Chloroacetyl catechol

The interaction between catechol and monochloracetyl chloride gives chloroacetyl catechol... 

Chloroacetyl catechol may be prepared by the interaetion of eatechol and monochloroacetyl chloride, which on reaction with isopropylamine and hydrochloric acid yields the official product. 

Reductive amination of 4-chloroacetyl catechol to adrenaline Pd/support Adrenaline MASR... 

The original commercial source of E was extraction from bovine adrenal glands (5). This was replaced by a synthetic route for E and NE (Eig. 1) similar to the original pubHshed route of synthesis (6). Eriedel-Crafts acylation of catechol [120-80-9] with chloroacetyl chloride yields chloroacetocatechol [99-40-1]. Displacement of the chlorine by methylamine yields the methylamine derivative, adrenalone [99-45-6] which on catalytic reduction yields (+)-epinephrine [329-65-7]. Substitution of ammonia for methylamine in the sequence yields the amino derivative noradrenalone [499-61-6] which on reduction yields (+)-norepinephrine [138-65-8]. The racemic compounds were resolved with (+)-tartaric acid to give the physiologically active (—)-enantiomers. The commercial synthesis of E and related compounds has been reviewed (27). The synthetic route for L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine [59-92-7] (l-DOPA) has been described (28). 

The chemistry of most of the drugs in this family is quite simple, accounting in part for the very large number of analogues which have been made. The foundation for the chemistry in this series was laid long ago by Stolz in his classic synthesis of the ophthalmic agent adrenal one (3) in which he reacted catechol with chloroacetyl chloride and then displaced the reactive chlorine atom with methylamine to complete the synthesis. Borohydride reduction would have given epinephrine (adrenaline). 

Catechol is an intermediate for the synthesis of racemic adrenaline which, although quite medicinally active, can be resolved (ref. 36) in 71% yield to afford the more active R(-) enantiomer, the natural form, which can also be derived quantitatively by asymmetric reduction (ref. 37) of the synthetic precursor, adrenalone as the hydrochloride by catalytic hydrogenation in methanol containing the rhodium complex of (R)-o[(S)-1 ,2-bis(diphenylphosphine)ferrocenyl]ethyl alcohol. Adrenalone is obtained by the acylation of catechol with chloroacetyl chloride to afford 3,4-dihydroxy-w-chloroacetophenone followed by reaction with methylamine. 

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