Diels-Alder reactions applied

Scheme 4.77 Enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions applied in flow.

Diels-Alder methodology is well suited to the preparation of C-monosaccharides and higher carbohydrate analogs. In general, these reactions provide products with high degrees of stereochemical induction as well as exhibiting synthetically useful yields. Further examples of Diels-Alder reactions applied to the preparation of C-disaccharides will be elaborated upon in Chapter 8. 

Several additional examples of oxazole Diels-Alder reactions applied to the synthesis of natural products have appeared. Using the same synthetic strategy that resulted in the total synthesis of normalindine, " Ohba and co-workers adapted the oxazole-olefin Diels-Alder cycloaddition for the synthesis of the mono-terpene alkaloids plectrodorine and oxerine. The synthesis of (-)-plectrodorine began with the requisite Diels-Alder precursor 262a, prepared from (5)-(-)-malic acid (Fig. 3.78). The intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction of this 2-alkyloxazole... 

One of the earliest examples of organocatalytic Diels-Alder reaction applied in total synthesis of natural products is that Kinsman and Kerr [51] reported an enantioselective total synthesis of hapalindole Q (136) in 2003 (Scheme 17.23). The key step of the synthesis is that diene 133 was coupled with enal 132 through the use of imidazolidinone 134 to afford Diels-Alder adduct 135 in 35% yield (85 15 dr (endo. exo), 93% ee). Even though the catalyst loading (40 mol%) is high, imidazolidinone 134 can be recovered in almost quantitative yield. Adduct 135 was subsequently converted into optically active hapalindole Q (136). 

Figure 14.11 Diels—Alder reaction applied to a polymeric system. The interaction between the 7r electrons of diene and the dienophile allows new cr and double bonds to he formed in the cyclohexene product.

Results of Diels-Alder reactions applied to 2-C-vinylglycals are illustrated in Scheme 6. ... 

Solvents exert their influence on organic reactions through a complicated mixture of all possible types of noncovalent interactions. Chemists have tried to unravel this entanglement and, ideally, want to assess the relative importance of all interactions separately. In a typical approach, a property of a reaction (e.g. its rate or selectivity) is measured in a laige number of different solvents. All these solvents have unique characteristics, quantified by their physical properties (i.e. refractive index, dielectric constant) or empirical parameters (e.g. ET(30)-value, AN). Linear correlations between a reaction property and one or more of these solvent properties (Linear Free Energy Relationships - LFER) reveal which noncovalent interactions are of major importance. The major drawback of this approach lies in the fact that the solvent parameters are often not independent. Alternatively, theoretical models and computer simulations can provide valuable information. Both methods have been applied successfully in studies of the solvent effects on Diels-Alder reactions. 

Palladium catalyzed cycloisomerizations of 6-cn-l-ynes lead most readily to five-membered rings. Palladium binds exclusively to terminal C = C triple bonds in the presence of internal ones and induces cyclizations with high chemoselectivity. Synthetically useful bis-exocyclic 1,3-dienes have been obtained in high yields, which can, for example, be applied in Diels-Alder reactions (B.M. Trost, 1989). 

The Diels-Alder reaction of o-quinodimethanes (from benzocyclobutenes) with nitrogen-ubstituted enes has also been applied to alkaloids synthesis (see p. 280f. T. Kametani, 1972, 1973, 1974 W. Oppolzer, 1978 A). 

Structure and Mechanism of Formation. Thermal dimerization of unsaturated fatty acids has been explaiaed both by a Diels-Alder mechanism and by a free-radical route involving hydrogen transfer. The Diels-Alder reaction appears to apply to starting materials high ia linoleic acid content satisfactorily, but oleic acid oligomerization seems better rationalized by a free-radical reaction (8—10). 

Cycloaddition involves the combination of two molecules in such a way that a new ring is formed. The principles of conservation of orbital symmetry also apply to concerted cycloaddition reactions and to the reverse, concerted fragmentation of one molecule into two or more smaller components (cycloreversion). The most important cycloaddition reaction from the point of view of synthesis is the Diels-Alder reaction. This reaction has been the object of extensive theoretical and mechanistic study, as well as synthetic application. The Diels-Alder reaction is the addition of an alkene to a diene to form a cyclohexene. It is called a [47t + 27c]-cycloaddition reaction because four tc electrons from the diene and the two n electrons from the alkene (which is called the dienophile) are directly involved in the bonding change. For most systems, the reactivity pattern, regioselectivity, and stereoselectivity are consistent with describing the reaction as a concerted process. In particular, the reaction is a stereospecific syn (suprafacial) addition with respect to both the alkene and the diene. This stereospecificity has been demonstrated with many substituted dienes and alkenes and also holds for the simplest possible example of the reaction, that of ethylene with butadiene ... 

More complete interpretations of Diels-Alder regioselectivity have been developed. MO results can be analyzed from an electrostatic perspective by calculating potentials at the various atoms in the diene and dienophile. These results give a more quantitatively accurate estimate of the substituent effects. Diels-Alder regioselectivity can also be accounted for in terms of HSAB theory (see Section 1.2.3). The expectation would be that the most polarizable (softest) atoms would lead to bond formation and that regioselectivity would reflect the best mateh between the diene and dienophile termini. These ideas have been applied using 3-2IG computations. The results are in agreement with the ortho rule for normal-electron-demand Diels-Alder reactions. ... 

Calculations at several levels of theory (AMI, 6-31G, and MP2/6-31G ) find lower activation energies for the transition state leading to the observed product. The transition-state calculations presumably reflect the same structural features as the frontier orbital approach. The greatest transition-state stabilization should arise from the most favorable orbital interactions. As discussed earlier for Diels-Alder reactions, the-HSAB theory can also be applied to interpretation of the regiochemistry of 1,3-dipolar cycloaddi-... 

Kondrat eva pyridine synthesis. This methodology to pyridine rings continues to be applied in total synthesis. An approach to the antitumor compound ellipticine 34 ° makes use of a Diels-Alder reaction of acrylonitrile and oxazole 32 to form pyridiyl derivative 33. Addition of methyllithium and hydrolysis transforms 33 into 34. 

Brmsted acid-assisted chiral Lewis acid 8 was also applied to the intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction of an a-unsubstituted triene derivative. ( , )-2,7,9-Decatrienal reacts in the presence of 30 mol% of the catalyst to afford the bicyclo compound in high yield and good enantioselectivity [lOd] (Scheme 1.17). 

This catalyst was successfully applied to the Diels-Alder reaction of propargyl aldehydes as dienophUes [12] (Scheme 1.21, Table 1.8). Though 2-hutyn-l-al and 2-oc-tyn-l-al are unreactive dienophUes, silyl- and stannyl-suhstituted a,/ -acetylenic aldehydes react with cydopentadiene readily in the presence of 20 mol% of the catalyst at low temperature to give hicyclo[2.2.1]heptadiene derivatives in high optical purity these derivatives are synthetically useful chiral building blocks. 

Kiindig et al. recently applied the same perfluoroaryldiphosphonite ligand to the preparation of a cationic Ru catalyst 14 [20] (Scheme 1.27, Table 1.11). This catalyst also promotes the Diels-Alder reaction of a-bromoacrolein and cyclopenta-diene, although this Diels-Alder reaction is slower than that catalyzed by the analogous cationic Fe complex 13, and gives the cycloadducts with lower enantioselec-tivity (Fe 97% ee, Ru 92% ee). 

Wulff and coworkers have applied their aluminum catalyst 2 containing a vaulted biphenanthrol ligand (VAPOL, Section 2.1) to the Diels-Alder reaction between methyl acrylate and cyclopentadiene [25] (Scheme 1.32). In this Diels-Alder reaction auto-induction is observed, because of a cooperative interaction between the product... 

Since Evans s initial report, several chiral Lewis acids with copper as the central metal have been reported. Davies et al. and Ghosh et al. independently developed a bis(oxazoline) ligand prepared from aminoindanol, and applied the copper complex of this ligand to the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction. Davies varied the link between the two oxazolines and found that cyclopropyl is the best connector (see catalyst 26), giving the cycloadduct of acryloyloxazolidinone and cyclopentadiene in high optical purity (98.4% ee) [35] (Scheme 1.45). Ghosh et al., on the other hand, obtained the same cycloadduct in 99% ee by the use of unsubstituted ligand (see catalyst 27) [36] (Scheme 1.46, Table 1.19). 

Collins and coworkers applied the bis(tetrahydroindenyl)zirconium triflate 32, which is used as a polymerization catalyst, to the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction [50] (Scheme 1.61). A remarkable solvent effect was observed - although only a low optical yield was obtained in CH2CI2, high optical purity (91% ee) was realized in 2-nitropropane by use of only 1 mol% of the catalyst. The catalyst is also effective for crotonoyloxazolidinone, giving the cycloadduct in 90% ee. 

Several highly enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions are known for which the di-enophile does not fit any of the above classes. Corey and coworkers applied the chiral aluminum reagent 36 with a C2-symmetric stilbenediamine moiety (videsu-pra) to the Diels-Alder reaction of maleimides as dienophiles [54] (Scheme 1.68). In most asymmetric Diels-Alder reactions the reactants are usually relatively simple dienes such as cyclopentadiene or monosubstituted butadienes, and unsym-... 

The inverse electron-demand Diels-Alder reaction is also accelerated by Lewis acids, but the successful application of chiral Lewis acids to this kind of Diels-Alder reaction is very rare. Marko and coworkers applied Kobayashi s catalyst system (Yb(OTf)3-BINOL-amine) to the Diels-Alder reaction of 3-methoxycarbonyl-2-py-rone with vinyl ether or sulfide [58] (Scheme 1.72, Table 1.29). A bulky ether or... 

Many chiral metal complexes with Lewis acid properties have been developed and applied to the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction. High enantioselectivity is, of course, one of the goals in the development of these catalysts. Enantioselectivity is not, however, the only factor important in their design. Other important considerations are ... 

The Diels-Alder reaction of nitroalkenes with Danishefsky s dienes is applied to synthesis of truncated carbocyclic analogues of a potent neuraminidase inhibitor 4-guanidino-NemAc en fsee Scheme 8.5. Carbocyclic analogs are found to retain interesting levels of antiviral activity comparable to those shovm by their oxygen-containing compounds in Scheme 8.5. 

Intermolecular [4C+2S] cycloaddition reactions where the diene moiety is contained in the carbene complex are less frequent than the [4S+2C] cycloadditions summarised in the previous section. However, 2-butadienylcarbene complexes, generated by a [2+2]/cyclobutene ring opening sequence, undergo Diels-Alder reactions with typical dienophiles [34,35] (Scheme 59). Also, Wulff et al. have described the application of pyranylidene complexes, obtained by a [3+3] cycloaddition reaction (see Sect. 2.8.1), in the inverse-electron-demand Diels-Alder reaction with enol ethers and enamines [87a]. Later, this strategy was applied to the synthesis of steroid-like ring skeletons [87b] (Scheme 59). 

The selectivity for two-alkyne annulation can be increased by involving an intramolecular tethering of the carbene complex to both alkynes. This was accomplished by the synthesis of aryl-diynecarbene complexes 115 and 116 from the triynylcarbene complexes 113 and 114, respectively, and Danishefsky s diene in a Diels-Alder reaction [70a]. The diene adds chemoselectively to the triple bond next to the electrophilic carbene carbon. The thermally induced two-alkyne annulation of the complexes 115 and 116 was performed in benzene and yielded the steroid ring systems 117 and 118 (Scheme 51). This tandem Diels-Alder/two-alkyne annulation, which could also be applied in a one-pot procedure, offers new strategies for steroid synthesis in the class O—>ABCD. 

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