Oxazoline Diels-Alder reaction

Evans and co-workers investigated the effect of a number of -symmetric bis(oxazoline) ligands on the copper(II)-catalysed Diels-Alder reaction of an N-acyloxazolidinone with cyclopentadiene. Enantiomeric excesses of up to 99% have been reported (Scheme 3.4). Evans et al." suggested transition state assembly 3.7, with a square planar coordination environment around the central copper ion. In this scheme the dienophile should be coordinated predominantly in an cisoid fashion in... 

Recently Desimoni et used the same bis(oxazoline) ligand in the magnesium(II) catalysed Diels-Alder reaction of the N-acyloxazolidinone depicted in Scheme 3.4. In dichloromethane a modest preference was observed for the formation of the S-enantiomer. Interestingly, upon addition of two equivalents of water, the R-enantiomer was obtained in excess. This remarkable observation was interpreted in terms of a change from tetrahedral to octahedral coordination upon the introduction of the strongly coordinating water molecules. 

Since Evans s initial report, several chiral Lewis acids with copper as the central metal have been reported. Davies et al. and Ghosh et al. independently developed a bis(oxazoline) ligand prepared from aminoindanol, and applied the copper complex of this ligand to the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction. Davies varied the link between the two oxazolines and found that cyclopropyl is the best connector (see catalyst 26), giving the cycloadduct of acryloyloxazolidinone and cyclopentadiene in high optical purity (98.4% ee) [35] (Scheme 1.45). Ghosh et al., on the other hand, obtained the same cycloadduct in 99% ee by the use of unsubstituted ligand (see catalyst 27) [36] (Scheme 1.46, Table 1.19). 

Can a chiral catalyst containing the same ligand/metal components promote the formation of both enantiomers enantioselectively The bis(oxazoline)magnesium perchlorate-catalyzed asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction [103]... 

Keywords hefero-Diels-Alder reaction, chiral bis(oxazoline) copper(ll) complexes... 

Keywords Diels-Alder reactions of isoxazoles, isoxazolines, isoxazolidines, oxazoles and oxazolines... 

Ghosh et al. [70] reviewed a few years ago the utihty of C2-symmetric chiral bis(oxazoline)-metal complexes for catalytic asymmetric synthesis, and they reserved an important place for Diels-Alder and related transformations. Bis(oxazoline) copper(II)triflate derivatives have been indeed described by Evans et al. as effective catalysts for the asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction [71]. The bis(oxazoline) Ugand 54 allowed the Diels-Alder transformation of two-point binding N-acylimide dienophiles with good yields, good diastereos-electivities (in favor of the endo diastereoisomer) and excellent ee values (up to 99%) [72]. These substrates represent the standard test for new catalysts development. To widen the use of Lewis acidic chiral Cu(ll) complexes, Evans et al. prepared and tested bis(oxazoHnyl)pyridine (PyBOx, structure 55, Scheme 26) as ligand [73]. 

Bis(oxazohnes) figands have been so widely used for the Diels-Alder reaction between N-2-alkenoyl-l,3-oxazolidine-2-one and cyclopentadiene that Lipkowitz and Pradhan developed a QSAR (quantitative structure-activity relationship) using Comparative Molecular Field Analysis (CoMFA) for a set of 23 copper-catalysts containing mainly bis(oxazoline) figands. The generated... 

The use of chiral bis(oxazoline) copper catalysts has also been often reported as an efficient and economic way to perform asymmetric hetero-Diels-Alder reactions of carbonyl compounds and imines with conjugated dienes [81], with the main focus on the application of this methodology towards the preparation of biologically valuable synthons [82]. Only some representative examples are listed below. For example, the copper complex 54 (Scheme 26) has been successfully involved in the catalytic hetero Diels-Alder reaction of a substituted cyclohexadiene with ethyl glyoxylate [83], a key step in the total synthesis of (i )-dihydroactinidiolide (Scheme 30). 

Fujisawa et al. [Ill] have reported that the magnesiiun complex prepared from chiral 2-[2-[(tolylsulfonyl)amino]phenyl]-4-phenyl-l,3-oxazoline 81 and methyl-magnesium iodide was efficient, in a stoechiometric amount, for promoting the enantioselective Diels-Alder reaction of 3-alkenoyl-l,3-oxazohdin-2-one with cyclopentadiene (Scheme 45) leading exclusively to the endo adducts in up to 92% ee. The use of 10 mol% of the complex led to an important decrease in enantioselectivity of the product (51% ee). 

Hallman and Moberg described the preparation of a chiral bis(oxazoline) grafted on ArgoGel [120] (87, in Scheme 48). In the zinc-catalyzed Diels-Alder reaction, polymer 87 was found to be less active than the analogous... 

Apart from the cyclopropanation reaction, only one example has been published of the application of ionic liquids as reaction media for enantio-selective catalysis with bis(oxazoline) ligands. In this case, the complex 6b-ZnCl2 was used as a catalyst for the Diels-Alder reaction between cyclopen-tadiene and N-crotonyloxazolidin-2-one in dibutyUmidazoUiun tetrafluorob-orate (Scheme 9) [48]. Compared with the same process in CH2CI2, the reaction was faster and both the endofexo selectivity and the enantioselectivity in the endo product were excellent. However, experiments aimed at recovering the catalysts were not carried out. 

In the case of the Diels-Alder reaction [68] (Scheme 12), several soUds (AlSBA-15, MCM-41, MSU-2 and zeolite HY) were tested as supports for the bis(oxazoline)-copper complexes. The best enantioselectivity results were obtained with the zeolite HY, although the yield was the poorest (16% yield, 41% ee). As happened with the aziridination reaction, the enantioselectivity changed with time. Short reaction times led to the same major enantiomer as observed in homogeneous reactions. However, at higher conversions, i.e., longer reaction times, the opposite major enantiomer was obtained. 

The only example of immobilization of a bis(oxazoline) complex by adsorption onto silica was published very recently [70]. The complexes 6a-Cu(OTf)2 and 6b-Cu(OTf)2 were adsorbed onto a chromatographic grade of silica gel and the resulting solids used as catalysts in two Diels-Alder reactions. 

Scheme 5.3 Mg-catalysed Diels-Alder reaction with sulfoxide-oxazoline ligands.

In catalytic enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions, Mg11 catalysts bearing chiral auxiliaries, such as chiral bidentate ligands containing oxazoline moieties,27-29 chiral diamines,30 and... 

Asymmetric reactions using chiral copper Lewis acids are also performed in aqueous media. It has been reported that an asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction proceeds smoothly in water using Cu(OTf)2 and abrine as a chiral ligand (Scheme 49).214 The Cu -bis(oxazoline) system is effective in asymmetric aldol reactions in an aqueous solvent such as water/ethanol and even in pure water.215... 

In stereoselective reactions, Zn11 Lewis acids work well to achieve high selectivities (Scheme 54). Chiral complexes of Zn11 with chiral bis(oxazoline) ligands act as effective catalysts in Diels-Alder reactions of reactive dienes with dienophiles having bidentate chelating moieties such as... 

Corey and Ishihara29 report the synthesis of a new bis(oxazoline). This catalyst effects Diels-Alder reaction via a tetracoordinated metal complex. Ligand (.S )-8I is synthesized from (iS )-phenylglycine, as depicted in Scheme 5-25. Treatment of 81 with Mgl2 L gives a dark solution of complex 82, which can be utilized as a Diels-Alder reaction catalyst. Thus, reaction of cyclopentadiene with 71 in the presence of 82 yields product 72a with an enantiomeric ratio of over 20 1 (Scheme 5-26). 

Ghosh et al.32 have demonstrated another bis(oxazoline) derivative chiral ligand 86 for asymmetric Diels-Alder reaction and obtained excellent results. Reaction of an equimolar mixture of chiral ligand 86 and Cu(C104)2 6H20 produces the aqua complex 87 (w being water molecule), which shows excellent catalytic power in asymmetric Diels-Alder reactions. As depicted in Scheme 5 27, the reaction of 88 with cyclopentadiene gives product 89 with more than 80% yield, over 99 1 diastereoselectivity and up to 99% ee. 

The C2-symmetric bis(oxazoline)-Cu(II) complexes have proved to be very effective in asymmetric aldol reactions (see Section 3.4.3), as well as Diels-Alder reactions (see Section 5.4.6). These compounds are also powerful catalysts in hetero Diels-Alder reactions. Figure 5-8 shows some of the bis(oxazoline) ligands applied in asymmetric hetero Diels-Alder reactions. 

Jorgensen s group44a carried out the reaction using the anhydrous form of chiral bis(oxazoline) coordinated copper complex. Complex 106 containing 83 as the chiral ligand was found to be the most effective. As shown in Scheme 5-32, the asymmetric hetero Diels-Alder reaction of //.y-unsaturated a-keto esters with acyclic enol ethers results in products with excellent yield and enantioselectivity. 

Figure 5-8. Bis(oxazoline) ligands used in asymmetric hetero Diels-Alder reactions.

The copper complex of these bis(oxazoline) compounds can also be used for hetero Diels-Alder reactions of acyl phosphonates with enol ethers.43 5 A favorable acyl phosphonate-catalyst association is achieved via complexation between the vicinal C=0 and P=0 functional groups. The acyl phosphonates are activated, leading to facile cycloaddition with electron-rich alkenes such as enol ethers. The product cyclic enol phosphonates can be used as building blocks in the asymmetric synthesis of complicated molecules. Scheme 5-36 shows the results of such reactions. 

Jorgensen s group reported the aza Diels-Alder reactions in the presence of several chiral catalysts.52 They found that chiral bis(oxazoline) ligands 81, 83, 103, 104, and 105, which were effective in asymmetric oxo hetero Diels-Alder reactions, induced the aza Diels-Alder reaction of a-imino ester with Danishefsky s diene with only poor to moderate enantioselectivity. Selected results are listed in Scheme 5-40. 

Another successful aza Diels-Alder reaction involves 2-azadienes of type 125 with dienophile 126 in the presence of bis(oxazoline) catalyst 106a.53 Product 127 is obtained in a high exo endo ratio, as well as high enantiomeric excess for the exo-isomer of 127. The high enantioselectivity and high yield rely on the chiral catalyst 106a, which activates the dienophile by complexation with an appropriate functional group and does not irreversibly coordinate with the... 

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