Azlactonization

Azlactones (anhydrides of a-acylamino acids) are formed by the condensation of aromatic aldehydes with acyl derivatives of glycine in the presence of acetic anhydride and anhydrous sodium acetate. Thus beiizaldehyde and acetyl-... 

Hydrolysis of the azlactone leads to the acylaminooinnamic acid the latter may be be reduced catal3rtlcally (Adams PtOj catalyst 40 lb. p.s.i.) and then hydrolysed by hydrochloric acid to the amino acid. Alternatively, the azlactone (say, of a-benzylaminocinnamic acid) may undergo reduction and cleavage with phosphorus, hydriodic acid and acetic anhydride directly to the a-amino acid (d/ p phenylalanine). 

The azlactones may be hydrolysed by strong alkali to a-keto acids, for example ... 

Azlactone of a-acetylaminocinnamic acid. Warm a mixture of 29 g. of acetylglycine, 39-5 g. (37 -5 ml.) of redistilled benzaldehyde (Section IV,115), 15 g. of anhydrous sodium acetate and 67 g. (62 ml.) of acetic anhydride (95 per cent.) in a 500 ml. conical flask (equipped with a reflux condenser) on a water bath with occasional stirring until solution is complete (10-20 minutes). Boil the resulting solution for 1 hour, cool and leave in a refrigerator overnight. Stir the sohd mass of yellow crystals with 60 ml. of cold water, transfer to a Buchner funnel and wash well with cold water. (If the odour of benzaldehyde is stih apparent, wash with a little ether.) Recrystallise from carbon tetrachloride or from ethyl acetate-hght petroleum. The yield of azlactone, m.p. 150°, is 35 g. 

Azlactone of a-benzoylaminocinnamic acid. Place a mi.xture of 27 g. (26 ml.) of redistilled benzaldehyde, 45 g. of Mppuric acid (Section IV,54), 77 g. (71-5) ml. of acetic anhydride and 20-5 g. of anhydrous sodium acetate in a 500 ml. conical flask and heat on an electric hot plate with constant shaking. As soon as the mixture has liquefied completely, transfer the flask to a water bath and heat for 2 hours. Then add 100 ml. of alcohol slowly to the contents of the flask, allow the mixture to stand overnight, filter the crystalline product with suction, wash with two 25 ml. portions of ice-cold alcohol and then wash with two 25 ml. portions of boiling water dry at 100°. The yield of almost pure azlactone, m.p. 165-166°, is 40 g. Recrystallisation from benzene raises the m.p. to 167-168°. 

Benzilic acid rearrangement Benzoin reaction (condensation) Blanc chloromethylation reaction Bouveault-Blanc reduction Bucherer hydantoin synthesis Bucherer reaction Cannizzaro reaction Claisen aldoi condensation Claisen condensation Claisen-Schmidt reaction. Clemmensen reduction Darzens glycidic ester condensation Diazoamino-aminoazo rearrangement Dieckmann reaction Diels-Alder reaction Doebner reaction Erlenmeyer azlactone synthesis Fischer indole synthesis Fischer-Speior esterification Friedel-Crafts reaction... 

The protecting group Y of the amine is generally an alkoxycarbonyl derivative since their nucleophilicity is low. Benzyloxy- or tert-butoxycarbonyl derivatives usually do not undergo azlactone formation. 

Tryptophans can also be prepared by reduction of a,(3-dehydrotryptophans. These can be obtained by a classical azlactone type synthesis from derivatives of indole-3-carboxaldehyde. These reactions usually rquire an iV-EW substituent and the yields are modest[15]. 

Aldehydes and ketones react with azolinones. The reaction between aldehydes and 2-phenyl-5-oxazolinone (131 Y = H), formed in situ from PhC0NHCH2C02H and AC2O, gives azlactones (131 Y = RCH). Similar reactions are given by 4-thiazolidinones, e.g. (132) gives (133) (79AHC(25)83), and 4-imidazolinones. In pyrazolin-5-ones the 4-position is sufficiently activated for condensation to occur with ketones in acidic media (Scheme 8) (66AH06)347). 

Although imidazolinones are usually resistant to hydrolysis, oxazolinone rings are often easily opened. In acid-catalyzed reactions of this type, water converts azlactones (181) into a-acylamino-a,/3-uhsaturated acids (182) (77AHC(21)175). 1,3,4-Oxadiazolinones are readily opened by hot water to give hydrazine carboxylic acids which undergo decarboxylation. 

Compounds which can formally be considered as anhydro bases can sometimes react with nucleophiles. Thus unsaturated azlactones with Grignard reagents give saturated azlactones (Scheme 50) (65AHC(4)75). 

Ring fission occurs readily in many of these compounds. For example, azlactones, i.e. 4JT-oxazolin-5-ones containing an exocyclic C=C bond at the 4-position (508), are hydrolyzed to a-benzamido-a,/3-unsaturated acids (509), further hydrolysis of which gives a-keto acids (510). Reduction and subsequent hydrolysis in situ of azlactones is used in the synthesis of a-amino acids e.g. 508 -> 507). 

Azlactones — see also l,3-Oxazolin-5-ones Erlenmeyer synthesis, 6, 202 hydrolysis, S, 64, 101 tautomerism, 6, 186 unsaturated... 

Bergmann s synthesis unsaturated azlactones, 6, 226 Berkelheide rearrangement heterophanes, 7, 777 Berninamycin A, 6, 232 Berninamycinic acid appiications, 6, 709 X-ray diffraction, 6, 669 Betahistine as vasodiiator, 2, 5i9 Betaines... 

This azlactone is prepared readily from benzaldehyde according to the procedure given for the azlactone of a-ben-zoylamino-/3-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-acrylic acid (Org. Syn. 13, 8). From 53 g. (0.5 mole) of benzaldehyde, 89.5 g. (0.5 mole) of hippuric acid, 41 g. of fused sodium acetate, and 153 g. of acetic anhydride there is obtained 78-80 g. (62-64 per cent yield) of an almost pure product melting at 165-166° (corr.). This material is sufficiently pure for use in the preparation of phenylalanine. By crystallization from 150 cc. of benzene a product melting at 167-168° (corr.) is obtained. 

The reduction may be carried out by the same procedure starting from a-benzoylaminocinnamic acid, and in this way slightly higher yields are obtained. The azlactone may be converted into the free acid in the following way. 

In a 12-1. flask fitted with a mechanical stirrer, 62.3 g. (0.25 mole) of the azlactone is suspended in 6 1. of water, and II g. (0.275 mole) of sodium hydroxide is added as a lo per cent solution. The mixture is heated on the steam bath with stirring until solution is complete. This requires three to four hours. The hot solution is filtered and acidified with hydrochloric acid. The Of-benzoylaminocinnamic acid separates as white prisms in the hot solution, and when cold it is filtered. The yield is 55.5-64.5 g. (83-96.5 per cent) of almost pure product melting... 

For a second run the distillate is placed in a i-l. flask with 4 cc. of water, 25 g. of the azlactone, and 20 g. of red phosphorus. The mixture is refluxed for three to four hours and treated according to the above procedure. The yield is practically the same as in the first case. 

Formation of 5-oxazolones (or azlactones ) (2) by intramolecular condensation of acylglycines (1) in the presence of acetic anhydride is known as the Erlenmeyer-Plochl azlactone synthesis. ... 

The azlactones of a-benzoylaminocinnamic acids have traditionally been prepared by the action of hippuric acid (1, Ri = Ph) and acetic anhydride upon aromatic aldehydes, usually in the presence of sodium acetate. The formation of the oxazolone (2) in Erlenmeyer-Plochl synthesis is supported by good evidence. The method is a way to important intermediate products used in the synthesis of a-amino acids, peptides and related compounds. The aldol condensation reaction of azlactones (2) with carbonyl compounds is often followed by hydrolysis to provide unsaturated a-acylamino acid (4). Reduction yields the corresponding amino acid (6), while drastic hydrolysis gives the a-0X0 acid (5). ... 

In 1959, Crawford and Little reported superior yields of 3 in reactions of aromatic aldehydes by using isolated, crystalline 2-phenyloxazol-5-one (2, Ri = Ph) compared to direct reaction with hippuric acid (1, Ri = Ph). An early report by Boekelheide and Schramm on the use of ketones in the Erlenmeyer azlactone synthesis includes treatment... 

Bismuth(III) acetate catalyzes the synthesis of azlactones (17) from aromatic aldehydes in moderate to good yields via the Erlenmeyer synthesis. While the standard procedure for azlactone synthesis consists of using a stoichiometric amount of fused anhydrous sodium acetate, 10 mol% of Bi(OAc)3 is sufficient to catalyze the reaction and the crude product is found to be > 98% pure. 

Modification of the Erlenmeyer reaction has been developed using imines of the carbonyl compounds, obtained with aniline," benzylamine or n-butylamine. Ivanova has also shown that an A-methylketimine is an effective reagent in the Erlenmeyer azlactone synthesis. Quantitative yield of 19 is generated by treatment of 3 equivalents of 2-phenyl-5(4ff)-oxazolone (2) (freshly prepared in benzene) with 1 equivalent of iV-methyl-diphenylmethanimine (18) in benzene. Products resulting from aminolysis (20), alkali-catalyzed hydrolysis (21), and alcoholysis (22) were also described. 

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