Ketenes reaction with boron reagents

Aldol Reactions. The title reagent and its various congeners continue to find application in Mukaiyama-t3fpe aldol reactions as versatile nucleophilic propionate synthons with predictable behavior.For example, the ( )-isomer of the reagent produced the expected major isomer in a boron trifiuoride etherate mediated addition to a complex aldehyde en route to a C19-C35 subunit of swinholide A (eq 14). Remote stereoinduction in Mukaiyama aldol reactions of the reagent with (2-sulfinylphenyl)acetaldehydes was recently observed anti aldol adducts were obtained preferentially regardless of the geometry of the silyl ketene thioacetal employed. ... 

Observation of the list of borazine derivatives produced photochemically (Table 3) reveals that all of the reagents yielding photochemical products have an electronegative element (either 0,N,F,C1, or Br) which substitutes at the boron site. No B-C bonds have been formed photochemically, even when, as in the CH3Br and the HFA reactions, methyl or perfluoromethyl radicals are present Also, no B-C bonded compounds were formed when borazine was photolyzed with benzene, pyridine, cyclopentadiene, allene, ketene, acetylene, or acetone. 

The Reformatsky reactions of methyl or ethyl bromoacetate with 4-acetoxy-,2,24 4-benzyloxy-,2 4-tetrahydropyranyloxy-,2 4-chloro-,8 and 4,4-dimethoxy-2-butanone1418 have been carried out. The adducts were converted to mevalonolactone by hydrolysis and, in the case of the acetal reactant, by appropriate reduction and oxidation procedures. The same Reformatsky-type syntheses of mevalonolactone have also been performed using the lithium and magnesium carbanions of acetate esters5,19 25 26 and the dianion of acetic acid28,27 instead of the usual zinc reagent. The intramolecular Reformatsky reaction of 4-(bromoacetoxy)-2-butanone gives mevalonolactone directly.28 A related route to mevalonolactone involves boron trifluoride-catalyzed cycloaddition of ketene to 4-acetoxy-2-butanone followed by hydrolysis.183... 

As above (eq 1), a major drawback of this reagent is the lack of a readily available enantiomer. There are many alternative methods for the enantioselective propionate aldol reaction. The most versatile chirally modified propionate enolates or equivalents are N-propionyl-2-oxazolidinones, a-siloxy ketones, boron enolates with chiral ligands, as well as tin enolates. Especially rewarding are new chiral Lewis acids for the asymmetric Mukaiyama reaction of 0-silyl ketene acetals. Most of these reactions afford s yw-aldols good methods for the anri-isomers have only become available recently. ... 

Other Uses. Reagent 1 has been used for enantioselec-tive enolborination, albeit with poor (1.1 1) selectivity. Similar bis-sulfonamide-derived boron Lewis acids have been used for aldol additions, " ester-Mannich reactions, Diels-Alder reactions,Ireland-Claisen reactions, and [2,3]-Wittig rearrangements. Similar bis-sulfonamide-derived aluminum Lewis acids have been used for aldol additions, Diels-Alder reactions, - [2 + 2] ketene-aldehyde cycloadditions, cy-clopropanation of allylic alcohols, and polymerization. ... 

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