Oxazoline directed nucleophilic substitutions substitution

The amide derived from the carboxylic acid in Ugi adducts is in most cases tertiary, and therefore it cannot serve as nucleophilic partner in post-condensation transformations, unless a post-Ugi rearrangement converts it into a free amine [52, 54]. An exception is represented by Ugi adducts derived from ammonia, which give rise to two secondary amides, each of them potentially involved, as nucleophile, in nucleophilic substitution processes. Four competitive pathways are in principle possible (N- or 0-alkylations of the two amides), and the reaction is mainly driven by the stability of the formed rings. In the example shown in Fig. 12, 0-alkylation of the carboxylic-derived amide is favoured as it generates a 5-membered ring (oxazoline 62), while the alternative cyclization modes would have formed 3- or 4-membered rings [49]. When R C02H is phthalic acid, however, acylaziridines are formed instead via Walkylation [49]. In both cases, the intramolecular 8 2 reactions takes place directly under the Ugi conditions. 

In view of these previous developments, we directly coupled various N-substituted imidazoles, which display nucleophilic reactivity, with 2-bromo-oxazolines to give the imidazolium precursors (Scheme 15.15) [55]. This direct condensation of an oxazoline and an imidazole salt provided a straightforward and modular route to the development of a new family of stereodirecting ligands. NHC - rhodium complexes could be obtained by reaction of the imidazolium salt with [ Rh(p-OtBu)(nbd))2] (nbd, norbornadiene) generated iw sifn [56]. 

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