Ketene, 5//-acetals

Lewis acid promoted condensation of silyl ketene acetals (ester enolate equiv.) with aldehydes proceeds via "open" transition state to give anti aldols starting from either E- or Z- enolates. 

The oxidation of the cyclic enol ether 93 in MeOH affords the methyl ester 95 by hydrolysis of the ketene acetal 94 formed initially by regioselective attack of the methoxy group at the anomeric carbon, rather than the a-alkoxy ketone[35]. Similarly, the double bond of the furan part in khellin (96) is converted ino the ester 98 via the ketene acetal 97[l23],... 

Polymerization of methacrylates is also possible via what is known as group-transfer polymerization. Although only limited commercial use has been made of this technique, it does provide a route to block copolymers that is not available from ordinary free-radical polymerizations. In a prototypical group-transfer polymerization the fluoride-ion-catalyzed reaction of a methacrylate (or acrylate) in the presence of a silyl ketene acetal gives a high molecular weight polymer (45—50). 

The anionic polymerization of methacrylates using a silyl ketene acetal initiator has been termed group-transfer polymerization (GTP). First reported by Du Pont researchers in 1983 (100), group-transfer polymerization allows the control of methacrylate molecular stmcture typical of living polymers, but can be conveniendy mn at room temperature and above. The use of GTP to prepare block polymers, comb-graft polymers, loop polymers, star polymers, and functional polymers has been reported (100,101). 

During this early period, a very ingenious free-radical route to polyesters was used to introduce weak linkages into the backbones of hydrocarbon polymers and render them susceptible to bio degradabihty (128—131). Copolymerization of ketene acetals with vinyl monomers incorporates an ester linkage into the polymer backbone by rearrangement of the ketene acetal radical as illustrated in equation 13. The ester is a potential site for biological attack. The chemistry has been demonstrated with ethylene (128—131), acryhc acid (132), and styrene (133). 

In 1959 Carboni and Lindsay first reported the cycloaddition reaction between 1,2,4,5-tetrazines and alkynes or alkenes (59JA4342) and this reaction type has become a useful synthetic approach to pyridazines. In general, the reaction proceeds between 1,2,4,5-tetrazines with strongly electrophilic substituents at positions 3 and 6 (alkoxycarbonyl, carboxamido, trifluoromethyl, aryl, heteroaryl, etc.) and a variety of alkenes and alkynes, enol ethers, ketene acetals, enol esters, enamines (78HC(33)1073) or even with aldehydes and ketones (79JOC629). With alkenes 1,4-dihydropyridazines (172) are first formed, which in most cases are not isolated but are oxidized further to pyridazines (173). These are obtained directly from alkynes which are, however, less reactive in these cycloaddition reactions. In general, the overall reaction which is presented in Scheme 96 is strongly... 

Other isocyanates undergo [2 + 2] cycloaddition, but only with very electron rich alkenes. Thus phenyl isocyanate gives /3-lactams with ketene acetals and tetramethoxyethylene. With enamines, unstable /3-lactams are formed if the enamine has a /3-H atom, ring opened amides are produced 2 1 adducts are also found. Photochemical addition of cis- and traH5-stilbene to phenyl isocyanate has also been reported (72CC362). 

R,5S,6R)-4-(t-Butoxycarbonyl)-5,6-dlphenyl-3>[(sthoxycarbonyt)methyl]-2,3,5,6-tetrahydro-4H-oxazln-2-one (6) To a stirred solution of erode 4 (226 mg 0 48 mmoQ m CH2CI2 (11 mL) was added ketene acetal 5 (450 mg, 2 42 mmol) followed by addition of 2nCl2 (575 mL, 0 44 mmol, 0 76M m THF) Alter 4 min ( was quenched with water Radial chromatography (silica gel EtOAc hexane 1 4) afforded 179 mg of 6 (78%)... 

Fluormated organosilanes are also formed by the addiuon of trimethylsily-iated ketene acetals to hexafluoroaceione [S ], a process that appears to be dnven by the enhanced electrophihcity of the carbonyl carbon, which results from the presence of two adjacent influoromethyl groups (equation 72)... 

The Lewis acid-catalyzed addition of silyl kelene acetals occurred m high yield, and when the ketene acetal bore a substituent, the reactions occurred with modest diastereofacial selectivity [d] (equation 7) (Table 3)... 

Table 3. Reaction of (5)-3-Ben2yloxy-2-fIuoro-2-methylpropionaldehyde with Silyl Enol Ethers and Silyl Ketene Acetals [6]...

Ketene acetals prepared from fluorinated esters by trimethylsilylation undergo Lewis acid-promoted aldol condensations giving satisfactory yields but low diastereoselectivity [27] (equation 22). 

For 71, ketene acetal 73 was paired with azabutadiene 74. The cycloadduct was immediately treated with base to afford 75. This compound was eventually converted into 71. 

Using a slightly different ketene acetal 77, reaction with 76 and exposure to sodium ethoxide generated 78. This served as a precursor to 72. 

The hetero Diels-Alder [4+2] cycloaddition (HDA reaction) is a very efficient methodology to perform pyrimidine-to-pyridine transformations. Normal (NHDA) and Inverse (IHDA) cycloaddition reactions, intramolecular as well as intermolecular, are reported, although the IHDA cycloadditions are more frequently observed. The NHDA reactions require an electron-rich heterocycle, which reacts with an electron-poor dienophile, while in the IHDA cycloadditions a n-electron-deficient heterocycle reacts with electron-rich dienophiles, such as 0,0- and 0,S-ketene acetals, S,S-ketene thioacetals, N,N-ketene acetals, enamines, enol ethers, ynamines, etc. 

Extension of this work by reacting 5-nitropyrimidine with 0,0-ketene acetals and with other cyclic and non-cyclic enamines showed that also with these electron-rich dienophiles the addition is regioselective and gives rise to the formation of 2-mono- or 2,3-disubstituted 5-nitropyridines (Scheme 30). Thus, reaction of 5-nitropyrimidine with the cyclic N,S-ketene acetals 4,5-dihydro-1 -methyl-2-methylthiopyrrole and 4,5,6,7-tetrahydro-1 -methyl-2-methylthioazepine gives in low yields 2,3-dihydro-1-methyl-5-nitropyr-olo[2,3-h]pyridine and the 5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-9-methyl-3-nitropyrido [2,3-Z)]azepine, respectively (89T2693) (Scheme 30). 

Scheeren et al. reported the first enantioselective metal-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction of nitrones with alkenes in 1994 [26]. Their approach involved C,N-diphenylnitrone la and ketene acetals 2, in the presence of the amino acid-derived oxazaborolidinones 3 as the catalyst (Scheme 6.8). This type of boron catalyst has been used successfully for asymmetric Diels-Alder reactions [27, 28]. In this reaction the nitrone is activated, according to the inverse electron-demand, for a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition with the electron-rich alkene. The reaction is thus controlled by the LUMO inone-HOMOaikene interaction. They found that coordination of the nitrone to the boron Lewis acid strongly accelerated the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction with ketene acetals. The reactions of la with 2a,b, catalyzed by 20 mol% of oxazaborolidinones such as 3a,b were carried out at -78 °C. In some reactions fair enantioselectivities were induced by the catalysts, thus, 4a was obtained with an optical purity of 74% ee, however, in a low yield. The reaction involving 2b gave the C-3, C-4-cis isomer 4b as the only diastereomer of the product with 62% ee. 

A quite different type of titanium catalyst has been used in an inverse electron-demand 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition. Bosnich et al. applied the chiral titanocene-(OTf)2 complex 32 for the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition between the cyclic nitrone 14a and the ketene acetal 2c (Scheme 6.25). The reaction only proceeded in the presence of the catalyst and a good cis/trans ratio of 8 92 was obtained using catalyst 32, however, only 14% ee was observed for the major isomer [70]. 

Dipolar cydoadditions are one of the most useful synthetic methods to make stereochemically defined five-membered heterocydes. Although a variety of dia-stereoselective 1,3-dipolar cydoadditions have been well developed, enantioselec-tive versions are still limited [29]. Nitrones are important 1,3-dipoles that have been the target of catalyzed enantioselective reactions [66]. Three different approaches to catalyzed enantioselective reactions have been taken (1) activation of electron-defident alkenes by a chiral Lewis acid [23-26, 32-34, 67], (2) activation of nitrones in the reaction with ketene acetals [30, 31], and (3) coordination of both nitrones and allylic alcohols on a chiral catalyst [20]. Among these approaches, the dipole/HOMO-controlled reactions of electron-deficient alkenes are especially promising because a variety of combinations between chiral Lewis acids and electron-deficient alkenes have been well investigated in the study of catalyzed enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions. Enantioselectivities in catalyzed nitrone cydoadditions sometimes exceed 90% ee, but the efficiency of catalytic loading remains insufficient. 

The directions of McElvain and Kundiger2 regarding the storage of ketene acetals should be followed. The submitters have found that storage at 0°, in a bottle which was previously washed with a hot concentrated caustic solution, is satisfactoiy. 

Ketene di(2-melhoxyethyl) acetal has been obtained by the present method with the use of diethylene glycol dimethyl ether as solvent.3 Other methods for the preparation of ketene acetals include the dehydrohalogenation of a halo acetal with potassium t-butoxide 4 and the reaction of an a-bromo orthoester with metallic sodium.5... 

This synthetic process is applicable to the preparation of other ketene acetal derivatives of /3-alkoxy alcohols. Examples include the ketene acetal derivatives of tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol and l-methoxy-2-propanol.3 There are a number of advantages in its use, including a simple, time-saving procedure, readily available and inexpensive reagents, and good yields of ketene acetal obtained by a one-step method. 

Compounds of special interest whose preparation is described include 1,2,3-benzothiadiazole 1,1-dioxide (a benzyne precursor under exceptionally mild conditions), bis(l,3-diphenylimida-zolidinylidene-2) (whose chemistry is quite remarkable), 6- di-melhylamino)julvene (a useful intermediate for fused-ring non-benzenoid aromatic compounds), dipkenylcyclopropenone (the synthesis of which is a milestone in theoretical organic chemistry), ketene di(2-melhoxyethyl) acetal (the easiest ketene acetal to prepare), 2-methylcyclopenlane-l,3-dione (a useful intermediate in steroid synthesis), and 2-phenyl-5-oxazolone (an important intermediate in amino acid chemistry). 

Intermediate 7, a viable precursor of intermediate 6, possesses a y,<5-unsaturated ester, the structural prerequisite, or retron, for the ortho ester Claisen transform.5 In the synthetic direction, the convergent union of intermediates 9 and 10 could give mixed-ketene acetal 8 the intermediacy of 8 should be brief, for it should readily... 

A prominent structural feature of 21 and its precursor 22 is the trans C16-C17 trisubstituted double bond. The particular relationship between the ethoxycarbonyl function and the A16 17 double bond in 22 is significant because it satisfies the structural prerequisite for the Johnson ortho ester Claisen rearrangement transform.2130 Mixed ketene acetal 23 thus emerges as the immediate... 

Schemes 28 and 29 illustrate Curran s synthesis of ( )-hirsutene [( )-1]. Luche reduction58 of 2-methylcyclopentenone (137), followed by acetylation of the resulting allylic alcohol, furnishes allylic acetate 138. Although only one allylic acetate stereoisomer is illustrated in Scheme 28, compound 138 is, of course, produced in racemic form. By way of the powerful Ireland ester enolate Clai-sen rearrangement,59 compound 138 can be transformed to y,S-unsaturated tm-butyldimethylsilyl ester 140 via the silyl ketene acetal intermediate 139. In 140, the silyl ester function and the methyl-substituted ring double bond occupy neighboring regions of space, a circumstance that favors a phenylselenolactonization reac-...

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