl compounds or with dicobalt octacarbonyl in benzene. 

Aziridine is converted into piperazine on NH3 treatment 1-substituted aziridines give 1,4-disubstituted piperazines when reacted with Grignard reagents. Azirines (326) with Group VI metal carbonyls give pyrazines (327) and dihydropyrazines (328). 

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