Phenol Mannich reaction

Pyrazoles and imidazoles exist partly as anions (e.g. 108 and 109) in neutral and basic solution. Under these conditions they react with electrophilic reagents almost as readily as phenol, undergoing diazo coupling, nitrosation and Mannich reactions (note the increased reactivity of pyrrole anions over the neutral pyrrole species). 

Phenols, secondary and tertiary aromatic amines, pyrroles, and indoles can be aminomethylated by treatment with formaldehyde and a secondary amine. Other aldehydes have sometimes been employed. Aminoalkylation is a special case of the Mannich reaction (16-15). When phenols and other activated aromatic compounds are treated withA-hydroxymethylchloroacetamide, amidomethylation takes place " ... 

The Mannich reaction consists in the condensation of formaldehyde with ammonia or a primary or a secondary amine and a compound containing at least one hydrogen atom of pronounced reactivity the active hydrogen atom may be derived from a methylene group activated by a neighbouring keto group, or from a nitroparaffin, or it may be the o- or p-hydrogen atoms in phenols. Thus when acetophenone is boiled in alcoholic solution with formaldehyde and dimethylamine hydrochloride, the Mannich base P-dimethylamino-propiopbenone hydrochloride (I) is readily formed ... 

Figure 4.22 The Mannich reaction occurs between an active-hydrogen-containing compound (phenol) and an amine-containing molecule in the presence of an aldehyde (formaldehyde). The condensation reaction forms stable crosslinks.

Figure 19.24 The conjugation of phenol red to cBSA using the Mannich reaction.

Figure 19.25 Absorbance scan comparing unconjugated cBSA with the same carrier that had been coupled with phenol red using the Mannich reaction. Two different reaction times are compared, indicating that extended reactions yield increased conjugate formation.

In a related publication, Kobayashi and his team reported on Zr-catalyzed asymmetric Mannich reactions that utilize the more electron-rich oxygenated ketene acetals shown in Scheme 6.28 [93], A noteworthy aspect of this study was that the levels of syn/anti diaste-reocontrol proved to be dependent on the nature of the alkoxide substituent whereas the (3-TBS acetals predominantly afforded the syn isomer, the OBn derivatives afforded a larger amount of the anti isomer. As before, the presence of an additive, this time 1,2-dimeth-ylimidazole (DMI), proved to be important with regard to the level of Ti-facial selectivity. The phenol activating group can be removed by the same procedure as reported previously, with essentially identical degrees of efficiency (see Scheme 6.27). 

The potential utility of the Mannich-type phenolic bases makes the aminoalkyla-tion reaction of naphthol derivatives a subject of current chemical interest. But, because of the relatively low reactivity of 1-naphthol, the reaction gave only a moderate yield and displayed moderate diastereoselectivity [5]. 

The mechanism of imine formation is standard, as seen in the other examples. The cyclization reaction is then like the Mannich reaction, attack of an enol on to the iminium cation. This time though, the nucleophile is provided by the resonance effect from the phenol system. 

Oxyiminium cations formed from iV,0-diaIkyhydroxylamines and formaldehyde are sufficiently reactive for Mannich reactions with activated arenes. Mannich reactions of oxyiminium cations with indoles (e.g. 74, equation 48) " as well as pyrroles and furans but not phenol and thiophene have been reported. 

In a closely related example, a Mannich reaction of the somewhat more complex phenol (20-1) with formaldehyde and fert-butylamine gives the aminomethylated product (20-2). Hydrolysis of the acetamide protecting group then affords the corresponding aniline (20-3). Alkylation with the quinoline (17-6) in this case also proceeds on aniline nitrogen. The selectivity over the more basic secondary side nitrogen can probably be ascribed to steric hindrance about the latter. There is thus obtained tebuquine (20-4) [22]. 

Support-bound C-nucleophiles have also been successfully added to imines. Poly-styrene-bound thiol esters can be converted into ketene acetals by O-silylation, and then alkylated with imines in the presence of Lewis acids. Further examples include Mannich reactions of support-bound alkynes and indoles (Table 10.10). Some Man-nich-type products (e.g. 3-(aminomethyl)indoles, 2-(aminomethyl)phenols, (3-amino ketones) are unstable and can decompose upon treatment with acids. 3-(Amino-... 

Aliphatic aldehydes and ketones react with aziridines to form relatively stable half aminals, eg, aziridine reacts with formaldehyde to form Ai-hydroxymethylaziridine [20276-43-1]. Half aminals can be converted to full aminals by reaction with a further secondary amine, isomerized to oxazolidines by the action of heat or used in a Mannich reaction for the ring aminomethylation of phenols, although this reaction gives only moderate yields (218-227). 

By means of Fremy salt oxidation, Adler and Lundquist (5) estimated that about half of the phenolic units contain free S-positions in M.W.L. Mikawa (J/), by Mannich reaction, obtained evidence that about 25-40% of the phenolic units in his sulfate lignin preparation contained no substituent in 5-position. In this investigation we also conclude that at least one-third of the phenolic units in our kraft lignin preparation has free 5-positions. 

---