Carbanions heteroatom-stabilized species

The Andersen sulphoxide synthesis allows one also to synthesize a variety of a-heteroatom substituted sulphoxides starting from a-heteroatom stabilized carbanions and (—)-(S)-276. The selected examples shown in Scheme 3 are the best illustration of the generality of this approach. The reaction of enolates or enolate like species with (—)-(S)-276 has been used for the synthesis of optically active a-carbalkoxy sulphoxides. For example, treatment of (—)-(S)-276 with the halogenomagnesium enolates of -butyl acetate, t-butyl propionate or t-butyl butyrate resulted in the formation of ( + )-(R)-t-butyl p-toluenesulphinylcarboxylates 298367 (equation 163). 

A rare species of salts consisting of a heteroatom-stabilized carbocation and a heteroatom-stabibzed carbanion has been formed by deprotonating methyl (Z)- or (E)-3-hydroxy-2,3-dimesitylpropenoate with tetrakis(dimethylamino)methane the resonance stabilization of the cation [(CH3)2N]3C+ and enolate anion, which is of E-configuration exclusively, since the guanadinium ion is incapable of forming a chelate, prevents a spontaneous O- or C-alkylation.12... 

As a result, these anions can gain exceptional stability and their carbon acids are unusually acidic. Because the above resonance forms probably play very important roles in stabilizing the anion, these species are not purely carbanions. However, thermodynamics favors reactions (protonation or alkylation) at carbon so their behavior is generally characteristic of carbanions. It also should be noted that kinetics often favor reaction at the heteroatom in these anions though leading to the less stable product. ... 

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