Lewis acid catalyzed Diels—Alder reaction stereoselectivity

This chapter will mostly deal with the applications of the Lewis-acid-catalyzed Diels Alder reaction to organic synthesis and the influence of Lewis acids on reactivity, stereoselectivity and regioselectivity of the cycloadditions. 

Optically pure vinylsulfoxides have been employed in asymmetric Lewis acid-catalyzed Diels-Alder reactions with 1,3-butadiene and cyclopentadiene in the presence of TiCLt, AICI3 or EtAlCb. Moderate to high endolexo selectivities and stereoselectivities were reported. 

Synthesis of Chiral Auxiliaries. Their availability and crystalline nature has made camphor derivatives the precursors of choice for the design and synthesis of chiral auxiliaries. 10-Camphorsulfonyl chloride is the starting material for the synthesis of chiral auxiliaries (9)-(12) (eq 2). Sulfonamides (9) and (10) have been used as chiral auxiliaries in a number of reactions, e.g. the Lewis acid-catalyzed Diels-Alder reaction, the [3 + 2] cycloaddition of a nitrile oxide to an acrylate, and the stereoselective conjugate addition reaction of organocopper reagents to ci ,)3-unsaturated esters. ... 

Lewis acids such as zinc chloride, boron trifluoride, tin tetrachloride, aluminum chloride, methylaluminum dichloride, and diethylaluminum chloride catalyze Diels-Alder reactions.22 The catalytic effect is the result of coordination of the Lewis acid with the dienophile. The complexed dienophile is more electrophilic and more reactive toward electron-rich dienes. The mechanism of the addition is believed to be concerted and enhanced regio- and stereoselectivity is often observed.23... 

Dipolar cydoadditions are one of the most useful synthetic methods to make stereochemically defined five-membered heterocydes. Although a variety of dia-stereoselective 1,3-dipolar cydoadditions have been well developed, enantioselec-tive versions are still limited [29]. Nitrones are important 1,3-dipoles that have been the target of catalyzed enantioselective reactions [66]. Three different approaches to catalyzed enantioselective reactions have been taken (1) activation of electron-defident alkenes by a chiral Lewis acid [23-26, 32-34, 67], (2) activation of nitrones in the reaction with ketene acetals [30, 31], and (3) coordination of both nitrones and allylic alcohols on a chiral catalyst [20]. Among these approaches, the dipole/HOMO-controlled reactions of electron-deficient alkenes are especially promising because a variety of combinations between chiral Lewis acids and electron-deficient alkenes have been well investigated in the study of catalyzed enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions. Enantioselectivities in catalyzed nitrone cydoadditions sometimes exceed 90% ee, but the efficiency of catalytic loading remains insufficient. 

We are now able to understand the Lewis acid-catalyzed normal electron-demand carbo-Diels-Alder reaction from a theoretical point of view. The calculated influence of the Lewis acids on the reaction rate, regio- and stereoselectivity in an... 

The use of catalysts for a Diels-Alder reaction is often not necessary, since in many cases the product is obtained in high yield in a reasonable reaction time. In order to increase the regioselectivity and stereoselectivity (e.g. to obtain a particular endo- or exo-product), Lewis acids as catalysts (e.g. TiCU, AICI3, BF3-etherate) have been successfully employed." The usefulness of strong Lewis acids as catalysts may however be limited, because they may also catalyze polymerization reactions of the reactants. Chiral Lewis acid catalysts are used for catalytic enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions. ... 

The discovery that Lewis acids can promote Diels-Alder reactions has become a powerful tool in synthetic organic chemistry. Yates and Eaton [4] first reported the remarkable acceleration of the reactions of anthracene with maleic anhydride, 1,4-benzoquinone and dimethyl fumarate catalyzed by aluminum chloride. The presence of the Lewis-acid catalyst allows the cycloadditions to be carried out under mild conditions, reactions with low reactive dienes and dienophiles are made possible, and the stereoselectivity, regioselectivity and site selectivity of the cycloaddition reaction can be modified [5]. Consequently, increasing attention has been given to these catalysts in order to develop new regio- and stereoselective synthetic routes based on the Diels-Alder reaction. 

The highly ordered cyclic transition state of the Diels-Alder reaction permits design of reaction parameters which lead to a preference between the transition states leading to diastereomeric or enantiomeric adducts. (See Part A, Section 2.3, to review the principles of diastereoselectivity and enantioselectivity.) One way to achieve this is to install a chiral auxiliary.56 The cycloaddition proceeds to give two diastereomeric products which can be separated and purified. Because of the lower temperature required and the greater stereoselectivity observed in Lewis acid-catalyzed reactions, the best enantioselectivity is often observed in catalyzed reactions. Chiral esters and amides of acrylic acid are particularly useftd because the chiral auxiliary can be easily recovered upon hydrolysis of the adduct to give the enantiomerically pure carboxylic acid. 

There is the potential with some substrates that the Lewis acidity of the lanthanide ion can catalyze a reaction. For example, the addition of Eu(hfc)3 to a racemic mixture of dimethylpenta-2,3-dienoates (39) caused an enrichment of the (5 )-isomer °. Over nine days the mixture converted to an 89 11 mixture. Lanthanide tris( S-diketonates) are well known catalysts for Diels-Alder reactions, and NMR spectroscopy of the reactants with Eu(hfc)3 was used to understand the stereoselectivity of the europium-catalyzed cycloadditions . ... 

The Diels-Alder reaction is one of the most powerful and efficient processes for formation of six-membered rings with the potential of controlling the relative and absolute stereochemistry at four newly created stereogenic centers [1]. Relative stereochemistry is usually well-defined because of the formation of a cyclic transition state arising from suprafacial-suprafacial interaction, with endo approach [2]. The reaction can be accelerated by Lewis acids, high pressure, or radical cations. Diels-Alder reactions catalyzed by Lewis acids are generally more regio- and stereoselective than their thermal counterparts [3]. 

The enantioselective total synthesis of the Securienega alkaloid (-)-phyllanthine by S.M. Weinreb et al. involved a stereoselective Yb(OTf)3-promoted hetero Diels-Alder reaction between a cyclic imine dienophile and Danishefsky s diene This was the first example of using an unactivated cyclic imine in this type of cycloaddition. Commonly used Lewis acid catalysts (e.g., SnCb, TiCU, etc.) produced only low yields of the desired cycloadduct. However, it was discovered that ytterbium triflate catalyzed the cycloaddition and afforded the product in 84% yield. Later they also found that the cyclization could occur at high pressure and in the absence of the catalyst, although a slightly lower yield (71%) of the product was obtained. 

A complete coverage of stereoselective [4 + 2] cycloaddition reactions is given in Section D. 1.6,1.1. Besides the uncatalyzed Diels-Alder reaction, catalyzed [4 + 2] cycloaddition methods have been used, either with main group or transition metal derived Lewis adds ( hard acid catalysis"12 -14), or with low-valent transition metal complexes ( soft acid catalysis"12-14). In this section, only transition metal catalyzed versions are described. Numerous related surveys are available63-76. 

Early applications of chiral Lewis acid catalyzed stereoselective Diels Alder reactions used either boron- or aluminum-derived systems in carbocyclic ring formation18 1Q, or studied the effect of chiral shift reagents, such as Eu(hfc)3, in hetero-Diels-Alder cycloadditions of carbonyl compounds to dienes20 23,77, 78. The latter type of transition metal catalyzed addition is classified as heterocarboration and is described in Section 1.5.8.4. 

Titanium-derived Lewis acid catalyzed diastereoselective Diels-Alder reactions have been employed in several stereoselective ring syntheses, either in intermolecular3,16,24,25,79,80 or intramolecular versions15,24. 

Stereoselective oxycarborative addition is also achieved in cycloaddition and cyclooligomeriza-tion reactions. Thus, hetero-Diels-Alder reactions of dienes and aldehydes are not only catalyzed by main group Lewis acids, but also by transition metal complexes 10°. Tris[3-(heptafluoropropyl-hydroxymethylene)-( + )-camphorato]europium [( + )-Eu(hfc)3] and similar vanadium complexes have been used as the chiral catalyst in [4 + 2] cycloadditions of various achiral and chiral dienes to aldehydes63 67-101. With achiral silyloxydienes only moderate asymmetric inductions are observed, however, with chirally modified dienes, high double diastereoselectivities are achieved. Thus, the reaction of benzaldehyde with 3-terf-butyldimethylsilyloxy-l-(/-8-phenvl-menthoxy)-l.3-butadiene (1) gives (2/ .6/ )-4-wf-bntyldimethylsilyloxy-5,6-dihydro-6-phenyl-2-[(17 ,3/ ,45 )-8-phenylmenthoxy]-2f/-pyran (2) in 95% yield with a diasteieoselectivity of 25 1 ss. After crystallization and hydrolysis with trifluoroacetic acid, optically pure (2/ )-2,3-di-hydro-2-phenyl-4-(4//)-pyranone (3) is obtained in 87% yield. 

Chiral, optically pure exo-methylene compounds, as for example dioxolanes and 1,3-oxazolidinones B, have been successfully examined as dienophiles in thermal Diels-Alder reactions with 1,3-butadiene or cyclopentadiene. Similarly highly diastereoselective reactions of dioxinones C with cyclopentadiene in benzene at 80°C have been reported in the literature. Non-catalyzed cycloaddition reactions of Meyers bicyclic lactam with acyclic dienes proceed at moderate temperature (60°C) highly stereoselective furnishing the products in excellent yield. Equally high endolexo selectivities and diastereoselectivities were reported for the reactions that have been carried out at low temperature in the presence of Lewis acids, e.g. ZnCL. ... 

Lewis acid-catalyzed intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions of trienes, bearing an inducing moiety, e.g. oxazolidinones 62 or sultam 63, have been widely examined and employed in natural product synthesis. The cycloadducts were obtained in high yield with excellent stereoselectivities. Among the Lewis acids studied in asymmetric intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions with auxiliary 11, a chiral catalyst [(Bomyl)AlCl2] proved to be highly efficient (72% de, 25-75%). 

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