Nucleophilic reactions allylic substitution

The substitution of a leaving group located at an allylic position by a nucleophile, catalysed by a transition metal complex, is known as allylic substitution. Unlike most of the transition metal-catalysed reactions, allylic substitution involves reaction at sp rather than sp centres. As an example, the reaction with the most studied substrate, rac-3-acetoxy-l,3-diphenyl-1-propene (11), is depicted in Scheme 8.4. 

The use of a prochiral nucleophile in allylic substitution reactions provides an additional opportunity for asymmetric indnction. Allyl acetate itself can be used as the electrophilic partner and the new stereogenic center is positioned further away from the allyl group (Scheme 28). 

As exemplified by the macrolide antibiotic RK-397 (15, Scheme 14.4), proximal 1,3-arrays of hydroxyl-bearing stereogenic centers present the most prevalent structural phenotypes in a wide variety of polyketides [1]. Inspired by the cascade concept reported above, we desired a more direct synthesis to this structural synthon. As shown in Scheme 14.5, this involves the addition of a homo-allylic alcohol 5 to a suitable carbonyl compound 18, giving the corresponding hemi-acetal alkoxide (step 1). Formation of an electrophilic Jt-allyl complex (step 2) then results in the generation of intermediate 17, which finally undergoes an intramolecular allylic substitution reaction to the desired 1,3-allylic alcohols 16 in a suitably protected form (step 3). Notably, this sequence presents one of the first examples of hemiacetal alkoxides as nucleophiles in allylic substitution reactions. 

The allyl-substituted cyclopentadiene 122 was prepared by the reaction of cyclopentadiene anion with allylic acetates[83], Allyl chloride reacts with carbon nucleophiles without Pd catalyst, but sometimes Pd catalyst accelerates the reaction of allylic chlorides and gives higher selectivity. As an example, allylation of the anion of 6,6-dimethylfulvene 123 with allyl chloride proceeded regioselectively at the methyl group, yielding 124[84]. The uncatalyzed reaction was not selective. 

The aziridine aldehyde 56 undergoes a facile Baylis-Hillman reaction with methyl or ethyl acrylate, acrylonitrile, methyl vinyl ketone, and vinyl sulfone [60]. The adducts 57 were obtained as mixtures of syn- and anfz-diastereomers. The synthetic utility of the Baylis-Hillman adducts was also investigated. With acetic anhydride in pyridine an SN2 -type substitution of the initially formed allylic acetate by an acetoxy group takes place to give product 58. Nucleophilic reactions of this product with, e. g., morpholine, thiol/Et3N, or sodium azide in DMSO resulted in an apparent displacement of the acetoxy group. Tentatively, this result may be explained by invoking the initial formation of an ionic intermediate 59, which is then followed by the reaction with the nucleophile as shown in Scheme 43. 

Example of Cyclopropanation, Diels-Alder Reaction, Nucleophilic Allylic Substitution... 

Keywords N,N-Containing ligands Asymmetric catalysis Cyclopropanation Diels-Alder reaction Nucleophilic allylic substitution... 

With the iron atom in its most negative oxidation state of —2 this complex possesses nucleophilic properties and thus can be used in nucleophilic substitution reactions. As the iron atom in this complex formally has ten valence electrons, it is isoelectronic with Pd(0), which is a well-known catalyst in allylic substitution reactions [49]. 

Recently, the scope of the allylic substitution has been extended to sulfinate salts 84 to obtain allylic sulfones 85. Due to solubility problems of both nucleophile 84 and carbonate leaving group, a polar solvent mixture of DMF and 2-methoxyethanol had to be employed, which limits the reaction to the use of a phosphine ligand. Thus, various aryl sulfinates 84 and functionalized carbonates 81 could be converted to the corresponding allylic sulfones 85 with good to excellent yields and regioselectivites and complete retention of stereochemistry (eq. 2 in Scheme 20) [65]. 

The protocol of the allylic alkylation, which proceeds most likely via a c-allyl-Fe-intermediate, could be further improved by replacing the phosphine ligand with an M-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) (Scheme 21) [66]. The addition of a ferf-butyl-substituted NHC ligand 86 allowed for full conversion in the exact stoichiometric reaction between allyl carbonate and pronucleophile. Various C-nucleophiles were allylated in good to excellent regioselectivities conserving the 71 bond geometry of enantiomerically enriched ( )- and (Z)-carbonates 87. Even chirality and prochirality transfer was observed (Scheme 21) [67]. 

Allylic substitution reactions using LPDE have also been reported. The reaction of an allyl alcohol with several nucleophiles proceeds smoothly in a 3.0 M LPDE solution (Scheme 2). 3 Moreover, a highly cationic lithium species has been developed, and a catalytic amount of this species promotes allylic substitution reactions efficiently.14... 

The supported aqueous phase methodology was applied to the system Pd(OAc)2/5 TPPTS, a catalytic precursor for the Trost-Tsuji reaction. The characterization of the solid by 31P MAS NMR confirms the presence of Pd°(TPPTS)3 as the main surface species. The catalytic properties of the solid were tested for the allylic substitution of E-cinnamylethylcarbonate by different nucleophiles such as ethyl acetoacetate, dimethyl malonate, morpholine, phenol, and 2-mercapto-pyridine. The absence of palladium leaching was demonstrated, and having solved the problem of water leaching from the solid to the organic phase, the SAP-Pd catalyst was successfully recycled several times without loss in its activity. It was used in a continuous flow experiment which... 

Kondo and Watanabe developed allylations of various types of aldehydes and oximes by using nucleophilic (7r-allyl)ruthenium(ll) complexes of type 154 bearing carbon monoxide ligands (Equation (29)).345 These 73-allyl-ruthenium complexes 154 are ambiphilic reagents and the presence of the carbon monoxide ligands proved to be essential to achieve catalytic allylation reactions. Interestingly, these transformations occur with complete regioselectivity only the more substituted allylic terminus adds to the aldehyde. 

Schulz E (2005) Use of JV,JV-Coordinaling Ligands in Catalytic Asymmetric C-C Bond Formations Example of Cyclopropanation, Diels-Alder Reaction, Nucleophilic Allylic Substitution. 15 93-148... 

Examination of the reactivity of acyclic (diene)Fe(CO)3 complexes indicates that this nucleophilic addition is reversible. The reaction of (C4H6)Fe(CO)3 with strong carbon nucleophiles, followed by protonation, gives olefinic products 195 and 196 (Scheme 49)187. The ratio of 195 and 196 depends upon the reaction temperature and time. Thus, for short reaction time and low temperature (0.5 h, —78 °C) the product from attack at C2 (i.e. 195) predominates while at higher temperature and longer reaction time (2 h, 0 °C) the product from attack at Cl (i.e. 196) predominates. This selectivity is rationalized by kinetically controlled attack at the more electron-poor carbon (C2) at low temperature. Nucleophilic attack is reversible and, under conditions where an equilibrium is established, the thermodynamically more stable (allyl)Fe(CO)3" is favored. The regioselectivity for nucleophilic attack on substituted (diene)Fe(CO)3 complexes has been reported187. The... 

To explain the stereochemistry of the allylic substitution reaction, a simple stereoelectronic model based on frontier molecular orbital considerations has been proposed (155, Fig. 6.2). Organocopper reagents, unlike C-nucleophiles, possess filled d-orbitals (d configuration), which can interact both with the 7t -(C=C) orbital at the y-carbon and to a minor extent with the o- -(C-X) orbital, as depicted... 

After the initial demonstration of stoichiometric nucleophilic attack on 7i-allyl ligands, catalytic allylic substitution reactions were pursued. In 1970, groups from Union Carbide [3, 4], Shell Oil [5], and Toray Industries [6] published or patented examples of catalytic allylic substitution. All three groups reported allylic amination with palladium catalysts. The Toray Industries report also demonstrated the exchange of aryl ether and ester leaving groups, and the patent from Shell Oil includes catalysts based on rhodium and platinum. 

The first iridium catalysts for allylic substitution were published in 1997. Takeuchi showed that the combination of [fr(COD)Cl]2 and triphenylphosphite catalyzes the addition of malonate nucleophiles to the substituted terminus of t -allyliridium intermediates that are generated from allylic acetates. This selectivity for attack at the more substituted terminus gives rise to the branched allylic alkylation products (Fig. 4), rather than the linear products that had been formed by palladium-catalyzed allylic substitution reactions at that time [7]. The initial scope of iridium-catalyzed allylic substitution was also restricted to stabilized enolate nucleophiles, but it was quickly expanded to a wide range of other nucleophiles. 

Most allylic substitution reactions catalyzed by other metals are selective for the formation of branched products. Although this had been demonstrated for a large portion of the d-block before Takeuchi s work with iridium, most of the progress in this area was restricted to stabilized enolate nucleophiles. 

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