Ketones with ester enolates

Among Michael acceptors that have been shown to react with ketone and ester enolates under kinetic conditions are methyl a-trimethylsilylvinyl ketone,295 methyl a-methylthioacrylate,296 methyl methylthiovinyl sulfoxide,297 and ethyl a-cyanoacrylate.298 Each of these acceptors benefits from a second anion-stabilizing substituent. The latter class of acceptors has been found to be capable of generating contiguous quaternary carbon centers. 

Nitroethylene is extremely reactive and sensitive to strong basic conditions, but various ketone and ester enolates undergo alkylation with nitroethylene at low temperature (Eq. 4.5165 and Table 4.1). 

In aldol reactions, especially Mukaiyama aldol reactions, TiIV compounds are widely employed as efficient promoters. The reactions of aldehydes or ketones with reactive enolates, such as silyl enol ethers derived from ketones, proceed smoothly to afford /3-hydroxycarbonyl compounds in the presence of a stoichiometric amount of TiCl4 (Scheme 17).6, 66 Many examples have been reported in addition to silyl enol ethers derived from ketones, ketene silyl acetals derived from ester derivatives and vinyl ethers can also serve as enolate components.67-69... 

Ketone and ester enolates have historically proven problematic as nucleophiles for the transition metal-catalyzed allylic alkylation reaction, which can be attributed, at least in part, to their less stabilized and more basic nature. In Hght of these limitations, Tsuji demonstrated the first rhodium-catalyzed allylic alkylation reaction using the trimethly-silyl enol ether derived from cyclohexanone, albeit in modest yield (Eq. 4) [9]. Matsuda and co-workers also examined rhodium-catalyzed allylic alkylation, using trimethylsilyl enol ethers with a wide range of aUyhc carbonates [22]. However, this study was problematic as exemplified by the poor regio- and diastereocontrol, which clearly delineates the limitations in terms of the synthetic utihty of this particular reaction. 

The use of /i-ketocstcrs and malonic ester enolates has largely been supplanted by the development of the newer procedures based on selective enolate formation that permit direct alkylation of ketone and ester enolates and avoid the hydrolysis and decarboxylation of ketoesters intermediates. Most enolate alkylations are carried out by deprotonating the ketone under conditions that are appropriate for kinetic or thermodynamic control. Enolates can also be prepared from silyl enol ethers and by reduction of enones (see Section 1.3). Alkylation also can be carried out using silyl enol ethers by reaction with fluoride ion.31 Tetraalkylammonium fluoride salts in anhydrous solvents are normally the... 

Attempts to extend the organometallic addition reaction to A -trialkylsilylimines derived from enoliz-able ketones have been frustrated by difficulties encountered in the preparation of these silylimines (due to competitive enolization), in addition to the existence of a tautomeric equilibrium between desired silylimines and the corresponding enamines. As a result, addition products (formed in low yield) are accompanied by significant amounts of starting materials (presumably generated via enamine hydrolysis).However, silylimines derived from enolizable aldehydes reportedly can be generated and trapped in situ with ester enolates to form 3-lactams (18-60% yield). 

These tri(alkoxy)titanium enolates, which have low Lewis acidity, are known to react chemoselective-ly with an aldehyde group in the presence of a ketone (equation 4). Other uses described by Reetz et al. include the diastereofacially selective additions of ketone and ester enolates to chiral a-alkoxy aldehydes with nonchelation control. - For example, aldol addition of the tri(isopropoxy)titanium enolate of pro-piophenone to the aldehyde (24) leads to only the two syn diastereomers, with the nonchelation adduct (25) favored (equation 5) i.e. Felkin-Anh selectivity is operating. In the case of aldol addition of t-butyl propionate to the same aldehyde (equation 6), highest stereoselectivity for the isomer (26) is obtained using the tri(diethylamino)titanium enolate. Very high levels of nonchelation stereoselectivity can also be obtained in the aldol addition to chiral a-siloxy or a-benzyloxy ketones if a titanium enolate of low Lewis acidity is employed, as in equation (7). ... 

For amide enolates, the situation is similar in that, when R3 and Y are large, the transition structures of paths a and c are favored [158]. However, recall that acyclic amides invariably form Z(0j-enolates, so amide COj-enolates are only possible when R2 and Y are joined i.e., in a lactam. In contrast to ketone and ester enolates, however, the transition structures of paths b and d appear to be intrinsically favored when Y and R3 are small. This latter trend is (at least partly) contrary to what would be expected based on the simple analysis of Figure 5.9, but can be rationalized as follows. For the lactams, the R2 and Y substituents present a rather flat profile, so that interaction with R3 in path d is minimal. Additionally, the R2-Y ring eclipses the P-hydrogen of the enone in c, destabilizing this structure. For amide Z(0)-enolates and acceptors with an R3 substituent such as a phenyl, there may actually be an attractive interaction between Y and R3, favoring path b. 

The 2-sulfonyloxaziridine (57) is a more selective oxidant than peracids. The reagent has been employed in the oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides, disulfides to thiolsulfinates, selenides to selenoxides, thiols to sulfenic acids, organometallic reagents to alcohols and phenols, ketone and ester enolates to a-hydroxycarbonyl compounds (equation 31)41. The oxidation of chiral amide enolates gives optically active a-hydroxy carboxylic acids with 93-99% enantiomeric excess42. 

It is well known that five-membered ring formation, involving intramolecular oxygen alkylation of delocalized ketone and ester enolates under kinetic conditions, is seen with almost total exclusion of the thermodynamically preferred carbon alkylation reaction. Baldwin has provided a satisfactory... 

Aldehyde, Ketone, and Ester Enolates 867 Enolate Regiochemistry 872 The Aldol Condensation 873 Mixed Aldol Condensations 878 Chalcones From the Mulberry Tree to Cancer Chemotherapy 880 The Claisen Condensation 882 Intramolecular Claisen Condensation The Dieckmann Cyclization 884 Mixed Claisen Condensations 885 Acylation of Ketones with Esters 886 Alkylation of Enolates 887 The Acetoacetic Ester Synthesis 889 The Malonic Ester Synthesis 891 Alkylation of Chiral Enolates 893 Enolization and Enol Content 895 a Halogenation of Aldehydes and Ketones 900... 

The acylation of enolates derived from ketones with esters is an important tool for enhancing reactivity and selectivity in synthetic modification of ketones. Some representative examples are given in Scheme 2.7. The most common example of this is the formylation of ketone enolates by formate esters ... 

Subsequent research showed the SrnI mechanism to occur with many other aromatic compounds. The reaction was found to be initiated by solvated electrons, by electrochemical reduction, and by photoinitiated electron transferNot only I, but also Br, Cl, F, SCeHs, N(CH3)3, and 0P0(0CH2CH3)2 have been foimd to serve as electrofuges. In addition to amide ion, phosphanions, thiolate ions, benzeneselenolate ion (C HsSe"), ketone and ester enolate ions, as well as the conjugate bases of some other carbon acids, have been identified as nucleophiles. The SrnI reaction was observed with naphthalene, phenanthrene, and other polynuclear aromatic systems, and the presence of alkyl, alkoxy, phenyl, carboxylate, and benzoyl groups on the aromatic ring does not interfere with the reaction. ... 

Once an ester enolate is generated, it can react with another ester in a Claisen condensation however, it may also react with the carbonyl of an aldehyde or ketone. The ester enolate anion is a nucleophile and it reacts with an aldehyde or ketone via acyl addition. Kinetic control conditions are the most suitable for this reaction in order to minimize Claisen condensation of the ester with itself (self-condensation). If ester 74 (ethyl propanoate, in green in the illustration) is treated first with LDA and then with butanal (21, in violet), for example, the initial acyl addition product is 78. The new carbon-carbon bond is marked in blue and treatment with dilute aqueous acid converts the alkoxide to an alcohol in the final product of this sequence, 79. Compound 79 is a P-hydroxy ester, which is the usual product when an ester enolate reacts with an aldehyde or a ketone. Ester enolate anions react with ketones in the same way that they react with aldehydes. 

Simple aldehyde, ketone, and ester enolates are relatively basic, and their alkylation is limited to methyl and primary alkyl halides secondary and tertiary alkyl halides undergo elimination. Even when alkylation is possible, other factors intervene that can reduce its effectiveness as a synthetic tool. It is not always possible to limit the reaction to monoalkylation, and aldol addition can compete with alkylation. With unsymmetrical ketones, regioselectivity becomes a consideration. We saw in Section 20.2 that a strong, hindered base such as lithium diisopropylamide (LDA) exhibits a preference for abstracting a proton from the less-substituted a carbon of 2-methylcyclohexanone to form the kinetic enolate. Even under these conditions, however, regioisomeric products are formed on alkylation with benzyl bromide. 

Ketone or ester enolate anions react with selenium metal, followed by methyl iodide, to give the corresponding a-methylselenenyl derivatives in high yield. This relatively cheap procedure is useful for moderate- or large-scale reactions. 

In the following sections, we focus on condensation reactions at the a-carbon atom of esters. Reactions of these derivatives form carbon—carbon bonds and are useful in synthesis. Alkylation reactions using alkyl halides and reactions at carbonyl carbon atoms both occur with ester enolates. However, the reactions of enolates of acid derivatives differ somewhat from the reactions of enolates of aldehydes and ketones. For one thing, the a-hydrogen atoms of esters (pA 25) are less acidic than those of aldehydes and ketones (pif 20). Two resonance forms are written for aldehydes and ketones. The dipolar resonance form of a ketone has a positive charge on an electron-deficient carbonyl carbon atom. The contribution of this resonance form (2) to the resonance hybrid increases the acidity of the a-hydrogen atom as the result of inductive electron withdrawal. 

Among alkali metal enolates, those derived from ketones are the most robust one they are stable in etheric solutions at 0 C. The formation of aldehyde enolates by deprotonation is difficult because of the very fast occurring aldol addition. Whereas LDA has been reported to be definitely unsuitable for the generation preformed aldehyde enolates [15], potassium amide in Hquid ammonia, potassium hydride in THE, and super active lithium hydride seem to be appropriate bases forthe metallation of aldehydes [16]. In general, preformed alkali metal enolates of aldehydes did not find wide application in stereoselective synthesis. Ester enolates are very frequently used, although they are more capricious than ketone enolates. They have to be formed fast and quantitatively, because otherwise a Claisen condensation readily occurs between enolate and ester. A complication with ester enolates originates from their inherent tendency to form ketene under elimination... 

Ester enolates, much more sensitive and capricious than ketone and amide enolates, seemed to be unsuitable for palladium-catalyzed allylic alkylations. Thus, Hegedus and coworkers [24] reported on low yields and predominant side reactions in the allylation of the lithium enolate of methyl cyclohexanecarboxylate. It seems that so far the only reliable and efficient version of a Tsuji-Trost reaction with ester enolates is based on the chelated zinc enolates 41 derived from N-protected glycinates 40 - a procedure that was developed by Kazmaier s group. 

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