Oxazolines reaction with arenes

Arenes suffer dearomatization via cyclopropanation upon reaction with a-diazocarbonyl compounds (Btlchner reaction) [76]. Initially formed norcaradiene products are usually present in equilibrium with cycloheptatrienes formed via electrocyclic cyclopropane ring opening. The reaction is dramatically promoted by transition metal catalysts (usually Cu(I) or Rh(II) complexes) that give metal-stabilized carbenoids upon reaction with diazo compounds. Inter- and intramolecular manifolds are known, and asymmetric variants employing substrate control and chiral transition metal catalysts have been developed [77]. Effective chiral catalysts for intramolecular Buchner reactions include Rh Cmandelate), rhodium carboxamidates, and Cu(I)-bis(oxazolines). While enantioselectivities as high as 95% have been reported, more modest levels of asymmetric induction are typically observed. 

The first use of chiral oxazolines as activating groups for nucleophilic additions to arenes was described by Meyers in 1984. " Reaction of naphthyloxazoline 3 with phenyllithium followed by alkylation of the resulting anion with iodomethane afforded dihydronaphthalene 10 in 99% yield as an 83 17 mixture of separable diastereomers. Reductive cleavage of 10 by sequential treatment with methyl fluorosulfonate, NaBKi, and aqueous oxalic acid afforded the corresponding enantiopure aldehyde 11 in 88% yield. 

The moderate Lewis acidity of ruthenium complexes was used to promote catalytic Diels-Alder reaction of dienes and acrolein derivatives [21-23]. The enantioselective Diels-Alder reaction of methacrolein with dienes was catalyzed with cationic ruthenium complexes containing an arene or cyclo-pentadienyl (Cp) ligand and a chiral ligand such as phosphinooxazoline, pyridyl-oxazoline, monoxidized 2,2 -bis(diphenylphosphino)-1, T-binaphthyl (BINPO)or l,2-bis[bis(pentafluorophenyl)phosphanyloxy]-l,2-diphenylethane (BIPHOP-F). The reaction gave the cycloadduct in high yields with excellent... 

Some stereogenic-chiral DMGs have also been studied oxazolines [112], masked aldehydes [113], amides [114, 115], sulfonamides [116], and sulfoxides [117-119]. Aldehydes, ketones (leading to chiral alcohols), and imines (leading to chiral amines) are standard prochiral electrophiles. With chiral arene sulfoxides, enantiopure aromatic phenyl and naphthyl sulfoxides 17 can be prepared by reaction of (S)-t-butyl t-butanethiosulfinate with aiyllithium derivatives (Scheme 26.4) [120]. The DoM reaction is performed with n-BuLi followed by addition of the lithiated intermediates to W-tosylimines, affording the chiral arene 18. 

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