Benzoxazepinones Birch reduction

A more traveled route to the absolute configuration represented by cyclohexa-1,4-diene 8 involves Birch reduction-alkylation of benzoxazepinone 9.2.5 heterocycle is best prepared by the base-induced cyclization of the amide obtained from 2-fiuorobenzoyl chloride and (5)-pyrrolidine-2-metha-nol. o The molecular shape of enolate 10 is such that the hydrogen at the stereogenic center provides some shielding of the a-face of the enolate double bond. Thus, alkylation occurs primarily at the 3-face of 10 to give 11 as the major diastereomer. The diastereoselectivity for alkylation with methyl iodide is only 85 15, but with more sterically demanding alkyl halides such as ethyl iodide, allyl bromide, 4-bromobut-1-ene etc., diastereoselectivities are greater than 98 2. 

The tricyclic sesquiterpene longifolene has served as a vehicle for the illustration of new strategies for organic synthesis.25 Both enantiomers have been obtained from natural sources (-i-)-longifolene occurs in several Firms species and is commercially available while the rare (—)-longifolene has been found in certain liver mosses.2 We elected to prepare (—)-longifolene 49 from the cyclohexa-1,4-diene 45, obtained from the Birch reduction-alkylation of benzoxazepinone 9 in 96% yield with a diastereomeric excess of greater than 98% (Scheme 13).22... 

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