Cyclopentylmethylzinc derivative

These palladium- or nickel-catalyzed reactions are radical reactions leading to an organometallic product. By using a precursor such as 37 as a 1 1 mixture of diastereoisomers, the palladium-catalyzed cyclization provides in a stereoconvergent way the cyclopentylmethylzinc derivative 38 which, after allylation, produces the unsaturated ester 39 in 71% yield". The intermediate radical cyclizes via a transition state A where all the substituents are in an equatorial position. Interestingly, the analogous reaction using Ni(acac)2 as a catalyst allows the preparation of heterocyclic compounds such as 40. The... 

The overall reaction makes it possible to perform intramolecular caibozincations [65-71] via a radical cyclization. This useful preparation of cyclopentylmethylzinc derivatives proceeds with excellent stereoselectivity and allows preparation of quaternary centers. After cyclization, the zinc organometallic can be transmetallated with CuCN-2LiCl and made to react with a broad range of electrophiles such as acid chlorides, allylic and alkynyl halides, ethyl propiolate, 3-iodo-2-cyclohexen-l-one, and nitroolefins such as nitrostyrene, leading to products of type 40 (see Section 9.6.9 Scheme 9-34) [65,70]. 

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