By Wittig reaction

Most carbonyl olefinations known to proceed in solution have also been successfully accomplished on insoluble supports. Those Wittig reactions that lead to release of the alkene into solution (because phosphorus is irreversibly bound to the support) are considered in Section 3.15. 

Polystyrene-bound benzaldehydes can be smoothly olefinated with benzyl- or cin-namylphosphonium salts in DMF or THF using sodium methoxide as a base (Entry 1, Table 5.5 [64-67]). Alkylphosphonium salts, however, only react with resin-bound aldehydes upon deprotonation with stronger bases, such as butyllithium [30,68-70]. The more acidic acceptor-substituted phosphonium salts, on the other hand, even react with resin-bound aldehydes and ketones upon treatment with tertiary amines, DBU, sodium ethoxide, or lithium hydroxide [71-75], but stronger bases are also used occasionally [76]. 

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Out first example is 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-3-octanone. 3-Octanone can be purchased, but it would be difficult to differentiate the two activated methylene groups in alkylation and oxidation reactions. Usual syntheses of acyloins are based upon addition of terminal alkynes to ketones (disconnection 1 see p. 52). For syntheses of unsymmetrical 1,2-difunctional compounds it is often advisable to look also for reactive starting materials, which do already contain the right substitution pattern. In the present case it turns out that 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-2-butanone is an inexpensive commercial product. This molecule dictates disconnection 3. Another practical synthesis starts with acetone cyanohydrin and pentylmagnesium bromide (disconnection 2). Many 1,2-difunctional compounds are accessible via oxidation of C—C multiple bonds. In this case the target molecule may be obtained by simple permanganate oxidation of 2-methyl-2-octene, which may be synthesized by Wittig reaction (disconnection 1). 

The synthesis of 11-oxaprostaglandlns from o-glucose uses the typical reactions of gl cofuranose diacetonide outlined on p. 267. Reduction of the hemiacetal group is achieved a thioacetal. The carbon chains are introduced by Wittig reactions on the aldehyde grou] which are liberated by periodate oxidation and laaone reduction (S. Hanessian, 1979 G Lourens, 1975). 

Wittig reactions are used commercially in tire synthesis of numerous pharmaceutical agents. For example, the German chemical company BASF prepares vitamin A by Wittig reaction between a 15-carbon ylide and a 5-carbon aldehyde. 

Scheme 1-21. Synthesis of a blue-emitting copolymer with isolated chromophore by Wittig reaction a) base.

Alkenes (46) or (47) could be hydrogenated to (45) and these could be made by Wittig reactions or from the three branchpoint alcohols (48 - 50). 

The intramolecular approach of Staab and Graf, shown in Scheme 4, precluded formation of 5, but was considerably more involved [12]. The cyclic dienyne 6 was afforded by Wittig reaction of o-phthaldialdehyde with the corresponding bis(ylide) derived from tolane. Bromination of 6 and subsequent treat-... 

A particularly interesting reaction is the C-formylation[2] of alkylidenephosphoranes by A-formylimidazole to give a-formyl derivatives (C6H5)3P=C(R)CHO which can be further transformed into a,/ -unsaturated aldehydes by Wittig reaction, or hydrolyzed to produce aldehydes RCH2-CHO. 

Direct hydrogenation of key intermediate 248 over the Adams catalyst and subsequent lithium aluminum hydride reduction yielded the two stereoisomeric alcohols 256 and 257, which were separately transformed to ( )-corynantheal (258) and ( )-3-epicorynantheal (259), respectively, by Moffatt oxidation, followed by Wittig reaction with methyltriphenylphosphonium bromide and, finally, by demasking the aldehyde function (151, 152). 

Russo and co-workers98 have reported a high stereoselective method for the preparation of 1,2-czls-C-glycosyl compounds based on the iodocyclization of some hept- and hexenitols obtained by Wittig reaction of sugar... 

For a lisl of references to the preparation of haloalkenes by Wittig reactions, with references, see Ref. 64, pp... 

By elaboration of benzofurans, dibenzofurans can be obtained. The annelation of 4-isopropyl-7-methylbenzofuran-2-carbaldehyde (393) by Wittig reaction with 2-carboxy-l-methoxycarbonylethyltriphenylphosphorane gave the itaconic half ester (394), which on treatment with hot acetic acid cyclized to the dibenzofuran (395). Functional group modification furnished cannabifuran (396) (82JCS(P1)1605). 

Vinylpolystyrene, a useful intermediate for the preparation of various functionalized supports for solid-phase synthesis [7,57-59], has been prepared by the polymerization of divinylbenzene [7], by Wittig reaction of a Merrifield resin derived phosphonium salt with formaldehyde [59-62], or, most conveniently, by treatment of Merrifield resin with trimethylsulfonium iodide and a base [63] (Figure 5.7). 

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