Ketoesters zinc addition

Several new routes involve formation of one carbon-carbon bond in pre-formed substrates. Palladium-catalyzed cyclization of /3-hydroxyenamine derivatives has been employed in a route to substituted pyrroles and 4,5,6,7-tetrahy-droindoles with multiple substituents by formation of the C-3-C-4 bond as the key feature, as illustrated by construction of the molecule 534 (Equation 146) <2006T8533>. Zinc perchlorate-catalyzed addition of alcohols to the nitrile functionality of a-cyanomethyl-/3-ketoesters, followed by annulation gave access to a series of substituted ethyl 5-alkoxypyrrole-3-carboxylates <2007T461>. Similar chemistry has also been used for synthesis of a related set of pyrrole-3-phosphonates <2007T4156>. A study on preparation of 3,5,7-functionalized indoles by Heck cyclization of suitable A-allyl substituted 2-haloanilines has also appeared <2006S3467>. In addition, indole-3-acetic acid derivatives have been prepared by base induced annulation of 2-aminocinnamic acid esters (available for instance from 2-iodoani-lines) <2006OL4473>. 

This reaction was also studied with a more complicated nitro ketoester starting material [10]. hi this example, the nucleophilic addition occurs intramolecularly to form a 15-membered macrocycle. Zinc/ammonium chloride reduction to form the hydroxyindole 16 followed by cyclization provided a better yield of 17 (40% over both steps) than the direct tin dichloride reduction of 15 to macrocycle 17 (10%). 

The asymmetric Michael addition of nonstabilised ketone enolates has proved difficult, with most success achieved using 1,3-dicarbonyls as donors. However, Shibasaki and coworkers have achieved high ees in the addition of a-hydroxyketones with both aromatic Michael acceptors such as (11.32) and also cyclic enones and alkyl vinyl ketones, using bifiinctional zinc catalysts prepared from linked BINOL (11.33). These catalysts are also effective in the asymmetric aldol reaction (see Section 7.1) and incorporate two zinc atoms, one of which activates the acceptor carbonyl group and the other forms a zinc enolate with the donor. In addition, catalysts of this type have been used to good effect in the addition of P-ketoesters to cyclic enones. 

Zinc salts function as elfective catalysts in the conversion of 1-ethoxy-vinyl esters (83) into jS-ketoester enol esters (84) the starting esters are readily obtained by mercury-catalysed addition of carboxylic acids to ethoxyacetyl-ene. This rearrangement is most effective with the esters of weak acids, whereas an analogous thermal reaction functions best with esters of strong acids. 

Zinc enolates prepared under Reformatsky conditions undergo addition reactions with nitriles. The initial products are )8-aniino-a,)8-unsaturated esters, which can be readily hydrolyzed to )8-ketoesters. ... 

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