Stereochemistry ester hydrolysis

Some male arctiid moths produce their courtship pheromone from dietary pyrrolizidine alkaloids acquired during feeding by the larvae [ 126]. Conversion of monocrotaline to hydroxydanaidal by males is accomplished by aromatiza-tion, ester hydrolysis and oxidation of an alcohol to the aldehyde [7]. In the case of Utetheisa ornatirx the stereo-configuration at C7 of the dietary alkaloid is the same as the pheromone released (R). In contrast, another arctiid, Creatono-tos transiens, can convert a dietary precursor alkaloid with the (S) configuration at C7 (heliotrine) to (l )-hydroxydanaidal. The biosynthesis occurs by first oxidation-reduction at C7 to convert the stereochemistry and then proceeds through aromatization, hydrolysis, and oxidation [7]. 

When a carboxylic acid is used as the nucleophile, simple ester hydrolysis releases the alcohol, providing an inversion of alcohol stereochemistry. 

Using the chiral ester X as a starting material, draw the carboxylate anion and alcohol formed (including stereochemistry) from hydrolysis of X via the accepted mechanism (having a tetrahedral intermediate) and the one-step Sn2 alternative. Given that only one alcohol, (R)-2-butanol, Is formed in this reaction, what does this indicate about the mechanism ... 

Fragmentations linked to ester hydrolysis (contrast acetal hydrolysis in Problem 3) pin stereochemistry. 

In some examples, the stereochemistry of radical reactions was controlled by chiral carbohydrate auxiliaries. As a radical counterpart to the ionic conjugate additions discussed above, Garner et al. [169] prepared carbohydrate linked radicals that were reacted with a,P-unsaturated esters. The radical precursor, the carboxylic acid 256, generated by the addition of ( Sj-methyl lactate to tri-O-benzyl-D-glucal and subsequent ester hydrolysis, was decarboxylated by Barton s procedure (Scheme 10.84) [170]. Trapping of the chiral radical 258 with methyl acrylate furnished the saturated ester 259 in 61% yield and with high diastereoselectivity (11 1). The auxiliary caused a preferential addition to the si-facQ of radical 258, probably due to entropic effects. The ester 259 was transformed in acceptable yield to the y-butyrolactone 261 by reductive removal of the thiopyridyl group followed by acid hydrolysis. 

The synthesis of the cw-trisubstituted C13.14 double bond is very difficult and several elegant methods have been presented for its construction. For example, Paterson employed an elegant route utilizing a Claisen rearrangement (Figure 8). This approach nicely sets the stereochemistry of the double bond via an 8-membered lactone ring. Subsequent ester hydrolysis reveals the desired stereochemical unit. 

The product sec-butyl acetate is optically active and we can measure its optical rotation. But this tells us nothing. Unless we know the true rotation for pure sec-butyl acetate, we don t yet know whether it is optically pure nor even whether it really is inverted. We expect it to have R) stereochemistry, but we can easily find out for sure. All we have to do is to hydrolyse the ester and get the original alcohol back again. We know the true rotation of the alcohol—it was our starting material—and we know that ester hydrolysis (Chapter 10) proceeds by attack at the carbonyl carbon—it can t affect the stereochemistry of the chiral centre. 

The hydrolysis of sulfonate esters of 2 octanol is stereospecific and proceeds with complete inversion of configuration Write a structural formula that shows the stereochemistry of the 2 octanol formed by hydrolysis of an opti cally pure sample of (S) (+) 1 methylheptyl p toluenesulfonate identify the prod uct as / or S and deduce its specific rotation... 

Catalytic hydrogenation of the 14—15 double bond from the face opposite to the C18 substituent yields (196). Compound (196) contains the natural steroid stereochemistry around the D-ring. A metal-ammonia reduction of (196) forms the most stable product (197) thermodynamically. When R is equal to methyl, this process comprises an efficient total synthesis of estradiol methyl ester. Birch reduction of the A-ring of (197) followed by acid hydrolysis of the resultant enol ether allows access into the 19-norsteroids (198) (204). 

Replacement of halides with deuterium gas in the presence of a surface catalyst is a less useful reaction, due mainly to the poor isotopic purity of the products. This reaction has been used, however, for the insertion of a deuterium atom at C-7 in various esters of 3j -hydroxy-A -steroids, since it gives less side products resulting from double bond migration. Thus, treatment of the 7a- or 7j5-bromo derivatives (206) with deuterium gas in the presence of 5% palladium-on-calcium carbonate, or Raney nickel catalyst, followed by alkaline hydrolysis, gives the corresponding 3j3-hydroxy-7( -di derivatives (207), the isotope content of which varies from 0.64 to 1.18 atoms of deuterium per mole. The isotope composition and the stereochemistry of the deuterium have not been rigorously established. 

Fischer s original method for conversion of the nitrile into an aldehyde involved hydrolysis to a carboxylic acid, ring closure to a cyclic ester (lactone), and subsequent reduction. A modern improvement is to reduce the nitrile over a palladium catalyst, yielding an imine intermediate that is hydrolyzed to an aldehyde. Note that the cyanohydrin is formed as a mixture of stereoisomers at the new chirality center, so two new aldoses, differing only in their stereochemistry at C2, Tesult from Kiliani-Fischer synthesis. Chain extension of D-arabinose, for example, yields a mixture of D-glucose and o-mannose. 

Stereoinversion Stereoinversion can be achieved either using a chemoenzymatic approach or a purely biocatalytic method. As an example of the former case, deracemization of secondary alcohols via enzymatic hydrolysis of their acetates may be mentioned. Thus, after the first step, kinetic resolution of a racemate, the enantiomeric alcohol resulting from hydrolysis of the fast reacting enantiomer of the substrate is chemically transformed into an activated ester, for example, by mesylation. The mixture of both esters is then subjected to basic hydrolysis. Each hydrolysis proceeds with different stereochemistry - the acetate is hydrolyzed with retention of configuration due to the attack of the hydroxy anion on the carbonyl carbon, and the mesylate - with inversion as a result of the attack of the hydroxy anion on the stereogenic carbon atom. As a result, a single enantiomer of the secondary alcohol is obtained (Scheme 5.12) [8, 50a]. 

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