Carbonyl compounds ester hydrolysis

In Chapter 12 (p. 291) we looked at the hydrolysis of esters in basic solution. The decomposition of the tetrahedral intermediate could have occurred in either direction as HO- (p aH 15.7) and MeO (pfvaH 16) are about the same as leaving groups. In other words and K2 are about the same and both equilibria favour the carbonyl compound (ester or carboxylic acid). 

This preparation illustrates the Reformatsky reaction, which consists in the interaction of a carbonyl compound, an a-halogen ester (e.g., ethyl bromo-acetate) and zinc In the presence of ether or benzene, followed by hydrolysis. 

Carbonyl compounds, such as aldehydes [103, 179], (thio)ketones [31, 94, 180-183], carboxylic acids, and esters [183, 184] with 1 are reduced to alcohols after hydrolysis [5], except in stericaUy hindered cases (see Section 8.5) [185, 186]. Under the same experimental conditions the regioselective reduction of the oxirane ring with 1 gives also the corresponding alcohol [183, 187]. 

This section discusses prodrugs whose hydrolysis (be it chemical and/or enzymatic) is followed by breakdown of the pro-moiety with liberation of a carbonyl compound. In the glycolic acid (= hydroxyacetic acid) esters briefly examined in Sect. 8.3.1, the pro-moiety once cleaved breaks down enzymatically. In the rest of the section, however, the cleaved pro-moiety will be seen to break down spontaneously. 

Fig. 9.8 presents another, more complex type of phosphate prodrugs, namely (phosphoryloxy)methyl carbonates and carbamates (9-26, X = O or NH, resp.) [84], Here, the [(phosphoryloxy)methyl]carbonyl carrier appears quite versatile and of potential interest to prepare prodrugs of alcohols, phenols, and amines. The cascade of reactions leading from prodrug to drug as shown in Fig. 9.8 involves three steps, namely ester hydrolysis, release of formaldehyde, and a final step of carbonate hydrolysis (X = O) or A-decar-boxylation (X = NH). Three model compounds, a secondary alcohol, a primary aliphatic amine, and a primary aromatic amine, were derivatized with the carrier moiety and examined for their rates of breakdown [84], The alcohol, indan-2-ol, yielded a carrier-linked derivative that proved relatively... 

The occurrence of isotopic exchange of between water and carbonyl compounds has been observed to take place slowly with acetone (Cohn and Urey, 1938) and much more rapidly with acetaldehyde (Herbert and Lauder, 1938). This gives qualitative evidence for reversible hydration (since no other reasonable mechanism exists for isotopic exchange), but gives no quantitative information about the equilibrium position. Similarly, the fact that exchange occurs in the unhydrolysed ester during the hydrolysis of carboxylic esters (Bender, 1951) shows that the species RC(0H)20R is a stable intermediate rather than a transition state. 

A naphthalene-catalyzed (<10%) lithiation of a,a-dibromo esters 152 in THF at —78°C was used to generate ester dianions 153, which by warming at 0°C gave lithium ynolates 154. These intermediates were trapped by carbonyl compounds, for instance benzophenone, to give, after final hydrolysis with water, a,/3-unsaturated acids 155 (Scheme 55)" ... 

The addition of allylic boron reagents to carbonyl compounds first leads to homoallylic alcohol derivatives 36 or 37 that contain a covalent B-O bond (Eqs. 46 and 47). These adducts must be cleaved at the end of the reaction to isolate the free alcohol product from the reaction mixture. To cleave the covalent B-0 bond in these intermediates, a hydrolytic or oxidative work-up is required. For additions of allylic boranes, an oxidative work-up of the borinic ester intermediate 36 (R = alkyl) with basic hydrogen peroxide is preferred. For additions of allylic boronate derivatives, a simpler hydrolysis (acidic or basic) or triethanolamine exchange is generally performed as a means to cleave the borate intermediate 37 (Y = O-alkyl). The facility with which the borate ester is hydrolyzed depends primarily on the size of the substituents, but this operation is usually straightforward. For sensitive carbonyl substrates, the choice of allylic derivative, borane or boronate, may thus be dictated by the particular work-up conditions required. 

The lithium derivatives described above react with electrophiles such as alkyl halides, carbonyl compounds, and thiocarbonyl compounds, resulting in the corresponding 3-substituted derivatives (190). Hydrolysis of these products by dilute acid as described in Section B,1 gives the new nonproteinogenic amino acid ester (191) along with the original amino acid ester used as the chiral auxiliary. The chemical yields are above 80% (83MI1). 

The double bonds in certain heterocyclic compounds, such as furans, Af-acylpyrroles and A-acylindoles are also susceptible to photoaddition of carbonyl compounds to form oxetanes (equation 106) (77JHC1777). A wide range of carbonyl compounds can be used, including quinones, a-diketones, acyl cyanides, perfluorinated aldehydes and ketones and esters. A remarkable case of asymmetric induction in oxetane formation has been reported from optically active menthyl phenylglyoxylate and 2,3-dimethyl-2-butene the oxetane product obtained after hydrolysis of the ester group had an optical purity of 53% (79AG(E)868). 

These X -phosphorins 720 a-c also fail to react with carbonyl compounds. However, they are attacked by electrophiles (H or alkyl cations) at the C—2 position. In this manner new 1,1-diphenyl-2,3-benzo-X-phosphorins which are sustituted at positions C—2 (and C-4) can be prepared. Diazonium ions attack at C—4 to form azocompounds if an excess is used, C—2 is also substituted Hydrolysis with hot water affords 747. The reaction with ortho-formic acid ester forms a cyanine dye having a bridge at the C—4 positions 142 The experimen-... 

In a number of classes of systems, the catalytic and other chemical effects of metal ions on reactions of organic and inorganic molecules are generally recognized the catalysis of nucleophilic reactions such as ester hydrolysis the reactions of alkenes and alkynes in the presence of metal carbonyls (8, 9, 69) stereospecific polymerization in the presence of Ziegler catalysts (20, 55, 56) the activation of such small molecules as H2 (37), 02 (13), H202 (13), and possibly N2 (58) and aromatic substitution reactions of metal-cyclopentadienyl compounds (59, 63). 

Enolization is an acid-base reaction (2-24) in which a proton is transferred from the a carbon to the Grignard reagent. The carbonyl compound is converted to its enolate ion form, which, on hydrolysis, gives the original ketone or aldehyde. Enolization is important not only for hindered ketones but also for those that have a relatively high percentage of enol form, e.g., p-keto esters, etc. In reduction, the carbonyl compound is reduced to an alcohol (6-25)... 

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