Ketones aldol reaction

In spite of the attractiveness of the aldol manifold, there are several problems that need to be addressed in order to render the process catalytic and effective. The first problem is a thermodynamic one. Most aldol reactions are reversible. Furthermore, the equilibrium is also just barely on the side of the prodncts in the case of simple aldehyde-ketone aldol reactions [79, 80]. In the case of ketone-ketone aldol reactions, the equilibrinm generally lies on the side of starting materials (Scheme 14). Overall, this means that relatively high concentrations of starting materials should be used, and very often one of the components mnst be used in excess. 

Boron-mediated ketone-ketone aldol reactions have been described, using boron enolates formed with dicyclohexylboron chloride and triethylamine.124 Following addition of the acceptor ketone to form a boron aldolate, oxidation with peroxide yields the aldol product. 

Given this problem, the attachment of the butanone synthon to aldehyde 74 prior to the methyl ketone aldol reaction was then addressed. To ovenide the unexpected. vTface preference of aldehyde 74, a chiral reagent was required and an asymmetric. syn crotylboration followed by Wacker oxidation proved effective for generating methyl ketone 87. Based on the previous results, it was considered unlikely that a boron enolate would now add selectively to aldehyde 73. However, a Mukaiyama aldol reaction should favour the desired isomer based on induction from the aldehyde partner. In practice, reaction of the silyl enol ether derived from 87 with aldehyde 73, in the presence of BF3-OEt2, afforded the required Felkin adduct 88 with >97%ds (Scheme 9-29). This provides an excellent example of a stereoselective Mukaiyama aldol reaction uniting a complex ketone and aldehyde, and this key step then enabled the successful first synthesis of swinholide A. 

As previously mentioned, certain methyl ketone aldol reactions enable the stereocontrolled introduction of hydroxyl groups in a, 5-anti relationship (Scheme 9-7) [9], and this was now utilized twice in the synthesis. Hence, methyl ketones 48 and 98 were converted to their respective Ipc boron enolates and reacted with aldehydes 97 and 99 to give almost exclusively the, 5-anti aldol adducts 100 and 101, respectively (Scheme 9-34). In the case of methyl ketone 48, the j -silyl ether leads to reduced stereoinduction however, this could be boosted to >97%ds with the use of chiral ligands. In both examples, the y9-stereocenter of the aldehyde had a moderate reinforcing effect (1,3-syn), thus leading to triply matched aldol reactions. Adducts 100 and 101 were then elaborated to the spiro-acetal containing aldehyde 102 and ketone 103, respectively. 

The Evans group s synthesis of the C1-C28 fragment 105 of spongistatin 2 [55] has several features in common with that described above. As with our synthesis, methyl ketone aldol reactions were used to assemble spiroacetal fragments 106 and 107 (Scheme 9-35). Hence, methyl ketones 108 and 109 were converted to their dibutylboron enolates and reacted with aldehydes 110 and 111, respectively. In the case of methyl ketone 108, the reaction was non-selective, which was not detrimental to the synthesis as the C7 alcohol was subsequently oxidized. As already noted, use of chiral ligands would usually be required for high selectivity... 

Roush has also completed the synthesis of a C13-C25 fragment of bafilomycin A], now using a methyl ketone aldol reaction between ketone 184 and aldehyde 5 to form the C20-C21 bond (Scheme 9-52) [71], This reaction was only. selective (89% ds) under carefully defined conditions which included choice of metal enolate and, remarkably, the remote C15 oxygen protecting group. Replacing the C15 MOM ether with a silyl ether, as in 185, led to a ca. 1 1 mixture of aldol prod-... 

Addition of enolate anions derived from aldehydes or ketones (aldol reactions) and esters (Claisen and Dieckmann condensations) to the carbonyl groups of other aldehydes, ketones, or esters. 

Several other natural products have been synthesized by using titanium enolate-based aldol methods. Many of these syntheses utilize ketone enolate aldol reactions to establish syn stereochemistry. Duthaler s anti aldol reaction was used in the synthesis of tautomycin. Use of Evan s ketone-aldol reaction was nicely exemplified in syntheses of denticulatin B and mem-brenone C. 

Although several groups found that simple proUne is not a useful catalyst under aqueous conditions, under specific, wet, conditions simple proline is able to catalyze aldehyde-aldehyde and aldehyde-ketone aldol reactions enantioselectively (aldols 17-20, Figure 24.7). Wet conditions required the use of 30mol% of proline and 3-3.8 equivalents of water [41]. 

Scheldt KA, Tasaka A, Bannister TD, Wendt MD, Roush WR. Total synthesis of (—)-bafilomycin Ac application of diastereoselective crotylboration and methyl ketone aldol reactions. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 1999 38 1652-1655. 

Evans, D.A. and Gage, J.R. (1990) Reversal of aldehyde diastereofacial selectivity in a methyl ketone aldol reaction. Application to the synthesis of the calyculin spiroketal. Tetrahedron Lett., 31, 6129-6132. 

Ketones, in which one alkyl group R is sterically demanding, only give the trans-enolate on deprotonation with LDA at —12°C (W.A. Kleschick, 1977, see p. 60f.). Ketones also enolize regioseiectively towards the less substituted carbon, and stereoselectively to the trans-enolate, if the enolates are formed by a bulky base and trapped with dialkyl boron triflates, R2BOSO2CF3, at low temperatures (D A. Evans, 1979). Both types of trans-enolates can be applied in stereoselective aldol reactions (see p. 60f.). 

A useful catalyst for asymmetric aldol additions is prepared in situ from mono-0> 2,6-diisopropoxybenzoyl)tartaric acid and BH3 -THF complex in propionitrile solution at 0 C. Aldol reactions of ketone enol silyl ethers with aldehydes were promoted by 20 mol % of this catalyst solution. The relative stereochemistry of the major adducts was assigned as Fischer- /ir o, and predominant /i -face attack of enol ethers at the aldehyde carbonyl carbon atom was found with the (/ ,/ ) nantiomer of the tartaric acid catalyst (K. Furuta, 1991). 

Stereoselectivities of 99% are also obtained by Mukaiyama type aldol reactions (cf. p. 58) of the titanium enolate of Masamune s chired a-silyloxy ketone with aldehydes. An excess of titanium reagent (s 2 mol) must be used to prevent interference by the lithium salt formed, when the titanium enolate is generated via the lithium enolate (C. Siegel, 1989). The mechanism and the stereochemistry are the same as with the boron enolate. 

Cleavage reactions of carbohydrates also occur on treatment with aqueous base for prolonged periods as a consequence of base catalyzed retro aldol reactions As pointed out m Section 18 9 aldol addition is a reversible process and (3 hydroxy carbonyl com pounds can be cleaved to an enolate and either an aldehyde or a ketone... 

Formaldehyde condenses with itself in an aldol-type reaction to yield lower hydroxy aldehydes, hydroxy ketones, and other hydroxy compounds the reaction is autocatalytic and is favored by alkaline conditions. Condensation with various compounds gives methylol (—CH2OH) and methylene (=CH2) derivatives. The former are usually produced under alkaline or neutral conditions, the latter under acidic conditions or in the vapor phase. In the presence of alkahes, aldehydes and ketones containing a-hydrogen atoms undergo aldol reactions with formaldehyde to form mono- and polymethylol derivatives. Acetaldehyde and 4 moles of formaldehyde give pentaerythritol (PE) ... 

Ba.se Catalyzed. Depending on the nature of the hydrocarbon groups attached to the carbonyl, ketones can either undergo self-condensation, or condense with other activated reagents, in the presence of base. Name reactions which describe these conditions include the aldol reaction, the Darzens-Claisen condensation, the Claisen-Schmidt condensation, and the Michael reaction. 

Some unsaturated ketones derived from acetone can undergo base- or acid-catalyzed exothermic thermal decomposition at temperatures under 200°C. Experiments conducted under adiabatic conditions (2) indicate that mesityl oxide decomposes at 96°C in the presence of 5 wt % of aqueous sodium hydroxide (20%), and that phorone undergoes decomposition at 180°C in the presence of 1000 ppm iron. The decomposition products from these reactions are endothermic hydrolysis and cleavage back to acetone, and exothermic aldol reactions to heavy residues. 

Aldol reaction of the campholenic aldehyde with 2-butanone gives the intermediate ketones from condensation at both the methyl group and methylene group of 2-butanone (Fig. 6). Hydrogenation results in only one of the two products formed as having a typical sandalwood odor (160). 

Butyraldehyde undergoes stereoselective crossed aldol addition with diethyl ketone [96-22-0] ia the presence of a staimous triflate catalyst (14) to give a predominantiy erythro product (3). Other stereoselective crossed aldol reactions of //-butyraldehyde have been reported (15). 

The aldol reactions of enamines may be formally considered to proceed via acyclic amino aldehyde or amino ketone forms, in spite of the fact that the cyclic enamine forms can also take part in aldol reactions. 

The addition of the a-carbon of an enolizable aldehyde or ketone 1 to the carbonyl group of a second aldehyde or ketone 2 is called the aldol reaction It is a versatile method for the formation of carbon-carbon bonds, and is frequently used in organic chemistry. The initial reaction product is a /3-hydroxy aldehyde (aldol) or /3-hydroxy ketone (ketol) 3. A subsequent dehydration step can follow, to yield an o ,/3-unsaturated carbonyl compound 4. In that case the entire process is also called aldol condensation. 

If the initially formed /3-hydroxy carbonyl compound 3 still has an a-hydrogen, a subsequent elimination of water can take place, leading to an o ,/3-unsaturated aldehyde or ketone 4. In some cases the dehydration occurs already under the aldol reaction conditions in general it can be carried out by heating in the presence of acid ... 

Several pairs of reactants are possible. The aldol reaction between two molecules of the same aldehyde is generally quite successful, since the equilibrium lies far to the right. For the analogous reaction of ketones, the equilibrium lies to the left, and the reaction conditions have to be adjusted properly in order to achieve satisfactory yields (e.g. by using a Soxhlet extractor). 

If only one of the two aldehydes has an a-hydrogen, only two aldols can be formed and numerous examples have been reported, where the crossed aldol reaction is the major pathway. For two different ketones, similar considerations do apply in addition to the unfavorable equilibrium mentioned above, which is why such reactions are seldom attempted. 

In general the reaction of an aldehyde with a ketone is synthetically useful. Even if both reactants can form an enol, the a-carbon of the ketone usually adds to the carbonyl group of the aldehyde. The opposite case—the addition of the a-carbon of an aldehyde to the carbonyl group of a ketone—can be achieved by the directed aldol reaction The general procedure is to convert one reactant into a preformed enol derivative or a related species, prior to the intended aldol reaction. For instance, an aldehyde may be converted into an aldimine 7, which can be deprotonated by lithium diisopropylamide (EDA) and then add to the carbonyl group of a ketone ... 

By using the directed aldol reaction, unsymmetrical ketones can be made to react regioselectively. After conversion into an appropriate enol derivative (e.g. trimethylsilyl enol ether 8) the ketone reacts at the desired a-carbon. 

Besides the aldol reaction in the true sense, there are several other analogous reactions, where some enolate species adds to a carbonyl compound. Such reactions are often called aldol-type reactions the term aldol reaction is reserved for the reaction of aldehydes and ketones. 

The term Knoevenagel reaction however is used also for analogous reactions of aldehydes and ketones with various types of CH-acidic methylene compounds. The reaction belongs to a class of carbonyl reactions, that are related to the aldol reaction. The mechanism is formulated by analogy to the latter. The initial step is the deprotonation of the CH-acidic methylene compound 2. Organic bases like amines can be used for this purpose a catalytic amount of amine usually suffices. A common procedure, that uses pyridine as base as well as solvent, together with a catalytic amount of piperidine, is called the Doebner modification of the Knoevenagel reaction. 

The reaction of a cyclic ketone—e.g. cyclohexanone 1—with methyl vinyl ketone 2 resulting in a ring closure to yield a bicyclic a ,/3-unsaturated ketone 4, is called the Robinson annulation This reaction has found wide application in the synthesis of terpenes, and especially of steroids. Mechanistically the Robinson annulation consists of two consecutive reactions, a Michael addition followed by an Aldol reaction. Initially, upon treatment with a base, the cyclic ketone 1 is deprotonated to give an enolate, which undergoes a conjugate addition to the methyl vinyl ketone, i.e. a Michael addition, to give a 1,5-diketone 3 ... 

Since most often the selective formation of just one stereoisomer is desired, it is of great importance to develop highly selective methods. For example the second step, the aldol reaction, can be carried out in the presence of a chiral auxiliary—e.g. a chiral base—to yield a product with high enantiomeric excess. This has been demonstrated for example for the reaction of 2-methylcyclopenta-1,3-dione with methyl vinyl ketone in the presence of a chiral amine or a-amino acid. By using either enantiomer of the amino acid proline—i.e. (S)-(-)-proline or (/ )-(+)-proline—as chiral auxiliary, either enantiomer of the annulation product 7a-methyl-5,6,7,7a-tetrahydroindan-l,5-dione could be obtained with high enantiomeric excess. a-Substituted ketones, e.g. 2-methylcyclohexanone 9, usually add with the higher substituted a-carbon to the Michael acceptor ... 

---