Carboxylic resonance stabilization

Unsymmetrically substituted dipyrromethanes are obtained from n-unsubstitued pyrroles and fl(-(bromomethyl)pyiToIes in hot acetic acid within a few minutes. These reaction conditions are relatively mild and the o-unsubstituted pyrrole may even bear an electron withdrawing carboxylic ester function. It is still sufficiently nucleophilic to substitute bromine or acetoxy groups on an a-pyrrolic methyl group. Hetero atoms in this position are extremely reactive leaving groups since the a-pyrrolylmethenium( = azafulvenium ) cation formed as an intermediate is highly resonance-stabilized. 

There are large differences in reactivity among the various carboxylic acid derivatives, such as amides, esters, and acyl chlorides. One important factor is the resonance stabilization provided by the heteroatom. This decreases in the order N > O > Cl. Electron donation reduces the electrophilicity of the carbonyl group, and the corresponding stabilization is lost in the tetrahedral intermediate. 

Carbonyl compounds are more acidic than alkanes for the same reason that carboxylic acids are more acidic than alcohols (Section 20.2). In both cases, the anions are stabilized by resonance. Enolate ions differ from carboxylate ions, however, in that their two resonance forms are not equivalent—the form with the negative charge on oxygen is lower in energy than the form with the charge on carbon. Nevertheless, the principle behind resonance stabilization is the same in both cases. 

An acetyl group in the 2-position favors the monocyclic structure presumably because of the resonance stabilization.12 The same observation was made with oxepin-2,7-dicarbaldehyde, oxepin-2,7-dicarboxylic acid, and oxepin-2,7-dicarbonitrile.23 Substituents in the 4- and 5-positions of the oxepin such as methyl or methoxycarbonyl groups shift the equilibrium towards the epoxide.12 24 Low temperature 1H NMR studies on 7-ethyloxepin-2-carbonitrile and ethyl 7-ethyloxepin-2-carboxylate established a nonplanar boat geometry with a ring-inversion harrier of 6.5 kcal mol-1.25... 

Because of the resonance stabilization possible in its deprotonated form, the 5-tetrazolyl moiety is actually nearly as acidic (pKa ca. 6) as many carboxylic acids. This has led to its inclusion in many drug series as a carboxyl surrogate. Apparently related in concept to indomethacin (26a), intrazole (26) is a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agent which also inhibits platelet aggregation, and therefore is of potential value in keeping the contents of the... 

A resonance-stabilized lithium salt generated from a y-substituted a,P-unsaturated carboxylate derivative has been found to undergo displacement of chloride from dialkyl chlorophosphites leading (on oxidation) to the formation of P-keto-8-carboxyphosphonates (Equation 4.2 7).71... 

This is a consequence of delocalization, with resonance stabilization being possible when the carbonyl oxygen is protonated, but not possible should the OR oxygen become protonated. This additional resonance stabilization is not pertinent to aldehydes and ketones, which are thus less basic than the carboxylic acid derivatives. However, these oxygen derivatives are still very weak bases, and are only protonated in the presence of strong acids. 

Note that acids, and primary and secondary amides cannot be employed to generate enolate anions. With acids, the carboxylic acid group has pATa of about 3-5, so the carboxylic proton will be lost much more easily than the a-hydrogens. In primary and secondary amides, the N-H (pATa about 18) will be removed more readily than the a-hydrogens. Their acidity may be explained because of resonance stabilization of the anion. Tertiary amides might be used, however, since there are no other protons that are more acidic. 

Vitamin C, also known as L-ascorbic acid, clearly appears to be of carbohydrate nature. Its most obvious functional group is the lactone ring system, and, although termed ascorbic acid, it is certainly not a carboxylic acid. Nevertheless, it shows acidic properties, since it is an enol, in fact an enediol. It is easy to predict which enol hydroxyl group is going to ionize more readily. It must be the one P to the carbonyl, ionization of which produces a conjugate base that is nicely resonance stabilized (see Section 4.3.5). Indeed, note that these resonance forms correspond to those of an enolate anion derived from a 1,3-dicarbonyl compound (see Section 10.1). Ionization of the a-hydroxyl provides less favourable resonance, and the remaining hydroxyls are typical non-acidic alcohols (see Section 4.3.3). Thus, the of vitamin C is 4.0, and is comparable to that of a carboxylic acid. 

The other factor is the resonance stabilization of the carboxylate ion (see Figure 12-9). Remember that resonance stabilizes the moleculcir structure. 

Benzofuran-2-carbaldehydes readily undergo Wittig reactions in tetra-hydrofuran at room temperature with the resonance-stabilized ylide 2-car-boxy-l-methoxycarbonylethyltriphenylphosphorane, affording high yields of ( )-4-(2-benzofuranyl)-3-methoxycarbonylbut-3-enoic acids. This method is preferable to the Stobbe condensation. The Stobbe-type intermediates undergo quantitative cyclization to methyl l-acetoxydibenzofuran-3-carboxylates on exposure to acetic anhydride at 100 C. Examples are shown in Scheme 27. The intermediate 109 has been used in a synthesis of cannabifuran (110), and the intermediate 111 has been used in a synthesis of the lichen metabolite schizopeltic acid (112). ... 

Addition of a 2-alkynoic acid to alkali amide in liquid ammonia initially gives a solution of the alkali salt of the carboxylic acid. If an excess of alkali amide is present, the weakly basic salt is further deprotonated at a position next to the triple bond 183], This double deprotonation which may be compared with the formation of di-anions from 1,3-diketones and alkali amides [71], is essentially complete. The high kinetic stability of the alkynoic acid-dianion may be explained on the basis of resonance stabilization ... 

The reverse reactivity is noted in the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of the esters. Pyrrole-3-carboxylic esters are hydrolyzed upon dissolution in concentrated sulfuric acid and subsequent dilution with ice. Evidence has been presented indicating that unimolecular acyl—O fission forms the resonance-stabilized pyrrolyl acylium ion (B-77MI30505). 

Thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid containing peptides exhibit an enhanced polar character when compared with most of the side-chain protected cysteine peptides. 139 The anomalously low nucleophilicity of its imino group (pATa = 6.24) in comparison to that of proline (pXa = 10.60) is due to the resonance stabilization of its unprotonated form 187188 This supposed resonance stabilization is supported by the X-ray crystal structure of 4-thiaproline.1 88 ... 

The differences in alkaline lability of compounds I-IX results from the varying stability of their enolic intermediate. The alkaline stability of compounds I, II, and V results from resonance stabilization of the carboxylate ion. Esters and amides (R2) do not show such resonance,... 

If R2 is an ester or an amide group, the release of electrons from the enolic ion to the glycosyloxy linkage will be favored also, resonance stabilization of the carboxylate ion would be eliminated. 

In the first step of the conversion catalyzed by pyruvate decarboxylase, a carbon atom from thiamine pyrophosphate adds to the carbonyl carbon of pyruvate. Decarboxylation produces the key reactive intermediate, hydroxyethyl thiamine pyrophosphate (HETPP). As shown in figure 13.5, the ionized ylid form of HETPP is resonance-stabilized by the existence of a form without charge separation. The next enzyme, dihydrolipoyltransacetylase, catalyzes the transfer of the two-carbon moiety to lipoic acid. A nucleophilic attack by HETPP on the sulfur atom attached to carbon 8 of oxidized lipoic acid displaces the electrons of the disulfide bond to the sulfur atom attached to carbon 6. The sulfur then picks up a proton from the environment as shown in figure 13.5. This simple displacement reaction is also an oxidation-reduction reaction, in which the attacking carbon atom is oxidized from the aldehyde level in HETPP to the carboxyl level in the lipoic acid derivative. The oxidized (disulfide) form of lipoic acid is converted to the reduced (mer-capto) form. The fact that the two-carbon moiety has become an acyl group is shown more clearly after dissocia-... 

The oxidation occurs first, creating a /3-keto-carboxylate, which readily loses C02 via a resonance-stabilized carbanion. 

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