Azomethine bond 1, 3-dipolar cycloaddition

Intramolecular cycloadditions are among the most efficient methods for the synthesis of fused bicyclic ring systems [30]. From this perspective, the hetisine skeleton encompasses two key retro-cycloaddition key elements. (1) a bridging pyrrolidine ring accessible via a [3+2] azomethine dipolar cycloaddition and (2) a [2.2.2] bicyclo-octane accessible via a [4+2] Diels-Alder carbocyclic cycloaddition (Chart 1.4). While intramolecular [4+2] Diels—Alder cycloadditions to form [2.2.2] bicycle-octane systems have extensive precedence [3+2], azomethine dipolar cycloadditions to form highly fused aza systems are rare [31-33]. The staging of these two operations in sequence is critical to a unified synthetic plan. As the proposed [3+2] dipolar cycloaddition is expected to be the more challenging of the two transformations, it should be conducted in an early phase in the forward synthetic direction. As a result, a retrosynthetic analysis would entail initial consideration of the [4+2] cycloaddition to arrive at the optimal retrosynthetic C-C bond disconnections for this transformation. 

The 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions to unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds have been known for quite some time and have become an important part of strategies for organic synthesis of many compounds (Smith and March, 2007). The 1,3-dipolar compounds that participate in this reaction include many of those that can be drawn having charged resonance hybrid structures, such as azides, diazoalkanes, nitriles, azomethine ylides, and aziridines, among others. The heterocyclic ring structures formed as the result of this reaction typically are triazoline, triazole, or pyrrolidine derivatives. In all cases, the product is a 5-membered heterocycle that contains components of both reactants and occurs with a reduction in the total bond unsaturation. In addition, this type of cycloaddition reaction can be done using carbon-carbon double bonds or triple bonds (alkynes). 

This chapter deals mainly with the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions of three 1,3-dipoles azomethine ylides, nitrile oxides, and nitrones. These three have been relatively well investigated, and examples of external reagent-mediated stereocontrolled cycloadditions of other 1,3-dipoles are quite limited. Both nitrile oxides and nitrones are 1,3-dipoles whose cycloaddition reactions with alkene dipolarophiles produce 2-isoxazolines and isoxazolidines, their dihydro derivatives. These two heterocycles have long been used as intermediates in a variety of synthetic applications because their rich functionality. When subjected to reductive cleavage of the N—O bonds of these heterocycles, for example, important building blocks such as p-hydroxy ketones (aldols), a,p-unsaturated ketones, y-amino alcohols, and so on are produced (7-12). Stereocontrolled and/or enantiocontrolled cycloadditions of nitrones are the most widely developed (6,13). Examples of enantioselective Lewis acid catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions are summarized by J0rgensen in Chapter 12 of this book, and will not be discussed further here. 

Chiral exocyclic alkenes such as 112, also having the chiral center two bonds away from the reacting alkene moiety, have been used in highly diastereoselective reactions with azomethine ylides, and have been used as the key reaction for the asymmetric synthesis of (5)-(—)-cucurbitine (Scheme 12.37) (169). The aryl sulfone 113 was used in a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction with acyclic nitrones. In 113, the chiral center is located four bonds apart from alkene, and as a result, only moderate diastereoselectivities of 36-56% de were obtained in these reactions (170). 

Besides the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides to C60, the Bingel cycloprop anation reaction is widely used for regioselective functionalization of fullerenes. In principle, this versatile modification involves the generation of carbon nucleophiles from a-halo esters and their subsequent addition to C60 [19]. The addition takes place exclusively on double bonds between two six-membered rings of the fullerene skeleton, yielding methanofullerenes. As shown in Scheme 2, addition of diethylbromomalonate to C60, in the presence of an auxiliary base... 

The formation and intramolecular dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides formed by carbenoid reaction with C=N bonds has recently been studied by the authors group.84 Treatment of 2-(diazoace-tyl)benzaldehyde O-methyl oxime (176) with rhodium(II) octanoate in the presence of dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate or N-phenylmaleimide produced cycloadducts 178 and 179, respectively. The cycloaddition was also carried out using p-quinone as the dipolarophile. The major product isolated corresponded to cycloadduct 180. The subsequent reaction of this material with excess acetic anhydride in pyridine afforded diacetate 181 in 67% overall yield from 176. The latter compound incorporates the basic dibenzofa, d -cyclohepten-5,10-imine skeleton found in MK-801,85 which is a selective ligand for brain cyclidine (PCP) receptors that has attracted considerable attention as a potent anticonvulsive and neuro-protective agent.86,87... 

The formation and intramolecular dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides formed by carbenoid reaction with C-N double bonds has recently been studied by the author s group [66]. Treatment of 2-(diazoacetyl)benzaldehyde O-methyl oxime (118) with rhodium (II) octanoate in the presence of dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate or iV-phenylmaleimide produced cycloadducts 120 and... 

Similarly small rate factors were obtained for 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions between diphenyl diazomethane and dimethyl fumarate [131], 2,4,6-trimethylbenzenecarbonitrile oxide and tetracyanoethene or acrylonitrile [811], phenyl azide and enamines [133], diazomethane and aromatic anils [134], azomethine imines and dimethyl acetylenedi-carboxylate [134a], diazo dimethyl malonate and diethylaminopropyne [544] or N-(l-cyclohexenyl)pyrrolidine [545], and A-methyl-C-phenylnitrone and thioketones [812]. Huisgen has written comprehensive reviews on solvent polarity and rates of 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions [541, 542]. The observed small solvent effects can be easily explained by the fact that the concerted, but non-synchronous, bond formation in the activated complex may lead to the destruction or creation of partial charges, connected... 

When, on the other hand, organocatalyst 133 (possessing a bulky 2,5-diaryl-pyrrole moiety) is applied, product 134 was selectively formed by a highly diastereo- and enantioselective 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (11 examples, 56-90%, 60-91% ee). This reaction most likely involves activation of the nitroalkene by the thiourea, via the earlier mentioned doubly hydrogen-bonded interaction, followed by a concerted attack of the in situ formed azomethine ylide (this ylide is not activated by nor coordinated to the organocatalyst, because of the bulky, nonbasic pyrrole group, but is most likely formed via a 1,2-prototropic rearrangement [92]). 

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