Lactone butyrolactones

Alkylation of the simplest 7-lactone, butyrolactone (5), has been described by the use of lithium cyclohexylisopropylamide and iodomethane or an alkyl bromide10. In this paper the low temperature ( — 78 °C) was explicitly recommended in order to avoid self-condensation. It was noted that more than one equivalent of base increased the yield. 

The a-bromo-7-lactone 901 undergoes smooth coupling with the acetonyltin reagent 902 to afford the o-acetonyl-7-butyrolactone 903[763j. The o-chloro ether 904, which has no possibility of //-elimination after oxidative addition, reacts with vinylstannane to give the allyl ether 905, The o -bromo ether 906 is also used for the intramolecular alkyne insertion and transmetallation with allylstannane to give 907[764],... 

Indoles can also be alkylated by lactones[l4]. Base-catalysed reactions have been reported for (3-propiolactone[15], y-butyrolactone[10] and 5-valerolac-tone[10]. These reactions probably reflect the thermodynamic instability of the N -acylindole intermediate which would be formed by attack at the carbonyl group relative to reclosure to the lactone. The reversibility of the JV-acylation would permit the thermodynamically favourable N-alkylation to occur. 

These trivial names are permitted -y-butyrolactone, -y-valerolactone, and 5-valerolactone. Names based on heterocycles may be used for all lactones. Thus, -y-butyrolactone is also tetrahydro-2-furanone or dihydro-2(3/f)-furanone. 

Rea.ctlons, Butyrolactone undergoes the reactions typical of y-lactones. Particularly characteristic are ring openings and reactions in which ring oxygen is replaced by another heteroatom. There is also marked reactivity of the hydrogen atoms alpha to the carbonyl group. 

Other methods include ring opening of parasorbic acid [108-54-3] (5-lactone of 5-hydroxy-2-hexenoic acid) in hydrochloric acid or in alkaline solutions (43,44), the ring opening of y-vinyl- y-butyrolactone in various catalysts (45,46), or isomerization of 2,5-hexadienoic acid esters (47,48). Other methods are described in thehterature (6,49,50). 

Reaction with Lactones. Hydroxycarboxyhc acid ester complexes of titanium are formed by reaction of a tetraalkyl titanate with a lactone, such as P-propiolactone, y-butyrolactone, or valerolactone (35). For example. 

In a somewhat related reaction the fused lactone (142) furnishes the decahydropyrido[3,4- f]pyrimidine (143) during the reaction of a-(hydantoin-5-ylidene)-7-butyrolactone with ammonia in ethylene glycol at 200 °C (71KGS1280). 

In addition to its water solubility poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) is soluble in a very wide range of materials, including aliphatic halogenated hydrocarbons (methylene dichloride, chloroform), many monohydric and polyhdric alcohols (methanol, ethanol, ethylene glycol), some ketones (acetyl acetone) and lactones (a-butyrolactone), lower aliphatic acids (glacial acetic acid) and the nitro-paraffins. The polymer is also compatible with a wide range of other synthetic polymers, with gums and with plasticisers. 

Results of fluorination of lactones with sulfur tetrafluoride depend on the ring size. y-Butyrolactone undergoes ring cleavage to give y-fluorobutyryl fluoride, which IS further fluormated to 1,1,1,4-tetrafluorobutane. The six-membered 1,4-di-... 

Perfluoro-y-butyrolactone can be prepared from 1,4 diiodoperfluorobutane by reaction with turning sulfuric acid (oleum) [7S] (equation 19) The yield depends on the concentration of sulfur trioxide One of the by-products, 4-iodoperfluo-robutyryl fluoride, can be recycled to increase the overall yield of the lactone Pure sulfur trioxide generates only perfluorotetrahydrofuran, the lodo acyl fluoride, and perfluorosuccmyl fluoride... 

The use of an ester as an anion-stabilizing group for a lithiated epoxide was demonstrated by Eisch and Galle (Table 5.5, Entry 11). This strategy has been extended to a,P-epoxy-y-butyrolactone 191, which could be deprotonated with LDA and trapped in situ with chlorotrimethylsilane to give 192, which was used in a total synthesis of epolactaene (Scheme 5.45) [69], The use of a lactone rather than a... 

Five-membered unsubstituted lactone, y-butyrolactone (y-BL), is not polymerized by conventional chemical catalysts. However, oligomer formation from y-BL was observed by using PPL or Pseudomonas sp. lipase as catalyst. Enzymatic polymerization of six-membered lactones, 8-VL and l,4-dioxan-2-one, was reported. 8-VL was polymerized by various lipases of different origins. The molecular weight of the enzymatically obtained polymer was relatively low (less than 2000). 

Homoenolate Reactivity The ability to generate homoenolates from enals and its application to the preparation of y-butyrolactones 30, through reaction with an aldehyde or aryl trifluoromethyl ketone, was reported independently by Glorius [8], and Bode and Burstein [9] (Scheme 12.4). A sterically demanding NHC catalyst is required to promote reactivity at the d terminus and to prevent competitive benzoin dimerisation. Nair and co-workers have reported a similar spiro-y-lactone formation reaction using cyclic 1,2-diones, including cyclohexane-1,2-dione and substituted isatin derivatives [10]. 

Five-membered unsubstituted lactone, y-butyrolactone, is not polymerized by conventional chemical catalysts. On the other hand, oligomer formation from y-butyrolactone was observed by using PPL or Pseudomonas sp. lipase as catalyst [23,69]. 

Zhang68 has applied the cyclization of esters to the formation of a-methylene-y-butyrolactones, thus offering a novel and enantioselective entry to these substructures. The importance of this unsaturated lactone is evidenced by its ubiquitous presence in nearly a third of all naturally occurring secondary metabolites. The Alder-ene reaction has been applied to a formal total synthesis of (+)-pilocarpine, a leading therapeutic reagent for the treatment of narrow and wide glaucoma. Zhang intersected Btichi s synthetic intermediate (i )-181 (Scheme 47) in only two steps with a 99% ee and a 91% overall yield. In comparison, Biichi synthesized (i )-181 in five steps with a 92% ee and a 20% overall yield. 

Mitsubishi have reported several processes based on Ru-catalyzed hydrogenation of anhydrides and acids. Succinic anhydride can be converted into mixtures of 1,4-butane-diol and y-butyrolactone using [Ru(acac)3]/trioctylphosphine and an activator (often a phosphonic acid) [97]. Relatively high temperatures are required ( 200°C) for this reaction. The lactone can be prepared selectively under the appropriate reaction conditions, and a process has been developed for isolating the products and recycling the ruthenium catalyst [98-100]. 

Limited progress has been achieved in the enantioselective hydrogenation of a,/ -unsaturated carboxylic acid esters, amides, lactones, and ketones (Scheme 26.10). The Ru-BINAP system is efficient for the hydrogenation of 2-methy-lene-y-butyrolactone, and 2-methylene-cyclopentanone [98]. With a dicationic (S)-di-t-Bu-MeOBIPHEP-Ru complex under a high hydrogen pressure, 3-ethoxy pyr-rolidinone could be hydrogenated in isopropanol to give (R)-4-ethoxy-y-lactam in 98% ee [39]. 

In the recently reported reaction of differently substituted p-, y-, and 5-lactones 20 [80], 20 mol% of Ti(OiPr)4 proved sufficient to obtain the corresponding p-, y-, and 5-hydro-xyalkyl cydopropanols 21 in 60—70% yield (Scheme 11.5, Table 11.3, entries 1—3). However, 36 mol% of the titanium reagent was found to be necessary to obtain N-protected (aminohydroxyalkyl)cyclopropanols (Table 11.3, entries 5 and 6) from the corresponding 2-N-Boc- and 3-N-Cbz-2-butyrolactones in yields of 65% and 70%, respectively. 

Similarly, 5-lactols and 5-lactones are obtainable from the corresponding homo allylic alcohols. With dehydration, the corresponding dihydropyrans are prepared. Spirocyclic y-butyrolactones of this type and the corresponding 5-lactones are widespread in nature and play a key role as synthetic intermediates. 

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