Nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction mechanism

Reactions of carboxylic acids can be grouped into the four categories indicated in Figure 15.2. Of the four, we ve already discussed the acidic behavior of carboxylic acids in Sections 15.2 and 15.3, and we mentioned reduction by reaction of the acid with LiAlH4 in Section 13.3. The remaining two categories are examples of fundamental carbonyl-group reaction mechanisms— nucleophilic acyl substitution and a substitution—that will he discussed in detail in Chapters 16 and 17. 

Thioesters undergo the same kinds of reactions as esters and by similar mechanisms Nucleophilic acyl substitution of a thioester gives a thiol along with the product of acyl transfer For example... 

This pattern of increased reactivity resulting from carbonyl group protonation has been seen before in nucleophilic additions to aldehydes and ketones (Section 17.6) and in the mechanism of the acid-catalyzed esterification of carboxylic acids (Section 19.14). Many biological reactions involve nucleophilic acyl substitution and are catalyzed by enzymes that act by donating a proton to the carbonyl oxygen, the leaving group, or both. 

The features that complicate the mechanism of nucleophilic acyl substitution are almost entirely related to acid-base chemistry We try to keep track as best we can of the form m which the various species—reactants intermediates and prod nets—exist under the reaction conditions... 

Both in the laboratory and in living organisms, the reactions of carbonyl compounds take place by one of four general mechanisms nucleophilic addition, nucleophilic acyl substitution, alpha substitution, and carbonyl condensation. These... 

General mechanism of a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction. 

The net effect of the addition/elimination sequence is a substitution of the nucleophile for the -Y group originally bonded to the acyl carbon. Thus, the overall reaction is superficially similar to the kind of nucleophilic substitution that occurs during an Sn2 reaction (Section 11.3), but the mechanisms of the two reactions are completely different. An SN2 reaction occurs in a single step by backside displacement of the Leaving group a nucleophilic acyl substitution takes place in two steps and involves a tetrahedral intermediate. 

Show the mechanism of the following nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction, using curved arrows to indicate the electron flow in each step ... 

Mechanism of Fischer esterification. The reaction is an acid-catalyzed, nucleophilic acyl substitution of a carboxylic acid. 

We said in Section 17.4 that carboxylic acids are reduced by L1AIH4 to give primary alcohols, but we deferred a discussion of the reaction mechanism at that time. In fact, the reduction is a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction in which —H replaces -OH to give an aldehyde, which is further reduced to a primary alcohol by nucleophilic addition. The aldehyde intermediate is much more reactive than the starting acid, so it reacts immediately and is not isolated. 

Acid halides are among the most reactive of carboxylic acid derivatives and can be converted into many other kinds of compounds by nucleophilic acyl substitution mechanisms. The halogen can be replaced by -OH to yield an acid, by —OCOR to yield an anhydride, by -OR to yield an ester, or by -NH2 to yield an amide. In addition, the reduction of an acid halide yields a primary alcohol, and reaction with a Grignard reagent yields a tertiary alcohol. Although the reactions we ll be discussing in this section are illustrated only for acid chlorides, similar processes take place with other acid halides. 

Conversion of Acid Chlorides into Alcohols Reduction Acid chlorides are reduced by LiAJH4 to yield primary alcohols. The reaction is of little practical value, however, because the parent carboxylic acids are generally more readily available and can themselves be reduced by L1AIH4 to yield alcohols. Reduction occurs via a typical nucleophilic acyl substitution mechanism in which a hydride ion (H -) adds to the carbonyl group, yielding a tetrahedral intermediate that expels Cl-. The net effect is a substitution of -Cl by -H to yield an aldehyde, which is then immediately reduced by UAIH4 in a second step to yield the primary alcohol. 

Amide hydrolysis is common in biological chemistry. Just as the hydrolysis of esters is the initial step in the digestion of dietary fats, the hydrolysis of amides is the initial step in the digestion of dietary proteins. The reaction is catalyzed by protease enzymes and occurs by a mechanism almost identical to that we just saw for fat hydrolysis. That is, an initial nucleophilic acyl substitution of an alcohol group in the enzyme on an amide linkage in the protein gives an acyl enzyme intermediate that then undergoes hydrolysis. 

The following reaction involves a hydrolysis followed by an intramolecular nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction. Write both steps, and show their mechanisms. 

The metabolic breakdown of triacylglycerols begins with their hydrolysis to yield glycerol plus fatty acids. The reaction is catalyzed by a lipase, whose mechanism of action is shown in Figure 29.2. The active site of the enzyme contains a catalytic triad of aspartic acid, histidine, and serine residues, which act cooperatively to provide the necessary acid and base catalysis for the individual steps. Hydrolysis is accomplished by two sequential nucleophilic acyl substitution reactions, one that covalently binds an acyl group to the side chain -OH of a serine residue on the enzyme and a second that frees the fatty acid from the enzyme. 

Figure 29.2 MECHANISM Mechanism of action of lipase. The active site of the enzyme contains a catalytic triad of aspartic acid, histidine, and serine, which react cooperatively to carry out two nucleophilic acyl substitution reactions. Individual steps are explained in the text.

Notice that the mechanism of the nucleophilic acyl substitution step can be given in an abbreviated form that saves space by not explicitly showing the tetrahedral reaction intermediate. Instead, electron movement is shown as a heart-shaped path around the carbonyl oxygen to imply the full mechanism. 

As noted in Section 4.2.1, the gas phase has proven to be a useful medium for probing the physical properties of carbanions, specifically, their basicity. In addition, the gas phase allows chemists to study organic reaction mechanisms in the absence of solvation and ion-pairing effects. This environment provides valuable data on the intrinsic, or baseline, reactivity of these systems and gives useful clues as to the roles that solvent and counterions play in the mechanisms. Although a variety of carbanion reactions have been explored in the gas phase, two will be considered here (1) Sn2 substitutions and (2) nucleophilic acyl substitutions. Both of these reactions highlight some of the characteristic features of gas-phase carbanion chemistry. 

The reactivity of carboxyhc acid derivatives depends on the basicity of the substituent attached to the acyl group. Therefore, the less basic the substituent, the more reactive is the derivative. In other words, strong bases make poor leaving groups. Carboxylic acid derivatives undergo a variety of reactions under both acidic and basic conditions, and almost aU involve the nucleophilic acyl substitution mechanism (see Section 5.5.5). 

Carboxylic acid and its derivatives undergo nucleophilic acyl substitution, where one nucleophile replaces another on the acyl carbon. Nucleophilic acyl substitution can interconvert all carboxylic acid derivatives, and the reaction mechanism varies depending on acidic or basic conditions. Nucleophiles can either be negatively charged anion (Nu ) or neutral (Nu ) molecules. 

The mechanisms of these reactions begin like the reaction of an alcohol with thionyl chloride. Either oxygen atom of the acid can attack sulfur, replacing chloride by a mechanism that looks like sulfur s version of nucleophilic acyl substitution. The product is an interesting, reactive chlorosulfite anhydride. 

Propose a mechanism for the reaction of benzoic acid with oxalyl chloride. This mechanism begins like the thionyl chloride reaction, to give a reactive mixed anhydride. Nucleophilic acyl substitution by chloride ion gives a tetrahedral intermediate that eliminates a leaving group, which then fragments into carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and chloride ion. 

A reaction in which a nucleophile substitutes for a leaving group on a carbonyl carbon atom. Nucleophilic acyl substitution usually takes place through the following addition-elimination mechanism, (p. 960)... 

Nucleophilic acyl substitutions are also called acyl transfer reactions because they transfer the acyl group from the leaving group to the attacking nucleophile. The following is a generalized addition-elimination mechanism for nucleophilic acyl substitution under basic conditions. 

Nearly all the reactions in this chapter are nucleophilic acyl substitutions that follow the addition-elimination mechanism under acidic or basic conditions. 

As we study these conversions of acid derivatives, it may seem that many individual mechanisms are involved. But all these mechanisms are variations on a single theme the addition-elimination mechanism of nucleophilic acyl substitution (Key Mechanism 21-1). These reactions differ only in the nature of the nucleophile, the leaving group, and proton transfers needed before or after the actual substitution. As we study these mechanisms, watch for these differences and don t feel that you must learn each specific mechanism. 

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