Organic synthesis intramolecular attack

A development of the last two decades is the use of Wacker activation for intramolecular attack of nucleophiles to alkenes in the synthesis of organic molecules [9], In most examples, the nucleophilic attack is intramolecular, as the rates of intermolecular reactions are very low. The reaction has been applied in a large variety of organic syntheses and is usually referred to as Wacker (type) activation of alkene (or alkynes). If oxygen is the nucleophile, it is called oxypalladation [10], Figure 15.4 shows an example. During these reactions the palladium catalyst is often also a good isomerisation catalyst, which leads to the formation of several isomers. 

The reaction occurs quickly at low temperature, with inversion of configuration at the attacked carbon center. The oxirane is reacting usually at the less hindered site. This reaction has found widespread use in organic synthesis , particularly in the case of stabilized organolithium and alkynyllithium species (see Section IV.B.2). In the intramolecular versions, the presence of BF3 has been reported to modify the regioselectivity". Other Lewis acids such as organolanthanids or LiC104 have also been used to a lesser extent. 

Free-radical cyclization reactions (i.e., the intramolecular addition of an alkyl radical to a C=C ir bond) have emerged as one of the most interesting and widespread applications of free-radical chemistry to organic synthesis. Free-radical cyclizations are useful because they are so fast. The cyclization of the 5-hexenyl radical to the cyclopentylmethyl radical is very fast, occurring at a rate of about 1.0 X 105 s-1. In fact, the rate of formation of the cyclopentylmethyl radical is much faster than the rate of cyclization to the lower energy cyclohexyl radical. This stereoelectronic effect is derived from the fact that the overlap between the p orbital of the radical and the rr MO of the double bond is much better when Cl attacks C5 than when it attacks C6. The relative rates of 5-exo and 6-endo ring closures are strongly dependent on the nature of the substrate and especially on the amount of substitution on the ir bond. Cyclization of the 6-heptenyl radical in the 6-exo mode is also very favorable. 

The Dieckmann condensation is an intramolecular variant of the Claisen condensation where a diester is converted to a 3-ketoester. Typically, an alkoxide is used as the base to form the enolate which attacks the remaining ester to form the carbocycle. Five- and six-membered rings are formed readily with this method. Reviews (a) Davis, B. R. Garrett, P. J. In Comprehensive Organic Synthesis, Trost, B. M. Fleming, 1. Eds. Pergamon Press Oxford, 1991 Vol. 2, Chapter 3.6 Acylation of Esters, Ketones, and Nitriles, pp. 806-829. (b) Schaefer, J. P Bloomfield, J. J. Org. React. 1967,15, 1-203. 

The reactivity of allenylpalladium species, derived from oxidative addition of propargyl alcohol derivatives to palladium (0), has attracted considerable attention in organic synthesis.283 Recently, the intramolecular reaction of the propargylic derivatives 665 with an oxygen and nitrogen nucleophile has been widely utilized for the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds. The key step of formation of a heterocyclic ring is intramolecular nucleophilic attack of a... 

Palladium-catalyzed lactonization with CO insertion is a useful method that has been developed over the years to become an important tool in organic synthesis. The most straightforward approach consists of an oxidative addition of Pd(0) to a vinyl/aryl halide or a pseudohalide (e.g., triflate) followed by insertion of carbon monoxide and subsequent intramolecular attack of the oxygen nucleophile onto the carbonyl, with regeneration of the Pd(0) catalyst. An appropriate base is necessary to trap the acid released during the reaction (Scheme 1). 

Well before the wide use of organoselenium compounds in chemistry, it was discovered that electrophilic selenium compounds of the type RSeX add stereospecifically to alkenes.45 Since that time this reaction has been an important tool in the portfolio of organic chemists and has been used even for the construction of complex molecules. Comprehensive reviews on this chemistry have appeared46-49 and in recent times the synthesis of chiral selenium electrophiles and their application in asymmetric synthesis has emerged. As shown in Scheme 1, the addition reactions of selenium electrophiles to alkenes are stereospecific anti additions. They involve the initial formation of seleniranium ion intermediates 1 which are immediately opened in the presence of nucleophiles. External nucleophiles lead to the formation of addition products 2. The addition to unsymmetrically substituted alkenes follows the thermodynamically favored Markovnikov orientation. The seleniranium ion intermediates of alkenes with internal nucleophiles such as 3 will be attacked intramolecularly to yield cyclic products 4 and 5 via either an endo or an exo pathway. Depending on the reaction conditions, the formation of the seleniranium ions can be reversible. 

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