Pyrroles scaffold, access

In the forward direction, they first focused on accessing a bicyclic pyrrole scaffold such as 252. Toward this end, 2-phenyl-4H-benzoxazin-4-one (254) was treated with the Grignard derivative of pyrrole in THF to provide (pyrrolyl)ketone 255 (Scheme 33). Pyrrole 255 was next acylated at the... 

Heterocycles with a l,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrrolo[l,2-a]pyrazine core are also available through this multicomponent reaction. Compounds with a related structure are of high interest either for synthetic applications or for biological purposes. For the first time we were able to propose a one-pot access to pyrrolopiperazine and azasteroide-type scaffolds, illustrating the potential of this ecocompatible sequence to create molecular complexity and diversity from simple and readily available substrates (Scheme 60) [164]. In this case, the primary amine partner bears a pyrrole nucleophile, which neutralizes the transient iminium intermediate to form a new C-C bond via an intramolecular Pictet-Spengler-type cyclization. 

More recently (2004), Joule proposed a novel synthetic route to access the akuammiline scaffold with reports from his group s synthetic efforts toward realizing this plan. Retrosynthetically, they envisioned akuammiline (1) to result from late stage imine formation of ketone 247 (Scheme 32). The functionality at position 16 would then be elaborated from a carbonyl contained in diketone 248, which in turn was planned to be obtained via an intramolecular Claisen condensation and double bond isomerization of enamine 249, the latter the product of an aza-Diels—Alder cycloaddition involving cyclic 1-aza-1,3-diene 250 and an acrylate 251. To access azadiene 250 they planned an oxidative ring opening of bicyclic pyrrole 252. 

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