Intramolecular reactions regioselectivity

We begin with the discussion of intramolecular reactions. An example of a regioselec-tive Dieckmann condensation (J.P. Schaefer, 1967) used an educt with two ester groups, of which only one could form an enolate. Regioselectivity was dictated by the structure of the educt. 

Woodward s ingenious synthesis of chlorophyll a is based, in the first part of the synthetic approach, on a classical porphyrin synthesis using two dipyrrylmethanes for the formation of the macrotetracycle. The problem of regioselectivity in the connection of the two unsymmetric pyrrylmethane halves 1 and 2 was solved by the formation of SchifF base 3 between the two halves prior to the condensation so that the macrotetracycle formation occurred by an intramolecular reaction. 

As for chlorins and bacteriochlorins, reactions at the chromophore periphery of porphyrins can be used to prepare isobacteriochlorins. The lack of regioselectivity in these reactions necessitates the use of highly symmetric porphyrins as starting materials. In some cases, intramolecular reactions have been used to solve the problems of regioselectivity. 

Allylic CH bonds can be substituted fairly regioselectively by using an intramolecular reaction (Eq. 12) [80] or suitable substitution (Eq. 13) [81]. 

Less extended investigations have been carried out for the stereochemistry of further substitution reactions, which mostly proceed with lower regioselectivities a-carboxylation (inversion) reaction with methyl chloroformate in the a-position (inversion) a-acylation by 2,2-dimethylpropanoyl chloride (inversion)" y-methylation by methyl iodide (anti-S g) and methyl triflate syn-S f° , intramolecular reactions with allyl chlorides (a, inversion or y, awh -S see Section IV.C.3). 

Photocycloaddition reactions have been used as key transformations in many organic syntheses to construct organic compounds having unique structures that are hardly accessible by other methods. However, their stereoselectivity is not necessarily high, and many efforts have been done to attain the highly regioselective and stereoselective photocycloadditions. They are discussed in terms of the electronic nature of substrates, the steric repulsions between substituents, and the conformational restrictions of intramolecular reactions. 

According to the Baldwin rule, the exo cyclization mode is favored in intramolecular reactions of alkynyloxiranes with alcohols to afford cyclic ethers. However, the unfavorable endo cyclization mode is observed by the complexation. Thus exclusive endo cyclization of epoxide complex 146 takes place regioselectively to give 147, without forming the five-membered ether 148 by exo mode reaction [37]. 

In summary, the C-H insertion chemistry of rhodium carbenoids is a very powerful method for transformation of C-H bonds. Highly regioselective and stereoselective reactions are possible and several classes of chiral catalyst are capable of very high asymmetric induction. The chemoselectivity in this chemistry is exceptional, as illustrated by the numerous intermolecular and intramolecular reactions described in this overview. Most notably, this chemistry offers new and practical strategies for enantioselective synthesis of a variety of natural products and pharmaceutical agents. 

As already mentioned (see Chaps. 8.2 and 8.3), the addition of an unsymmetrical enone to an unsymmetrical alkene usually affords a mixture of the possible regioisomers. This is illustrated in Sch. 10 for the reaction of cyclopentenone 28 with allylic alcohol as alkene where a mixture of eight cycloadducts is obtained. A very efficient way in controlling the regiochemical outcome for such a reaction has been proposed by Crimmins by using a siloxane as temporary tether, i.e., cyclopentenone 29 in an intramolecular reaction which now proceeds regioselectively to give first tricycle 30 and then the desired cycloadduct 31 [56]. 

The intramolecular reaction works well to give heterocyclic rings—the regioselectivity is usually determined by the length of the chain and how far it can reach. Here a 6/5 fused product is preferred to a bridged product containing two seven-membered rings. 

Cycloaddition of 7-oxanorbomadiene derivatives has been reported (Scheme 247). 5-Bromo-7-azanorbomenes undergo regioselective Pauson-Khand reaction to give (168). The bromine is lost during the reaction (Scheme 248). A-Protected alkynylamides undergo intramolecular reactions with alkenes to give 2-amidocyclopentenones (Scheme 249). 

As an electrochemical reaction, Torii and co-workers demonstrated that the facile transformation of alkenes into allylic alcohols and ethers proceeded in the presence of a catalytic amount (10 mol%) of diphenyl diselenide (Scheme 15) [18]. Most of terminal co double bonds of isoprenoids undergo regioselective oxyselenenylation-deselenenylation to give frans-allylic alcohols in aqueous acetonitrile and methyl ethers in methanol. The addition of SOI salts improves chemical yields since SOI salts prevent the conversion of phenylselenenic acid (PhSeOH) into the inert phenylseleninic acid (PhSe02H) by both disproportionation and electro-oxidation. This method was also applied to intramolecular reaction to form -lactone in high yield. 

The reactions of Fischer carbene complexes with alkynes can under certain conditions lead to products that result from the incorporation of two alkynes, the carbene ligand and a carbon monoxide. In inter-molecular reactions, this is most commonly observed for acetylene itself or for sterically unhindered al-kynes. °2 As can be anticipated by the mechanism in Scheme 36, two-alkyne incorporated products of the type (258) are also favored for high alkyne concentration. Synthetically, the two-alkyne reactions are most useful in intramolecular reactions, two of which have been reported and are exemplified by the reactions in Scheme 43. The typical product from the reaction of a Fischer carbene complex with a diyne, such as (308), is a bicyclic phenol of the type (309). ° These products are apparently the result of the assembly of pieces indicated by (311). Under some conditions, dienones of the type (310) and (314) can be isolated, and it is thought they are the immediate precursors of the phenol products via an in situ reduction by a chromium(O) species. This reaction is completely regioselective with diyne (308) and the phenol (309) results from incorporation of the terminal alkyne of (308) before the disubstituted alkyne. Phenols of the type (309) have also been observed from the reaction of diynes with carbyne complexes. ... 

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