Lithium diisopropylamide aldehyde reduction

Examples of amines serving as hydride donors are scarce (for a special case, see Section 1.3.3.S.3). That this reaction is possible is exemplified by a side reaction that occurs when simple aldehydes are treated with lithium diisopropylamide (46) reduction of the aldehyde with formation of an imine (47) occurs (equation 25). ... 

Metalation ofa-sulfinyl dimethylhydrazones with terf-butylmagnesium bromide, butyllithium or lithium diisopropylamide, and reaction of the generated azaenolates with aldehydes, provides aldol adducts (e.g., 6) as mixtures of diastereomers. Reductive desulfurization leads to fi-hydroxy dimethylhydrazones (e.g., 7) which are cleaved to the desired /(-hydroxy ketones in 25% overall yield10 u. The enantiomeric excesses are about 50%, except for (- )-3-hydroxy-4-methyl-1-phenyl-1-pentanone (8) which was obtained in 88% ee. 

The silylated methyl ester was then a-methylated with lithium diisopropylamide and methyl iodide in tetrahydrofuran. Reduction of methyl 10-( erl-butyldimethylsilyloxy)-2-methyldecanoate with DIBAL in ether at -78°C afforded the corresponding aldehyde. The 10- tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)-2-methyldecanal was subsequently coupled in a Wittig reaction with 1-hexyltriphenylphosphonium bromide and n-butyllithium affording (Z)- and ( )-1 -(teri-butyldimethylsilyloxy)-9-methyl-10-hexadecene in a 9 1 ratio, respectively. Deprotection with tetrabutylammonium fluroride (TBAF) in tetrahydrofuran and final oxidation with pyridinium dichromate (PDC) in dimethylformamide resulted in a 9 1 mixture of (Z)- and ( )-9-methyl-10-hexadecenoic acid as shown in Fig. (7). As was also the case with acid 6, the stereochemistry at C-9 in 7 is not known. The key step in the synthesis of the allylic methyl group was a-methylation of a methyl ester, followed by reduction to the corresponding aldehyde, which was used in the subsequent Wittig reaction. 

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