Formaldehyde, reaction with hydroxy-acids

N-AryInitrones (XIII) formed by oxidation of N-hydroxy-N-methyl arylamines, show high reactivity toward carbon-carbon and carbon-nitrogen double bonds in non-aqueous media (21,203) (Figure 10). Under physiological conditions, however, it appears that N-arylnitrones exist as protonated salts that readily hydrolyze to formaldehyde and a primary N-hydroxy arylamine and efforts to detect N-arylnitrone addition products in cellular lipid, protein or nucleic acids have not been successful (204). Nitroxide radicals derived from N-hydroxy-MAB have also been suggested as reactive intermediates (150), but their direct covalent reaction with nucleic acids has been excluded (21). 

The ether linkage formed during the crosslinking reaction of amino formaldehyde resins with hydroxy functional polymers is sensitive to acid hydrolysis. [2.197] Exposure to acid rain is sufficient to damage high solids acrylic/melamine coatings. The use of either active CH [2.198] or NH functional polymers [2.199] creates linkages... 

Formaldehyde condenses with itself in an aldol-type reaction to yield lower hydroxy aldehydes, hydroxy ketones, and other hydroxy compounds the reaction is autocatalytic and is favored by alkaline conditions. Condensation with various compounds gives methylol (—CH2OH) and methylene (=CH2) derivatives. The former are usually produced under alkaline or neutral conditions, the latter under acidic conditions or in the vapor phase. In the presence of alkahes, aldehydes and ketones containing a-hydrogen atoms undergo aldol reactions with formaldehyde to form mono- and polymethylol derivatives. Acetaldehyde and 4 moles of formaldehyde give pentaerythritol (PE) ... 

Biacetyl is produced by the dehydrogenation of 2,3-butanediol with a copper catalyst (290,291). Prior to the availabiUty of 2,3-butanediol, biacetyl was prepared by the nitrosation of methyl ethyl ketone and the hydrolysis of the resultant oxime. Other commercial routes include passing vinylacetylene into a solution of mercuric sulfate in sulfuric acid and decomposing the insoluble product with dilute hydrochloric acid (292), by the reaction of acetal with formaldehyde (293), by the acid-cataly2ed condensation of 1-hydroxyacetone with formaldehyde (294), and by fermentation of lactic acid bacterium (295—297). Acetoin [513-86-0] (3-hydroxy-2-butanone) is also coproduced in lactic acid fermentation. 

Reaction of cyanohydrins with absolute ethanol in the presence of HCl yields the ethyl esters of a-hydroxy acids (3). A/-substituted amides can be synthesized by heating a cyanohydrin and an amine in water. Thus formaldehyde cyanohydrin and P-hydroxyethylamine lead to A/- (P-hydroxyethyl)hydroxyacetamide (4). 

Latentiation of ampicillin can also be achieved by tying up the proximate amino and amide functions as an acetone aminal. Inclusion of acetone in the reaction mixture allows 6-APA to be condensed directly with the acid chloride from 24. There is thus obtained directly the prodrug hetacillin (34). Although this compound has little antibiotic activity in its own right, it hydrolyzes to ampicillin in the body. The p-hydroxy derivative amoxycillin (35) shows somewhat better oral activity. A similar sequence using formaldehyde gives metampicillin (36). °... 

In the next step of the sequence, the authors sought to introduce a hydroxy-methylene substituent at the unsubstituted 7-position of the enone. This bond construction can be carried out by conducting a Baylis-Hillman reaction with formaldehyde. In this instance, the authors used a modification of the Baylis-Hillman reaction which involves the use of a Lewis acid to activate the enone [26]. Under these conditions, the enone 42 is treated with excess paraformaldehyde in the presence of triethylphosphine (1 equiv), lanthanum triflate (5 mol%), and triethanolamine (50 mol%). It is proposed that the lanthanum triflate forms a complex with the triethanolamine. This complex is able to activate the enone toward 1,4-addition of the nucleophilic catalysts (here, triethylphosphine). In the absence of triethanolamine, the Lewis acid catalyst undergoes nonproductive complexation with the nucleophilic catalyst, leading to diminution of catalysis. Under these conditions, the hydroxymethylene derivative 37 was formed in 70 % yield. In the next step of the sequence, the authors sought to conduct a stereoselective epoxidation of the allylic... 

Shackelford and co-workers studied the 1,2-addition of 2,2-dinitropropanol, 2,2,2-trinitroethanol, and 2-fluoro-2,2-dinitroethanol across the double bonds of vinyl ethers. These reactions are Lewis acid catalyzed because of the weak nucleophilic character of alcohols which contain two or three electron-withdrawing groups on the carbon p to the hydroxy functionality. Base catalysis is precluded since alkaline conditions lead to deformylation with the formation of formaldehyde and the nitronate salt. 

Henry reactions have been extensively exploited for the synthesis of nitrate ester explosives. The condensation of nitroalkanes with aldehydes, followed by esterification of the hydroxy groups with nitric acid, leads to a number of nitrate ester explosives (see Chapter 3). The two examples given above (166 and 167) are synthesized from the C-nitration of the polyols obtained from the condensation of formaldehyde with nitromethane and nitroethane respectively. 

RCH2OH + Co2(CO)7 (72) A known reaction of cobalt hydrocarbonyl suggests that the cobalt-carbon bond may be preferred. It has been reported that, under rather vigorous conditions, acetaldehyde or formaldehyde react with CO and a cobalt catalyst to give o -hydroxy acids or esters in alcohol solution (7). The intermediate with the carbon-cobalt bond probably is undergoing a CO insertion reaction, folllwed by a hydrolysis or... 

As described in the sections above, it is well established that reactions of Lewis acid-activated aldehydes and ketones with silyl enolates afford -hydroxy or /7-sil-oxy carbonyl compounds (Mukaiyama aldol reactions). Occasionally, however, ene-type adducts, that is /-siloxy homoallyl alcohols, are the main products. The first example of the carbonyl-ene reaction of silyl enolates was reported by Snider et al. in 1983 [176]. They found that the formaldehyde-MesAl complex reacted smoothly with ketone TMS enolates to give y-trimethylsiloxy homoallyl alcohols in good yield. Yamamoto et al. reported a similar reaction of formaldehyde complexed with methylaluminum bis(2,6-diphenylphenoxide) [177]. After these early reports, Kuwajima et al. have demonstrated that the aluminum Lewis acid-promoted system is valuable for the ene reactions of several aldehydes [178] and for-maldimine [179] with silyl enolates bearing a bulky silyl group. A stepwise mechanism including nucleophihc addition via an acyclic transition structure has been proposed for the Lewis acid-promoted ene reactions. 

There are two new approaches to the 9-carboxylic acid 613, R = H. One consists in the reaction of dichlorocarbene with 4-methylacetophenone. The initially formed dichloroepoxide reacted with sodium hydroxide, and the main product from the reaction was the hydroxy acid 614, which underwent dehydration to 613 (R = H). The latter formed dimers in boiling water. Methyl (4-methylphenyl)acetate (615) reacted with formaldehyde, and the product 616 was dehydrated to 613 (R = Me). Hydrogenation over rhodium then gave the ester 617, which is also the product of hydroformylation of 615. " ... 

Total syntheses of ( )-capaurine (194 R1 = R2 = R4 = R5 = Me, R3 = OH),209 ( )-isocorybulbine (195 R1 = Me, R2 = R3 = H, R4 = R5 = OMe),202 ( )-kikemanine (194 R1 = R2 = R4 = Me, R3 = R5 = H),210 and ( )-0-methylcaseadine (202)211 have been reported. In all cases, conventional routes involving Bischler-Napieralski cyclization to form benzylisoquinoline derivatives and subsequent insertion of the C(8)-carbon by reaction with formaldehyde were adopted. A further example of para-activation by an ethoxycarbonyl-amino-function for the Bischler-Napieralski reaction may be noted.211 In the synthesis of capaurine, the presence of the bromo-function in compound (203) forced the Mannich reaction with formaldehyde to produce the tetracyclic derivative (204) rather than the normally more favourable mode of cyclization para to the hydroxy-group. Debromination was effected at a later stage with zinc powder in 50 % acetic acid solution.209... 

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