Enamines epoxidation

A large number of cyclopropanes have been synthesized from cyclopropyl sulfones, cyclopropyl sulfoxides and cyclopropyl sulfides by taking advantage of the acidity of the cyclopropyl proton a to the C-S bond. Butyllithium is used almost exclusively as the base. The cyclopropyl anions obtained are capable of reacting with alkyl halides, aldehydes, enamines, epoxides, esters. 

Acetal formation Glycoside synthesis, from carbohydrates and alcohol Hydrolysis of enamines Epoxidation of fats by H2O2, followed by hydrolysis to transglycol... 

Primary and secondary amines also react with epoxides (or in situ produced episulfides )r aziridines)to /J-hydroxyamines (or /J-mercaptoamines or 1,2-diamines). The Michael type iddition of amines to activated C—C double bonds is also a useful synthetic reaction. Rnally unines react readily with. carbonyl compounds to form imines and enamines and with carbo-tylic acid chlorides or esters to give amides which can be reduced to amines with LiAlH (p. Ilf.). All these reactions are often applied in synthesis to produce polycyclic alkaloids with itrogen bridgeheads (J.W. Huffman, 1967) G. Stork, 1963 S.S. Klioze, 1975). 

Reaction conditions depend on the reactants and usually involve acid or base catalysis. Examples of X include sulfate, acid sulfate, alkane- or arenesulfonate, chloride, bromide, hydroxyl, alkoxide, perchlorate, etc. RX can also be an alkyl orthoformate or alkyl carboxylate. The reaction of cycHc alkylating agents, eg, epoxides and a2iridines, with sodium or potassium salts of alkyl hydroperoxides also promotes formation of dialkyl peroxides (44,66). Olefinic alkylating agents include acycHc and cycHc olefinic hydrocarbons, vinyl and isopropenyl ethers, enamines, A[-vinylamides, vinyl sulfonates, divinyl sulfone, and a, P-unsaturated compounds, eg, methyl acrylate, mesityl oxide, acrylamide, and acrylonitrile (44,66). 

Other methods of generating a-aminoketones in situ are common, if somewhat less general than the methods already described. 2-Nitrovinylpyrrolidine, which is readily available, yields 2,3-bis(3-aminopropyl)pyrazine on reduction and this almost certainly involves ring opening of the intermediate enamine to an a-aminoketone which then dimerizes under the reaction conditions (Scheme 59) (78TL2217). Nitroethylene derivatives have also served as a-aminoketone precursors via ammonolysis of the derived epoxides at elevated temperatures (Scheme 60) (76S53). Condensation of 1,1-disubstituted hydrazine derivatives with a-nitro-/3-ethoxyethylene derivatives has been used in the synthesis of l,4-dialkylamino-l,4-dihydropyrazines (Scheme 61) (77S136). 

To overcome this, the A -acetyl group is reduced with lithium aluminum hydride. The resulting basic enamine then reacts extremely rapidly and selectively with peracid. The derived epoxide is hydrolyzed very easily with alkali during the workup. 

Alkylation of enamines with epoxides or acetoxybromoalkanes provided intermediates for cyclic enol ethers (668) and branched chain sugars were obtained by enamine alkylation (669). Sodium enolates of vinylogous amides underwent carbon and nitrogen methylation (570), while vicinal endiamines formed bis-quaternary amonium salts (647). Reactions of enamines with a cyclopropenyl cation gave alkylated imonium products (57/), and 2-benzylidene-3-methylbenzothiazoline was shown to undergo enamine alkylation and acylation (572). A cyclic enamine was alkylated with methylbromoacetate and the product reduced with sodium borohydride to the key intermediate in a synthesis of the quebrachamine skeleton (57i). 

C. Reactions not involving P=0 or P=S Groups.—Enamine phosphine oxides (45) have been prepared by the addition of amines to 1-alkynyl-phosphine oxides, and the reactions of their anions with various electrophiles have been reported. - With ketones a Wittig-type reaction leads to the formation of a/3-unsaturated ketones, in 53—70% yield, while with epoxides cyclopropyl ketimines are formed. A Diels-Alder reaction of l-phenyl-A -phospholen-l-oxide (46) with 1,4-diacetoxybutadiene has been used in the preparation of l-phenyl-benzo[/>]phosphole (47), as... 

The racemic polyzonimine (19) is prepared as shown in Scheme 33. The expoxide (314) is rearranged to the aldehyde (315) by refluxing with LiBr-HMPA in benzene. Morpholine enamine (316) derived from 315 is condensed with nitroethylene, generated in situ from 2-acetoxynitroethane, to afford the nitroaldehyde (317). Ethylene acetalization, reduction over Raney nickel, and subsequent deacetalization give ( )-polyzonimine (19) in 22% overall yield from the epoxide (314) 113). 

We have just begun to explore the chemistry of these vinyl nitrosamines (which are really N-nitroso enamines) which are extremely interesting synthetic intermediates. One very exciting development has been their conversion to the corresponding epoxides. 

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