Oxygen-containing heterocycle synthesis compounds

This section covers the synthesis of aziridines, oxiranes, /J-lactams and oxetanes. Aziridines are fairly important moieties in bioactive molecules and thus new routes for their synthesis are constantly being developed. /1-Lactams are probably the most important heterocyclic compounds that contain a single nitrogen atom, due to their importance in penicillin and cephalosporin chemistry. Their synthesis and chemistry has received much attention and much of this work has been reviewed544. The oxygen-containing heterocycles are much less commonly synthesized from double-bonded functional groups. 

Oxazoles are well-investigated compounds. The occurrence, uses, and synthesis of oxazole derivatives have been the subjects of extensive reviews.5 The heterocyclic oxazole unit is seen with various substitution-patterns in a large number of naturally occurring compounds. Furthermore, oxazoles serve as synthetic intermediates leading to many other systems.5 6 7 In this context, oxazoles have seen, for example, numerous applications as "2-azadiene" components in 4+2 cycloadditions with several types of dienophiles. Further transformations of the products then lead to a number of other nitrogen- or oxygen-containing heterocyclic products.6... 

The transition-metal-catalyzed reaction of diazo compounds 702, which have a N—H or O—H bond at an appropriate position, gives nitrogen- and oxygen-containing heterocycles 703 (Scheme 2 1 8).293 Wang and Zhu demonstrated a convenient synthesis of the polyfunctionalized /Tfluoropyrroles by the rhodium-catalyzed intramolecular N—H insertion reaction.2933 The reaction of d-amino-y,y-difluoro-a-diazo-/Tketo esters 704 in the presence of Rh2(OAc)4 gave the... 

Zeolites are known to catalyze the formation of various nitrogen-containing aromatic ring systems. Examples include the synthesis of pyridines by dehydrogenation / condensation / cyclization of C -Cg precursors [1], the formation of methylpyridines by high-temperature isomerization of anilines [2], the amination of oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds [3] and the Fischer indole synthesis [4,5]. The latter synthesis consists (see Scheme 1) of a condensation towards a phenylhydrazone followed by an acid-catalyzed cyclization with elimination of ammonia. The two reaction steps are usually combined in a one-pot procedure. 

Hydroxylation of some substituted acetophenones under these conditions (Scheme 3.56) is especially useful for the synthesis of various oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds [175-179]. Applications of this methodology in organic synthesis, especially in the chemistry of heterocyclic compounds, have been summarized in several reviews [166,180-182]. 

Tetrahydrobenzopyrans, chromenes, coumarins, xanthenes, and so on are some of the most important oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds. Several synthetic methods are available for these compounds. This part of the chapter deals with the synthesis of these heterocyclic compounds using nano-ZnO as a reusable heterogeneous catalyst. 

Halophenol derivatives are promising substrates for the synthesis of oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds. As early as 1989, the carbony-lation of 2-iodophenol with phenyl acetylene or norbornadiene was realized. Coumarin and aurone can be prepared under the same conditions from different substrates (Scheme 2.22). 

The oxygen-containing heterocyclic compounds are of much interest in pharmaceutical industries as well in organic synthesis as many of these compounds possess important biological activities and constitute the core unit of many natural products. Thus, there has been an intense drive to synthesize oxygen-containing heterocycles. 

Benzofuran derivatives are one of the most important oxygen-containing heterocycles. Many natural or synthetic compounds containing benzofuran skeletons have been foxmd to possess remarkable activity as agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals [66]. Many methods have been developed for the synthesis of benzofuran in homogeneous and heterogeneous catalytic pathway. However, only the heterogeneously catalyzed reactions will be discussed here. 

Containing heterocycles are important substructures found in numerous bioactive natural products and important pharmaceuticals. The diversity of the structures encountered, as well as their biological and pharmaceutical relevance, has motivated research aimed at the development of new economical, efficient, and selective synthetic strategies to access these compounds [2, 3]. For the past dozen years, spectacular achievements have been made toward the synthesis of oxygen-containing heterocycles via Au- and Pt-catalyzed C-H activation/functionalization proce ss. 

The synthesis of oxygen- and nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds by anionic cyclization of unsaturated organolithium compounds has been reviewed recently. " Broka and Shen reported the first intramolecular reaction of an unstabilized a-amino-organolithium compound using reductive lithiation of an A,5-acetal derived from a homoaUylic secondary amine (Scheme 21). Just one example was reported treatment with lithium naphthalenide gave the pyrrolidine product, predominantly as the cis isomer. 

Besides N-acylated enamines, enamides containing a functional group in the carbon skeleton are obtained in the acid-catalyzed reactions of carbonyl compounds with nitriles. Some of them were shown in equations 18, 28, 31, 33, 38, 58, 59, 63, 65, 75 and 87 and they are mainly the polyacylated enamines (e.g. /Lacylaminovinyl ketones 79, 87, 93, 200, 207 and 278). Most of them are intermediates in the synthesis of oxygen and nitrogen containing heterocycles or products of further conversions of the latter. 

The reaction has been the subject of reviews,316,45 from which it will be seen that the reaction can be applied to synthesis of five- and six-membered oxygen-heterocycles, sulfur-heterocycles, bicyclic compounds, and compounds containing an additional heteroatom in the ring. 

Abstract Carbon d ylide dipoles are important intermediates with great application in heterocyclic chemistry. Here, we show how the rhodium-catalyzed a-diazocarbonyl compounds are employed in the generation of carbonyl ylides and their effective use for the synthesis, as well as functionalization, of heterocycles. Herein we discuss recent advancements in this field mainly describing the synthesis and importance of various oxygen-and nitrogen-containing heterocyclic systems and natural products from a-diazocarbonyl compounds. 

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