Nitriles Darzens glycidic ester condensation

Hydroxy-ester enolates are oxidized by iodine at — 78°C to give the least hindered oxiran. Thus, by generating the /3-hydroxy-ester from a ketone and acetate enolates, the overall conversion represents a stereoselective Darzens condensation. Glycidic esters can also be obtained from the corresponding nitriles via iminoether derivatives prepared by alkoxide-catalysed addition of alcohols to the nitrile group. 

Instead of a-halo esters, related reactants can be used e.g. the a-halo derivatives of ketones, nitriles, sulfones and A,A-disubstituted amides. The Darzens condensation is also of some importance as a synthetic method because a glycidic acid can be converted into the next higher homolog of the original aldehyde, or into a branched aldehyde (e.g. 5) if the original carbonyl substrate was a ketone ... 

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