Methylenecyclopropane ring opening

Reaction of the cyclopropyl-substituted pivalate (25) with dimethyl benzylidenema-lonate in the presence of a palladium catalyst gave a mixture of alkylidenecyclo-propane (26) and vinylcyclopropane (27). The ratio of these two adducts is found to be quite sensitive to the choice of ligand and solvent. While triisopropyl phosphite favors the formation of the methylenecyclopropane (26), this selectivity is completely reversed with the use of the bidentate phosphite ligand dptp (12). Interestingly there was no evidence for any products that would have derived from the ring opening of the cyclopropyl-TMM intermediate (Scheme 2.8) [18]. 

An interesting strategy for the synthesis of pyrrolizidines and indolizidines has been developed by Brandi and co-workers. Cycloaddition between nitrones or nitrile oxides with methylenecyclopropanes generates strained tricyclic spiro compounds, which are prone toward further transformations, such as rearrangement, ring opening, and new ring closure (Scheme 10.17).116... 

Anyway, the catalysed process is not a clean one, generally also affording five-membered ring 480 and open-chain products 481, as the result of the cyclopropane ring-opening of one or both the methylenecyclopropane addends (Table 37) [116,130,2],... 

Treatment of bicyclopropylidene (1) with lithium powder led to ring opening and subsequent treatment of the reaction mixture with dimethyl sulfate afforded the methylenecyclopropane derivative 225 and 4-octyne (226) in variable ratios (Scheme 51) [143]. 

Hydroxymelhyl)cyc opropan-l-ol (11), readily obtained by hydrogen peroxide oxidation of methylenecyclopropane, was rearranged to cyclobutanone (12) either directly, or via an intermediate l-(tosyloxymethyl)cyclopropan-l-ol.114 115 Competitive ring opening to 1-hydroxy-butan-2-one (13) was observed in the boron trifluoridc catalyzed process. 

Ruthenium complexes mediate the hydroamination of ethylene with pyridine.589 The reaction, however, is not catalytic, because of strong complexation of the amine to metal sites. Iridium complexes with chiral diphosphine ligands and a small amount of fluoride cocatalyst are effective in inducing asymmetric alkene hydroamination reaction of norbomene with aniline [the best enantiomeric excess (ee) values exceed 90%].590 Strained methylenecyclopropanes react with ring opening to yield isomeric allylic enamines 591... 

Unlike the alkyl and aryl-substituted methylenecyclopropanes discussed above, both cis- and franj-Feist s esters undergo chloropalladation with proximal 1,2-ring opening, to give isomeric n3-[3-chloro-l,2-bis(methoxycarbonyl)but-3-enyl]palladium complexes (equation 331)397. Formation of the but-3-enyl complexes is rationalized by sequential... 

A related proximal ring-opening reaction is observed when trans- or cu-2,3-bis-(hydroxymethyl)methylenecyclopropanes react with Fe2(CO)9 in ether, affording a mixture of two noninterconvertible lactones (equation 341)403,404. It should, however, be noted... 

As with the chloropalladation reaction (vide supra)m the rearrangement of >/2-methyl-enecyclopropane to >/4-TMM was shown experimentally to proceed stereoselectively by disrotatory ring cleavage of the distal frontier molecular orbital considerations, which predict that the out-of-phase interaction between the metal orbital in the distal ring-opening of -methylenecyclopropane complexes can be minimized by bending the bond up away from the metal (equation 348)410 ... 

In the hydrocarbonation of methylenecyclopropanes 8 with nitriles, the hydro-palladation of 8 with 16 gives the alkylpalladium complexes 23 and/or 24 (Scheme 5). The complex 23 would undergo rearrangement by distal bond cleavage to give the Jt-allylpalladium 25 (route A). The reductive elimination of Pd(0) from 25 produces 9. The palladium complex 24 would isomerize to the Jt-allylpalladium complex 27 via proximal bond cleaved ring-opened intermediate 26 (route B). The reductive elimination of Pd(0) from 27 gives 10. 

Ring opening also occurs in the cases of the methylenecyclopropane 13 and the alkoxy-cyclopropane 1475 ... 

The reaction mechanism involved the cyclisation of ketyl radical anion 3 on to the methylenecyclopropane moiety in a 5-exo-trig manner. Ring opening of cyclopropane intermediate 4 gave rise to the cyclohexyl radical 5, which then cyclised in a 5-exo-dig fashion to form the second ring (Scheme 6.2).5,6... 

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