Iron, tricarbonyl oxidative cyclization

The oxidative cyclization of chiral 2-pyrrolidino-l-ethanol derivatives is shown in the reaction of 251 with trimethyl-amine iV-oxide and a substoichiometric amount of cyclohexadiene iron tricarbonyl to produce the corresponding oxazolopyrrolidine ring 252. The mechanism of this reaction is unknown. Both amine oxide and iron complex are essential for the reaction (Equation 39) <2005TL3407>. 

More recently, an environmentally benign method using air as oxidant has been developed for the oxidative cyclization of arylamine-substituted tricarbonyl-iron-cyclohexadiene complexes to carbazoles (Scheme 19). Reaction of methyl 4-aminosalicylate 45 with the complex salt 6a affords the iron complex 46, which on oxidation in acidic medium by air provides the tricarbonyliron-complexed 4a,9a-dihydrocarbazole 47. Aromatization with concomitant demetalation by treatment of the crude product with p-chloranil leads to mukonidine 48 [88]. The spectral data of this compound are in agreement with those reported by Wu[22j. 

Tricarbonyliron-coordinated cyclohexadienylium ions 569 were shown to be useful electrophiles for the electrophilic aromatic substitution of functionally diverse electron-rich arylamines 570. This reaction combined with the oxidative cyclization of the arylamine-substituted tricarbonyl(ri -cyclohexadiene)iron complexes 571, leads to a convergent total synthesis of a broad range of carbazole alkaloids. The overall transformation involves consecutive iron-mediated C-C and C-N bond formation followed by aromatization (8,10) (Schemes 5.24 and 5.25). 

Over the past 15 years, we developed three procedures for the iron-mediated carbazole synthesis, which differ in the mode of oxidative cyclization arylamine cyclization, quinone imine cyclization, and oxidative cyclization by air (8,10,557,558). The one-pot transformation of the arylamine-substituted tricarbonyl(ri -cyclohexadiene) iron complexes 571 to the 9H-carbazoles 573 proceeds via a sequence of cyclization, aromatization, and demetalation. This iron-mediated arylamine cyclization has been widely applied to the total synthesis of a broad range of 1-oxygenated, 3-oxygenated, and 3,4-dioxygenated carbazole alkaloids (Scheme 5.24). 

An alternative method for the oxidative cyclization of the arylamine-substituted tricarbonyl(r -cyclohexa-l,3-diene)iron complex (725) is the iron-mediated arylamine cyclization. Using ferricenium hexafluorophosphate in the presence of sodium carbonate provided hyellazole (245) directly, along with the complex 727, which was also converted to the natural product (599,600) (Scheme 5.71). 

Using a one-pot process of oxidative cyclization in air, the arylamine 780a was transformed to the tricarbonyl(ri -4b,8a-dihydro-9H-carbazole)iron complex 792. Finally, demetalation of 792 and subsequent aromatization gave carbazomycin A (260). This synthesis provided carbazomycin A (260) in three steps and 65% overall yield based on 602 (previous route four steps and 35% yield based on 602) (610) (Scheme 5.88). 

The reaction of two alkynes in the presence of pentacarbonyliron affords via a [2 + 2 + 1]-cycloaddition tricarbonyl(ri4-cyclopentadienone)iron complexes (Scheme 1.6) [5, 21-23]. An initial ligand exchange of two carbon monoxide ligands by two alkynes generating a tricarbonyl[bis(ri2-alkyne)]iron complex followed by an oxidative cyclization generates an intermediate ferracyclopentadiene. Insertion of carbon monoxide and subsequent reductive elimination lead to the tricarbonyl(T 4-cyclopentadienone)iron complex. These cyclopentadienone-iron complexes are fairly stable but can be demetallated to their corresponding free ligands (see Section 1.2.2). The [2 + 2 + l]-cycloaddition requires stoichiometric amounts of iron as the final 18-electron cyclopentadienone complex is stable under the reaction conditions. 

In 1989 we reported an iron-mediated route for the construction of the tricyclic carbazole skeleton [72, 73]. This convergent method was applied to the total synthesis of the naturally occurring alkaloid carbazomycin A [72]. Key steps of our iron-mediated approach are the consecutive C C bond formation and oxidative cyclization (formation of the C N bond) between an electrophilic tricarbonyl(ri -cyclohexadienyhum)iron complex salt 30 and an arylamine 31 (Scheme 10). Subsequent oxidation and demetalation provides the aromatized carbazole 32. 

Alternatively, a mild and efficient one-pot electrophilic aromatic substitution/ oxidative cyclization without isolation of the intermediate complexes 36 has been achieved using air as oxidizing agent (mode B in Scheme 12). Thus, reaction via mode B leads to tricarbonyl(ri" -4a,9a-dihydrocarbazole)iron complexes 37, which on demetalation with trimethylamine A(-oxide and subsequent catalytic dehydrogenation provide the carbazoles 40. The naturally occurring carbazole... 

A third pathway leads via the quinone imine intermediates 38 to 3-hydro-xycarbazoles 41 (mode C in Scheme 12) [97, 98, 108, 109]. Oxidation of the complexes 36 with manganese dioxide afforded the quinone imines 38, which on treatment with very active manganese dioxide undergo oxidative cyclization to the tricarbonyl(ri" -4b,8a-dihydrocarbazol-3-one)iron complexes 39. Demetalation of 39 with trimethylamine iV-oxide and subsequent aromatization lead to the 3-hydro-xycarbazoles 41. The isomerization providing the aromatic carbazole system is a... 

The requisite tricarbonyl(ii -cyclohexadienylium)iron cation 2 is prepared from 1,3-cyclohexadiene and FefCOlj followed by treatment with triphenylmethyl carbocation tetrafluoroborate as shown. Subsequent oxidative cyclization of iron complex 3 with commercial manganese dioxide affords the iron-complexed dihydrocarbazol-3-one 4. 

Tricarbonyl(ri -cyclohexa-l,3-diene)iron complexes are intermediates in the reaction of tricarbonyI(T -cyclohexadienylium)iron complexes with substituted anilines in the presence of air (Scheme 4-131). Under these conditions, concomitant oxidative cyclization of the intermediate aniline-functionalized (ri -cyclohexa-l,3-diene)iron complexes occurs to give tricarbonyliron-complexed dihydrocarbazoles. The latter are... 

Tricarbonyl(cyclohexadienyl)iron cations react with a variety of nucleophiles to give substituted tricarbonyl(cyclohexadienyl)iron complexes88 with arylamines, N- or C-alkylation can occur depending on the nature of aryl ring substituents. Deligation of C-alkylated arylamines can be achieved by either ferric chloride, which gives the free arylamine, or by iodine in the latter case, cyclization with concomitant oxidation occurs, and carbazoles are produced in moderate yield (Scheme 52).89... 

In the quinone imine cyclization of iron complexes to carbazoles, the arylamine-substituted tricarbonyl(ri -cyclohexadiene)iron complexes 571 are chemoselectively oxidized to a quinone imine 574 prior to cyclodehydrogenation. This mode of cyclization is particularly applicable for the total synthesis of 3-oxygenated tricyclic carbazole alkaloids (Scheme 5.25). 

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