Unsaturated pyrrolizidines, reactions

The utility of lOOC reactions in the synthesis of fused rings containing a bridgehead N atom such as pyrrolizidines, indolizidines, and quinolizidines which occur widely in a number of alkaloids has been demonstrated [64]. Substrates 242 a-d, that possess properly positioned aldoxime and alkene functions, were prepared from proline or pipecolinic acid 240 (Eq. 27). Esterification of 240 and introduction of unsaturation on N by AT-alkylation produced 241 which was followed by conversion of the carbethoxy function to an aldoxime 242. lOOC reaction of 242 led to stereoselective formation of various tricyclic systems 243. This versatile method thus allows attachment of various unsaturated side chains that can serve for generation of functionalized five- or six-membered (possibly even larger) rings. 

In an interesting fragmentation reaction, the hexahydroazocine (23) is formed by solvolysis of (22) in the presence of NaBHt in 94% yield (75TL2613). A related compound (24) can be prepared from 4-cycloheptenone oxime tosylate via the unsaturated lactam (25) (79JOC287). Whereas (25) adds bromine to the double bond, (24) undergoes a transannular reaction to give a 1-substituted pyrrolizidine (26). The latter type of reaction also occurs... 

Pyrrolizidine amino-alcohols are readily dehydrated for example, hydroxyheliotridane and retronecanol, when treated with sulfuric acid, afford heliotridene (see e.g., refs. 105 to 107). A more complicated dehydration reaction is the transformation of the alkaloid rosmarinine into the alkaloid senecionine.83 Dehydration of 1-hydroxy-l-carbethoxypyrrolizidine53 in the presence of phosphorus oxychloride in pyridine results mainly in the formation of the A1,8-unsaturated ester (see Section II, E). The authors61,62 claimed that the dehydration product of l-carbethoxy-2-hydroxy-3-oxopyrrolizidine contained a A1,2-double bond (159). Later, however, the UV, IR, and NMR spectra67 revealed that the double bond had migrated the... 

More synthetic routes to the l-(hydroxymethyl)pyrrolizidines have been reported. Two groups3,4 have published the same route to ( )-isoretronecanol (3) (Scheme 1). The key step is the nucleophilic attack of succinimide anion on the cyclopropylphosphonium salt (1), followed by intramolecular Wittig reaction to generate the unsaturated pyrrolizidinone ester (2). Catalytic reduction and reduction with a hydride yielded ( )-isoretronecanol (3). Flitsch and Wernsmann achieved a higher overall yield (62%) by carrying out the first step in boiling xylene.3... 

Thermal intramolecular cycloaddition reactions of unsaturated nitrones 1341 derived from a series of N- 2-alkenyl)-2-pyrrolecarbaldehydes 1340 and benzylhydroxylamine lead to competitive formation of two kinds of intramolecular cycloadducts, namely the fused- and the bridged-ring regioisomers 1342 and 1343, respectively (Scheme 255) <2001T8323>. Further elaboration of compounds 1342 and 1343 has given pyrrolizidine and indolizidine derivatives, respectively. A similar regiochemical trend was observed when aldehydes 1340 were reacted with (/ )-a-methylbenzylhydroxylamine in order to synthesize optically active compounds. 

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids ( )-trachelanthamidine (240) and ( )-supinidine (244) were synthesized, based on the Michael addition of an aziridine to an a,/J-unsaturated ester and subsequent ring opening of an aziridinium intermediate. Interest in these alkaloids stems from their biological activities. Treatment of ethyl 6-chloro-2-hexenoate (236) with excess aziridine at 0°C gave the pyrrolidine derivative 238 in one step, probably via the aziridinium salt 237 in 73% yield. The intramolecular cyclization of 238 with lithium diisopropylamide in tetrahydrofuran provided the thermodynamically more stable ester 239 as the sole product, (86%), which was then converted to ( )-trachelanthamidine (240) by reduction with lithium aluminum hydride. Since necine bases must contain a 1,2-didehydro system in their molecule to exhibit physiological activity, the following reactions were carried out to introduce a 1,2-didehydro system. Treatment of 238 with 2.4 equiv of lith-... 

Dipolar cycloadditions of pyrroHne N-oxides, which could be regarded as cycHc nitrones , on electron-poor aUcenes, represent a viable method to obtain highly substituted pyrrolizidines. Enantiopure (S)-3-alkoxypyrroline N-oxide (170), on the other hand, has been exploited in stereoselective cycloaddition reactions with solid-supported unsaturated esters (169) [266]. A both regio- and stereoselective cycloaddition took place in this case, affording the desired compound (171) as a single isomer (Scheme 36). 

The reductive cyclization of N-(w-iodoalkyl)succinimides induced by samarium(II) iodide was disclosed by Ha et al. as a novel method for making pyrrolizidines and indoUzidines (Scheme 46). " In the apphcation of the method to the synthesis of (+)-lentiginosine (127), reaction of N-(4-iodo-butyl)tartarimide (+)-335 with samarium(II) iodide in the presence of the iron(III)—tris(dibenzoylmethane) complex as catalyst produced the unsaturated indolizidin-3-one (+)-336 in 82% yield. Reduction of the bridgehead alkene was accomplished with triethylsilane and trifluoroacetic acid via an intermediate acyliminium ion, giving (+)-337 as the sole product in 93% yield. Routine hydrolysis of the silyl ethers produced the known diol (+)-177, after which reduction of the lactam with Hthium aluminum hydride then completed this short synthesis of (+)-127. 

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