Oxazolone compounds

Kocevar et al. investigated the reactivity of 3-hydrazinopyridazines 386 in the presence of the oxazolone compound 387 <2001H(54)1011 >. In some special cases (mostly when R8 = Me), formation of 388 in high yields was observed, while in other cases an entirely different transformation (formation of a pyrazolone ring as a substituent instead of the hydrazine group) was experienced. 

An oxazolone compound is a good precursor of an azacyclobutadiene (Scheme 31).76... 

Diazoalkanes add to the carbon-carbon double bonds of 2,3-diphenylthiirene 1-oxide and 1,1-dioxide. The adducts lose SO or SO2 to give pyrazoles and related compounds (Scheme 103) (80CB1632). Mesoionic oxazolones (75CLH53), 4-methyl-5-phenyl-l,2-dithiolene-3-thione (80JOU395) and pyrylium betaines (72JOC3838) react similarly via intermediate adducts (Scheme 104). Enamines (Scheme 96) and ynamines add to the double bond of 2,3-diarylthiirene 1,1-dioxides to give acyclic and cyclic sulfones by a thermal. 

The azlactones of a-benzoylaminocinnamic acids have traditionally been prepared by the action of hippuric acid (1, Ri = Ph) and acetic anhydride upon aromatic aldehydes, usually in the presence of sodium acetate. The formation of the oxazolone (2) in Erlenmeyer-Plochl synthesis is supported by good evidence. The method is a way to important intermediate products used in the synthesis of a-amino acids, peptides and related compounds. The aldol condensation reaction of azlactones (2) with carbonyl compounds is often followed by hydrolysis to provide unsaturated a-acylamino acid (4). Reduction yields the corresponding amino acid (6), while drastic hydrolysis gives the a-0X0 acid (5). ... 

Modification of the Erlenmeyer reaction has been developed using imines of the carbonyl compounds, obtained with aniline," benzylamine or n-butylamine. Ivanova has also shown that an A-methylketimine is an effective reagent in the Erlenmeyer azlactone synthesis. Quantitative yield of 19 is generated by treatment of 3 equivalents of 2-phenyl-5(4ff)-oxazolone (2) (freshly prepared in benzene) with 1 equivalent of iV-methyl-diphenylmethanimine (18) in benzene. Products resulting from aminolysis (20), alkali-catalyzed hydrolysis (21), and alcoholysis (22) were also described. 

The 5(4I )-oxazolones are the familiar azlactones, and it is with this type that most studies have been conducted. The 5(2If)-oxazoIones are frequently referred to as pseudooxazolones, and there has been an increasing interest in the behavior of these compounds. A number of studies of the 2(3If)-system have been reported recently, and the existence of the 4(5lf )-system, previously in doubt, now seems firmly established. The 2(5lf)-oxazolones, however, remain unknown,... 

Several improved methods for the preparation of known unsaturated azlactones as well as some interesting new compounds of this type have been reported. Crawford and Little observed that the direct use of 2-phenyl-5-oxazolone (1) in the Erlenmeyer reaction gave much improved yields (35-74%) of unsaturated azlactones with aliphatic aldehydes and with ketones such as acetone and cyclohexanone [Eq, (1)], The usual procedure of mixing a carbonyl compound, hippuric acid, acetic anhydride, and sodium (or lead) acetate affords poor yields in the aliphatic series. 

The reaction of hippuric acid with a three-fold excess of trifluoro-acetic anhydride gives a 90% yield of 2-phenyl-4-(2, 2, 2 -trifluoro-l -hydroxyethylidene)-5-oxazolone (2). This compound is also obtained... 

A number of unusual aliphatic trifluoromethyl compounds have been obtained from 4-hexafluoroisopropylidene-2-phenyl-5-oxazolone (4) 10 The latter was prepared as shown in Eq. (2). The ease of formation... 

There are four possible classes of bis-5(4H)-oxazolones (cf. 8-11). Compounds of type 8 may be prepared by the Erlenmeyer reaction on dialdehydes. The compound in which R is derived from the 4,4 -dialdehyde of diphenyl ether (R = CgHs) is a recent example. ... 

The conversion of a 4-arylazo-5-oxazolone into a 1,2,4-triazole by reaction with a Grignard reagent is mentioned in Section II, B, 3. In HiTnilar fashion, the rearrangement of compound 30 to derivatives of 3-carboxy-l,5-diphenyl-lfl -l,2,4-triazoles (40) proceeds readily in the presence of strong nucleophiles [Eq. (26)]. This transformation undoubtedly occurs by ring opening and dehydrative cychzation, and, indeed, the acyclic amide and hydrazide 41 have been isolated. ... 

The oxazolone 43, prepared by reaction of 0-methylcaprolactim (42) with compound 1, undergoes a ring-opening reaction with methanolic HCl and cyclizes in alkaline medium to 1,5-pentamethyl-ene-2-phenylimidazole-4-carboxylic acid (44), which can be decar-boxylated easily. 

The isolation of several pairs of geometric isomers of 4-unsaturated-5-oxazolones has been described. Generally, only one isomer is obtained when an aldehyde reacts with hippuric acid in the presence of acetic anhydride. Occasionally, mixtures have been separated in base-catalyzed reactions. In acetic anhydride-sulfuric acid or in 100% sulfuric acid, a mixture is obtained, and it has been suggested that sulfuric acid inhibits mutarotation of the intermediate addition product 53, which is a mixture of diastereomers (see, e.g., compound... 

The member of this class which has been studied most thoroughly is 2-benzylidene-4-methyl-5(2 )-oxazolone (57). This compound may be prepared by ring closure of either 3-bromo-2-phenylacetamido-propionic acid or A-(a-halophenylacetyl)alanine (56) [Eq. (30)]. These reactions presumably proceed via unstable halogeno-5(4IT)-oxazolones, which rapidly lose hydrogen halide. 

Compounds of special interest whose preparation is described include 1,2,3-benzothiadiazole 1,1-dioxide (a benzyne precursor under exceptionally mild conditions), bis(l,3-diphenylimida-zolidinylidene-2) (whose chemistry is quite remarkable), 6- di-melhylamino)julvene (a useful intermediate for fused-ring non-benzenoid aromatic compounds), dipkenylcyclopropenone (the synthesis of which is a milestone in theoretical organic chemistry), ketene di(2-melhoxyethyl) acetal (the easiest ketene acetal to prepare), 2-methylcyclopenlane-l,3-dione (a useful intermediate in steroid synthesis), and 2-phenyl-5-oxazolone (an important intermediate in amino acid chemistry). 

Unfortunately, in many cases the reaction is not so straightforward it becomes complicated because of the nature of the activated component. There is another nucleophile in the vicinity that can react with the electrophile namely, the oxygen atom of the carbonyl adjacent to the substituted amino group. This nucleophile competes with the amine nucleophile for the electrophilic center, and when successful, it generates a cyclic compound — the oxazolone. The intermolecular reaction (path A) produces the desired peptide, and the intramolecular reaction (path B) generates the oxazolone. The course of events that follows is dictated by the nature of the atom adjacent to the carbonyl that is implicated in the side reaction. 

The enzymatic hydration of lactones is also documented, a variety of hydrolases having demonstrated activity. Very detailed kinetic studies have, for example, been published on the hydrolysis of oxazolones (7.78, R = H or Me, R = Me or aryl, R" = Me or Ph) catalyzed by a-chymotrypsin [163], These compounds are interesting from a chemical point of view, being enolic lac-... 

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