Darzens reactions

This reaction has been found to occur in alkali solution in presence of PTC (benzyl triethylammonium chloride).  

The epoxidation reaction of a, 3-unsaturated aldehydes has only been successfully accomplished using secondary amine catalysts, with diarylproUnols, such as 

which are especially useful for the synthesis of chiral heteroaromatic compounds [100]. 

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This, the Darzens reaction, is useful in other circumstances (frames 280-1) but a nuisance here. We must use some means to make the ketone act as the nucleophile in the initial condensation. One effectiye way is to conyert it into an enamine. Draw a mechanism for this reaction. 

This is the Darzens reaction (frames 172-3) (see Norman, p.231 if you want more details). How would you make... 

It is also possible to convert carbonyl groups into oxirane rings with cenain carbenoid synthons. The classical Darzens reaction, which involves addition of anions of a-chloroacetic esters, has been replaced by the addition of sulfonium ylides (R. Sowada, 1971 C.R. Johnson, 1979). 

Potassium Amides. The strong, extremely soluble, stable, and nonnucleophilic potassium amide base (42), potassium hexamethyldisilazane [40949-94-8] (KHMDS), KN [Si(CH2]2, pX = 28, has been developed and commercialized. KHMDS, ideal for regio/stereospecific deprotonation and enolization reactions for less acidic compounds, is available in both THF and toluene solutions. It has demonstrated benefits for reactions involving kinetic enolates (43), alkylation and acylation (44), Wittig reaction (45), epoxidation (46), Ireland-Claison rearrangement (47,48), isomerization (49,50), Darzen reaction (51), Dieckmann condensation (52), cyclization (53), chain and ring expansion (54,55), and elimination (56). 

Darzens reaction can be used to efficiently complete the stereoselective synthesis of a"-substituted epoxy ketones. As an example, Enders and Hett reported a technique for the asymmetric synthesis of a"-silylated a,P-epoxy ketones. Thus, optically active a -silyl a-bromoketone 38 was treated with LDA followed by the addition of benzaldehyde to give a"-silyl epoxyketone 40 in 66% yield with good... 

In a separate report, the Darzens reaction was recently used by Barluenga, Concellon, and coworkers for the preparation of enantiopure a"-amino a,P-epoxy ketones. Accordingly, the Z enolate of a"-amino a-bromo ketone 41 was generated with KHMDS at -100°C. Benzaldehyde was added, and trans epoxyketone 42 was isolated in 87% yield and >95% de. ... 

Recendy, Darzens reaction was investigated for its synthetic applicability to the condensation of substituted cyclohexanes and optically active a-chloroesters (derived from (-)-phenylmenthol). In this report, it was found that reaction between chloroester 44 and cyclohexanone 43 provided an 84% yield with 78 22 selectivity for the axial glycidic ester 45 over equatorial glycidic ester 46 both having the R configuration at the epoxide stereocenter. 

Of interest is a recent report of a rapid synthesis of efaroxin (51), a potent, selective O2 adrenoceptor antagonist, using Darzens Reaction. Accordingly, a-bromoester 48 was condensed with aldehyde 47. The glycidic ester (49) was then hydrogenated to reduce the more labile epoxide bond to give alcohol 50. Subsequent standard transformations subsequently lead to a completed 4-step synthesis of efaroxin. o... 

The Darzens reaction involves a two-step, base-catalyzed condensation of ethyl chloroacetate with a ketone to yield an epoxy ester. The first step is a carbonyl condensation reaction, and the second step is an SK2 reaction. Write both steps, and show their mechanisms. 

Fischer projections of, 980 Dacron, structure of, 819 Danishefsky, Samuel, 1002 Darzens reaction. 913 DCC (dicyclohexylcarbodiimide),... 

There have been two general approaches to the direct asymmetric epoxidation of carbonyl-containing compounds (Scheme 1.2) ylide-mediated epoxidation for the construction of aryl and vinyl epoxides, and a-halo enolate epoxidation (Darzens reaction) for the construction of epoxy esters, acids, amides, and sulfones. 

Epoxides bearing electron-withdrawing groups have been most commonly synthesized by the Darzens reaction. The Darzens reaction involves the initial addition of an ct-halo enolate 40 to the carbonyl compound 41, followed by ring-closure of the alkoxide 42 (Scheme 1.17). Several approaches for inducing asymmetry into this reaction - the use of chiral auxiliaries, reagents, or catalysts - have emerged. 

Table 1.7 2-Oxazolidinones as chiral auxiliaries in Darzens reactions.

Table 1.8 Use of 8-phenylmenthyl esters to induce asymmetry in the Darzens reaction.

Ohkata [30, 31] and co-workers have employed an 8-phenylmenthyl ester to induce asymmetry in the Darzens reaction (Table 1.8). Moderate to high diaster-... 

Yan s group has used the camphor-based chiral thioamide 62 in asymmetric Darzens reactions (Scheme 1.21) [32]. The addition of the titanium enolate of 62 to... 

Table 1.10 Chiral reagent 75 in asymmetric Darzens reactions. Ph Ph...

Of course, the most practical and synthetically elegant approach to the asymmetric Darzens reaction would be to use a sub-stoichiometric amount of a chiral catalyst. The most notable approach has been the use of chiral phase-transfer catalysts. By rendering the intermediate etiolate 86 (Scheme 1.24) soluble in the reaction solvent, the phase-transfer catalyst can effectively provide the enolate with a chiral environment in which to react with carbonyl compounds. 

Early work on the use of chiral phase-transfer catalysis in asymmetric Darzens reactions was conducted independently by the groups of Wynberg [38] and Co-lonna [39], but the observed asymmetric induction was low. More recently Toke s group has used catalytic chiral aza crown ethers in Darzens reactions [40-42], but again only low to moderate enantioselectivities resulted. 

Table 1.12 Cinchona alkaloid-derived phase-transfer catalysts for asymmetric Darzens reactions.

More recently, the same group has used a simpler and more easily prepared chiral ammonium phase-transfer catalyst 99 derived from BINOL in asymmetric Darzens reactions with a-halo amides 97 to generate glycidic tertiary amides 98 (Table 1.13). Unfortunately the selectivities were only moderate to low [48]. As mentioned in Section 1.2.3.1, tertiary amides can be converted to ketones. 

The aza-Darzens reaction is analogous to the Darzens synthesis of epoxides (see Section 1.2.3.2) but employs imines in the place of aldehydes (Scheme 1.27). 

Darzens reactions between the chiral imine 52 and a-halo enolates 53 for the preparation of nonracemic aziridine-2-carboxylic esters 54 (Scheme 3.17) were studied by Fujisawa and co-workers [61], It is interesting to note that the lithium enolate afforded (2K,3S)-aziridirie (2i ,3S)-54 as the sole product, whereas the zinc enolate give rise to the isomer (2S,3i )-54. The a-halogen did not seem to affect the stereoselectivity. 

An aza-Darzens reaction, involving the addition of chloromethylphosphonate anions to enantiopure N-sulfinimines, has also been developed by Davis and others for the asymmetric synthesis of aziridine-2-phosphonates [81-84], As an example, treatment of the lithium anion generated from dimethyl chloromethylphos-phonate (93 Scheme 3.30) with N-sulfmimine (Ss)-92 gave the a-chloro-P-amino phosphonate 94, which could be isolated in 51% yield. Cyclization of 94 with n-BuLi gave cis-N-sulfmylaziridine-2-phosphonate 95 in 82% yield [81],... 

The classical aza-Darzens reaction (between bromoenolates and imines) has been investigated by several groups in recent years, especially with respect to the design and execution of asymmetric variants. Both stoichiometric and catalytic methods have been studied thus, the reactions between N-Dpp imines and chiral ot-bromoenolates [49] (derived from Oppolzer s sultams Scheme 4.35) and between S-chiral sulfmylimines and achiral bromoenolates [50] (Scheme 4.36) have been reported. 

ETP2 base, see phosphazene base 2 Evans auxiliary, see Darzens reaction 13 exo cyclization mode 272... 

Danishefsky s diene, 134 Darzens reaction. 21 ( )-Dec-4-enoicacid, 115-14 Desilylation... 

Vinylsilanes (Chapter 3) can be readily converted into a/3-epoxysilanes, normally by treatment with mcpba (/). Alternatively, a-chloro-a-lithio-a-trimethylsilanes react efficiently with aldehydes and ketones in a manner reminiscent of the Darzens reaction (2). 

The direct product is an enol that tautomerizes to the aldehyde. This is the usual last step in the Darzens reaction (16-45). 

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