2-Methoxy-6- pyrazine hydrolysis

Methylation of 2-amino-3-hydroxypyrazine (62) with methyl iodide and sodium methoxide afforded 3-amino-l-methyl-2-oxo-1,2-dihydropyrazine (63), and when an excess of methyl iodide was used, a mixture of compound (63) and its methio-dide (64) was isolated. Reaction with dimethyl sulfate and alkaU gave compound (63) and l,4-dimethyl-2,3-dioxo-l,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrazine (66) the latter was presumed to be formed by hydrolysis of an intermediate quaternary salt since it was also obtained by treatment of the methiodide (64) with aqueous sodium hydroxide. Reaction of 2-amino-3-hydroxypyrazine with ethereal diazomethane produced a mixture of N- and 0-methyl derivatives, (63) and 2-amino-3-methoxy-pyrazine (65). With methyl toluene-p-sulfonate the quaternary salt 2-amino-3-hydroxy-1-methylpyrazinium toluenesulfonate (67) was obtained on alkaline hydrolysis it gave 3-hydroxy-l-methyl-2-oxo-l,2-dihydropyrazine (68) (832). Pulcherriminic acid with diazomethane gave a dimethyl derivative (99). 

The diazotization of aminopyrazines has been described in earlier sections. Section V.IH records the preparation of 2-fluoropyrazine from 2-aminopyrazine in fluoroboric acid containing copper powder with sodium nitrite (882, 884) and Section V.ll the preparation of iodopyrazines from some aminopyrazines via isodiazotate salts (30) (887). These salts were assigned the isodiazotate structure, on the basis of their inability to couple with 0-naphthol in alkaline solution (887) and they were characterized by hydrolysis in cold 40% aqueous sulfuric acid to the hydroxypyrazine (887). Section V.I K describes the conversion of aminopyrazines to bromopyrazines (798, 800, 807, 890-892) for example, 2-amino-3-methoxy-carbonylpyrazine with hydrobromic acid, bromine, and sodium nitrite in water gave 2-bromo-3-methoxycarbonylpyrazine (798, 890). The diazotization of aminopyrazines to hydroxypyrazines has been described in Section VI. 1C, to alkoxy-pyrazines in Section V1.3C, and to oxopyrazines in Section V1.9A(5). 2-Amino-pyrazine with isopentyl nitrite in benzene gave 2-phenylpyrazine (45%) and some 2-isopentoxypyrazine and 2,2 -dipyrazinyl amino isomers (1211). 

Acyl derivatives of perhydro-l,4-dioxopyrrolo[l,2-a]pyrazines are rapidly hydrolyzed to the 2-unsubstituted compounds under very mild conditions. The 2-pyruvoyl compound 86 loses the N-acyl group on boiling in water or methanol, on treatment with ammonia in methylene chloride, on exposure to dilute sodium hydroxide solution, and on treatment with p-toluidine at 50-60° for 30 sec. Similarly the methoxy-propionyl compound 142 is extremely sensitive to alkali, immediately reacting with 0.1 M sodium hydroxide solution at 0°. This compound is also deacylated by ammonium hydroxide solution in a few minutes or by sodium bicarbonate solution after several hours. This behavior contrasts sharply with that of the isomeric oxazolo compound 143 and helps to justify the tricyclic formulation adopted for such compounds. Hydrolysis of the 3S,8aS isomer of compound 142 is accompanied by rapid inversion... 

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