Benzyl methyl ketone, 2-hydroxylation

Thus, the aldol shown, which is susceptible to Sharpless-type epoxidation, has been obtained from phytal and the protected hydroquinone (ref. 120). Formation of the epoxide presumably with a chiral peracid (or perhaps with a conventional peracid relying on the asymmetry of the substrate) and then cleavage reductively in t-butyl methyl ketone containing lithium aluminium hydride led to a diol. The benzylic hydroxyl group of this was hydrogenolysed to afford the hydroquinone dimethyl ether in 85% yield. Ceric ammonium nitrate (CAN) oxidation afforded the intermediate benzoquinone hydrogenation of which was reported to result in 2R,4 R,8 R-a-tocopherol by, presumably, avoidance of a racemisation step. 

A number of 2,6-dideoxy-6,6,6-trifluorohexoses were prepared from a six-carbon acetylenic precursor via selective hydroxylation of the derived alkene diastereomers, and differences in stereoselectivity of reduction of a trifluoro-methyl ketone compared with the corresponding methyl ketone are outlined in Chapter 18. Oxidation of methyl 5-0-benzyl-3(2)-deoxy-3(2)-fluoro-a-D-pento-furanosides (DMSO/TFAA) was accompanied by epimerization at the fluori-nated carbon atom a- to the ketone resulting in formation of the corresponding 2-(or 3-) keto derivatives as mixtures of two epimers. Reduction then afforded various mixtures of 2- and 3- fluoro compounds. ... 

Keck showed that protection of the (1-hydroxyl group in (5-hydroxy ketones as tert-butyldimethylsilyl and benzyl ethers shut off reduction and starting material was recovered. This underlines the importance of pre-coordination of Sm(II) to the free hydroxyl in the directed reduction.13 The mm -selective reduction does, however, tolerate methyl, MOM, MTM and MEM ethers, presumably as these small ether groups still allow coordination to Sm(II).14 Keck pointed out that care should be taken when working with different systems as selectivities can be very substrate dependent.13 Flowers has also shown that the diastereoselectivity of the reduction can be altered by changing the reaction conditions through the use of other solvents or reaction protocols.15,16... 

Reaction of estrone methyl ether with 2,2-dimethylpropane-l, 3-diol in the presence of a catalytic amount of acid leads to derivative 26-1, in which the ketone at 17 is protected as an acetal (Scheme 3.26). Treatment of this intermediate with pyridinium chlorochromate leads to oxidation of the Cg benzylic carbon atom to a carbonyl group (26-2). Potassium tert-butoxide abstracts a proton from the adjacent methylene at C7 alkylation of the resulting anion with 4-(A, A -dimethyl)butyl iodide gives 26-3 as a mixture of diastereomers. The carbonyl group is next reduced to an alcohol by means of sodium borohydride (26-4). Dehydration of the newly introduced hydroxyl group is arguably facilitated by the adjacent aromatic ring (26-5). Aqueous acid removes the 17-acetal to afford 26-6, which is in essence an equilinin derivative. 

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