Enyne mechanism

The light-induced rearrangement of 2-phenyl- to 3-phenyl-thiophene may occur by a similar mechanism an equilibrium between the bicyclic intermediate (26) and the cyclopro-penylthioaldehyde (27) has been suggested (Scheme 2). The formation of IV-substituted pyrroles on irradiation of either furans or thiophenes in the presence of a primary amine supports this suggestion (Scheme 3). Irradiation of 2-phenylselenophene yields, in addition to 3-phenylselenophene, the enyne PhC=C—CH=CH2 and selenium. Photolysis of 2-phenyltellurophene furnishes solely the enyne and tellurium (76JOM(108)183). 

While diene metathesis or diyne metathesis are driven by the loss of a (volatile) alkene or alkyne by-product, enyne metathesis (Fig. 2) cannot benefit from this contributing feature to the AS term of the reaction, since the event is entirely atom economic. Instead, the reaction is driven by the formation of conjugated dienes, which ensures that once these dienes have been formed, the process is no longer a reversible one. Enyne metathesis can also be considered as an alkylidene migration reaction, because the alkylidene unit migrates from the alkene part to one of the alkyne carbons. The mechanism of enyne metathesis is not well described, as two possible complexation sites (alkene or alkyne) exist for the ruthenium carbene, leading to different reaction pathways, and the situation is further complicated when the reaction is conducted under an atmosphere of ethylene. Despite its enormous potential to form mul-... 

With regard to the mechanism of the cycloisomerization, Fiirstner et al. found strong evidence of a metallacyclic intermediate. By labeling the allylic position of enynes 46 and 48, they showed that reactions yielding traws-annulated rings 47 transferred the deuterium atom to the exocychc double bond (eq. 1 in Scheme 10), whereas c -annulated rings 49 formed with complete preservation of the position of the deuterium atom (eq. 2 in Scheme 10). This corresponds well to a metallacycUc... 

Nieto-Oberhuber, C., Perez-Galan, P., Herrero-Gomez, E., Lauterbach, T, Rodriguez, C., Lopez, S., Bour, C., Rosellon, A., Cardenas, D.J. and Echavarren, A.M. (2008) Gold(I)-Catalyzed Intramolecular [4+ 2] Cycloadditions of Arylalkynes or 1,3-Enynes with Alkenes Scope and Mechanism. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 130, 269-279. 

The palladium-catalyzed stannylboration (90) [124] or silylboration (87) [109, 114] succeeds in the intramolecular carbocyclization of diynes and enynes (Scheme 1-27). It is interesting that a very strained four-membered cycUzation of hexa-l,5-diyne proceeds without any difficulties, similarly to five- or six-membered cycUzation. The boryl group is selectively introduced into the more reactive C=CH rather than C=C for enynes and into the terminal C=CH rather than the internal C=CR for diynes, again suggesting a mechanism proceeding through the first insertion into the Pd-B bond in preference to the Pd-Sn or Pd-Si bond. 

Although the path (a) has been verified by a stoichiometric reaction [23], the details of exact reaction mechanism remain unsettled. Triggered by this publication [and the Pd-catalyzed doublethiolation of alkynes described in Eq. (7.7) in Section 7-3], a number of transition metal-catalyzed additions of S-X or Se-X bonds to C-C unsaturated organic compounds started to be published. In 1994, BackvaU et al. applied the Pd(OAc)2-catalyzed hydrothiolation to conjugated enynes and obtained 17,... 

The other mechanism (B) includes (b) insertion of the C=C triple bond of the enyne into the Pd-H bond with Pd bound to the internal carbon and H to the terminal carbon to give 30, (c) insertion of CO into the Pd-C bond, and (d) reductive elimination of 29 under regeneration of Pd(0)Ln (Scheme 7-8). 

Scheme 12 Mechanism of the titanium alkoxide catalyzed cyclization of enynes...

Scheme 20 Mechanism, functional group compatibility, and selectivity within enyne cy-clizations catalyzed by 70 Cy = cyclohexyl...

Scheme 25 Mechanism of the reductive enyne cydization promoted by Pd and silane...

Scheme 27 Mechanism of the Pd(II)-catalyzed enyne cyclization with formate or silane as reductant...

The formation of a six-membered ring is also feasible but is more limited, and the reaction is found to be more sensitive to the reaction conditions (Scheme 51). The difficulty for forming cyclohexanes is ascribed to the poorer ability of 1,7-enynes to function as bidentate ligands. This problem can be partially circumvented by introducing an alkene moiety (206 vs. 207) or a substituent that can coordinate to the metal, such as a free carboxylic acid, although in this case, the actual mechanism involves hydropalladation as the first step (see Section 10.07.4.1.3.(i).). 

In order to gain more insight into this proposed mechanism, Montgomery and co-workers tried to isolate the intermediate metallacycle. This effort has also led to the development of a new [2 + 2 + 2]-reaction.226 It has been found that the presence of bipyridine (bpy) or tetramethylethylenediamine (TMEDA) makes the isolation of the desired metallacycles possible, and these metallacycles are characterized by X-ray analysis (Scheme 56).227 Besides important mechanistic implications for enyne isomerizations or intramolecular [4 + 2]-cycloadditions,228 the TMEDA-stabilized seven-membered nickel enolates 224 have been further trapped in aldol reactions, opening an access to complex polycyclic compounds and notably triquinanes. Thus, up to three rings can be generated in the intramolecular version of the reaction, for example, spirocycle 223 was obtained in 49% yield as a single diastereomer from dialdehyde 222 (Scheme 56).229... 

The borostannylation of an enyne has also been reported by Tanaka to proceed in a high yield (Scheme 71).273 The mechanism of this cyclization has not been investigated in detail, but the insertion of the alkyne takes place preferentially into the Pd-B bond over the Pd-Sn bond. Then, the addition of the vinylpalladium 279 to the alkene moiety followed by reductive elimination furnished the cycloadduct 278. However, Tanaka does not exclude a palladacycle intermediate. Similarly, a borylsilylative carbocyclization has also been reported by Tanaka.274... 

Two sets of findings gave additional insight into the mechanism of these transformations. Thus, Echavarren reported that 1,6-enynes can be converted into 1,4-dienes with a variety of metal halides (Pt(ll), Pd(n), Ru(ll), Ru(m) and Au(iii)) if the ene moiety is a part of an allylsilane (stannane) subunit of the substrate (Scheme 86).306 307 Usually, PtCl2 gives the best results. 

To probe the reaction mechanism of the silane-mediated reaction, EtjSiD was substituted for PMHS in the cyclization of 1,6-enyne 34a.5 The mono-deuterated reductive cyclization product 34b was obtained as a single diastereomer. This result is consistent with entry of palladium into the catalytic cycle as the hydride derived from its reaction with acetic acid. Alkyne hydrometallation provides intermediate A-7, which upon cw-carbopalladation gives rise to cyclic intermediate B-6. Delivery of deuterium to the palladium center provides C-2, which upon reductive elimination provides the mono-deuterated product 34b, along with palladium(O) to close the catalytic cycle. The relative stereochemistry of 34b was not determined but was inferred on the basis of the aforementioned mechanism (Scheme 24). 

In analogy to the mechanism of the palladium-catalyzed enyne cyclization, it is postulated that exposure of palladium(O) to acetic acid promotes in situ generation of hydridopalladium acetate LnPd"(H)(OAc). Alkyne hydrometallation affords the vinylpalladium complex A-10, which upon r-carbopalladation of the appendant alkyne provides intermediate B-7. Silane-mediated cleavage of carbon-palladium bond liberates the cyclized product along palladium(O), which reacts with acetic acid to regenerate hydridopalladium acetate to close the cycle (Scheme 33). 

Asymmetric cyclization-hydrosilylation of 1,6-enyne 91 has been reported with a cationic rhodium catalyst of chiral bisphosphine ligand, biphemp (Scheme 30).85 The reaction gave silylated alkylidenecyclopentanes with up to 92% ee. A mechanism involving silylrhodation of alkyne followed by insertion of alkene into the resulting alkenyl-rhodium bond was proposed for this cyclization. 

Scheme 4. Reaction mechanism of enyne with Fischer carbene complex...

A nucleophilic attack on the acetylenic ketone functionality of golfomycin A (184) was proposed as a potential pathway to form the benzannulated enyne-allene 185 (Scheme 20.38) [71]. Subsequent biradical formation has been postulated as a possible mechanism to account for its DNA-cleaving properties and antitumor activity. 

Metathesis of enynes is another intriguing application in the laboratory. It would seem from the outcome, that it is a completely intramolecular reaction, but if the mechanism involves a metal alkylidene this is not true and the alkylidene group moves on from one substrate molecule to the next, see Figure 16.25. The methylene group moves to the next ring-closed diene. This is a useful tool in organic synthesis [47],... 

The reaction of enynes with Fischer-type carbene complexes can also lead to the formation of cyclobutanones (Figure 2.23) [315]. The mechanism for this reaction is likely to be rearrangement of the intermediate, non-heteroatom-substituted vinylcarbene complex to a vinylketene, which undergoes intramolecular [2 -i- 2] cycloaddition to form the observed cyclobutanones. 

Fig. 3.50. The mechanism of ring-closing metathesis of dienes and enynes.

Particularly interesting is the reaction of enynes with catalytic amounts of carbene complexes (Figure 3.50). If the chain-length between olefin and alkyne enables the formation of a five-membered or larger ring, then RCM can lead to the formation of vinyl-substituted cycloalkenes [866] or heterocycles. Examples of such reactions are given in Tables 3.18-3.20. It should, though, be taken into account that this reaction can also proceed by non-carbene-mediated pathways. Also Fischer-type carbene complexes and other complexes [867] can catalyze enyne cyclizations [267]. Trost [868] proposed that palladium-catalyzed enyne cyclizations proceed via metallacyclopentenes, which upon reductive elimination yield an intermediate cyclobutene. Also a Lewis acid-catalyzed, intramolecular [2 + 2] cycloaddition of, e.g., acceptor-substituted alkynes to an alkene to yield a cyclobutene can be considered as a possible mechanism of enyne cyclization. 

In contrast to nucleophilic addition reactions to activated dienes (Sect. 4.2.1), the mechanism of 1,6-cuprate additions to acceptor-substituted enynes is quite well understood, largely thanks to kinetic and NMR spectroscopic investigations [3oj. 

Scheme 4.4. Proposed mechanism for the 1,6-addition of organocuprates to acceptor-substituted enynes.

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