Unsaturated acids Synthesis

Carboxylic acids are produced in water. Selection of solvents is crucial and the carbonylation of the enol triflate 480 can be carried out in aqueous DMF, and that of the aryl triflate 481 in aqueous DMSO using dppf as a ligand[328,334]. The carbonylation of the enol triflate 482 to form the a, 0. unsaturated acid 483 using dppf as a ligand in aqueous DMF has been applied in the total synthesis of multifunctionalized glycinueclepin[335]. 

Acidic Cation-Exchange Resins. Brmnsted acid catalytic activity is responsible for the successful use of acidic cation-exchange resins, which are also soHd acids. Cation-exchange catalysts are used in esterification, acetal synthesis, ester alcoholysis, acetal alcoholysis, alcohol dehydration, ester hydrolysis, and sucrose inversion. The soHd acid type permits simplified procedures when high boiling and viscous compounds are involved because the catalyst can be separated from the products by simple filtration. Unsaturated acids and alcohols that can polymerise in the presence of proton acids can thus be esterified directiy and without polymerisation. 

P-Hydroxy acids lose water, especially in the presence of an acid catalyst, to give a,P-unsaturated acids, and frequendy P,y-unsaturated acids. P-Hydroxy acids do not form lactones readily because of the difficulty of four-membered ring formation. The simplest P-lactone, P-propiolactone, can be made from ketene and formaldehyde in the presence of methyl borate but not from P-hydroxypropionic acid. P-Propiolactone [57-57-8] is a usehil intermediate for organic synthesis but caution should be exercised when handling this lactone because it is a known carcinogen. 

These oxazolines have cationic surface-active properties and are emulsifying agents of the water-in-oil type. They ate acid acceptors and, in some cases, corrosion inhibitors (see Corrosion). Reaction to oxazoline also is useful as a tool for determination of double-bond location in fatty acids (2), or for use as a protective group in synthesis (3). The oxazolines from AEPD and TRIS AMINO contain hydroxyl groups that can be esterified easily, giving waxes (qv) with saturated acids and drying oils (qv) with unsaturated acids. 

Ring fission occurs readily in many of these compounds. For example, azlactones, i.e. 4JT-oxazolin-5-ones containing an exocyclic C=C bond at the 4-position (508), are hydrolyzed to a-benzamido-a,/3-unsaturated acids (509), further hydrolysis of which gives a-keto acids (510). Reduction and subsequent hydrolysis in situ of azlactones is used in the synthesis of a-amino acids e.g. 508 -> 507). 

Senzopyranone synthesis from phenols and ketoesters or unsaturated acids... 

Knoevenagel reaction is the synthesis of a, p-unsaturated acids by reaction of aldehydes and compounds with active methylene groups in the presence of an organic base... 

The wide variety of methods available for the synthesis of orga-noselenides,36 and the observation that the carbon-selenium bond can be easily cleaved homolytically to give a carbon-centered radical creates interesting possibilities in organic synthesis. For example, Burke and coworkers have shown that phenylselenolactone 86 (see Scheme 16), produced by phenylselenolactonization of y,S-unsaturated acid 85, can be converted to free radical intermediate 87 with triphenyltin hydride. In the presence of excess methyl acrylate, 87 is trapped stereoselectively, affording compound 88 in 70% yield 37 it is noteworthy that the intramolecular carbon-carbon bond forming event takes place on the less hindered convex face of bicyclic radical 87. 

Bicyclic ketone (33) was needed for a chrysanthemic acid synthesis. tarbene disconnection next to the ketone group (Chapter T30) reveals y. (5-unsaturated acid (35) as an intermediate, available by a Claisen-Cope rearrangement. 

The synthesis of organotin derivatives of itaconic and dtraconic acid by the known reaction of trialkyl(triaryl)stannanes with the corresponding unsaturated acids has been reported 66). These acids are presumed to be of interest for the production of highly bactericidal film-forming polymers. 

P. putida grown with hexanoic acid contained approximately 75, 11, and 10 mol% of 3HHx,3HO, and 3HD units and also small amounts of four unsaturated repeating units. The mechanism for the formation of 3HO unit was investigated by 13C NMR study, which showed that the most of 3HO units found in this PHA were formed by the reaction of hexanoic acid with acetyl-CoA [53]. These results confirmed that P. putida produces 3HA units by fatty acid synthesis pathway, through a -oxidation and chain elongation process. 

Ethyl-2-methyl-2-octenoic acid has been prepared only by this method. An alternate synthesis of a-alkyl-a,fl-unsaturated adds proceeds via a-bromination of the saturated acid, followed by dehy-drohalogenation with quinoline at elevated temperatures.11 The present method is especially well adapted to preparation of a/y-dialkyl-a,j3-unsaturated acids. 

Detailed NMR assignments for a range of bispyranones and some dihydro derivatives have followed their unambiguous syntheses through the Lewis acid-mediated reaction between 4-hydroxypyranones and a,P-unsaturated acids, a reaction which has potential in natural product synthesis (Scheme 39) <00TL1901>. 

FIGURE 3-7 Pathways for the interconversion of brain fatty acids. Palmitic acid (16 0) is the main end product of brain fatty acid synthesis. It may then be elongated, desaturated, and/or P-oxidized to form different long chain fatty acids. The monoenes (18 1 A7, 18 1 A9, 24 1 A15) are the main unsaturated fatty acids formed de novo by A9 desaturation and chain elongation. As shown, the very long chain fatty acids are a-oxidized to form a-hydroxy and odd numbered fatty acids. The polyunsaturated fatty acids are formed mainly from exogenous dietary fatty acids, such as linoleic (18 2, n-6) and a-linoleic (18 2, n-3) acids by chain elongation and desaturation at A5 and A6, as shown. A A4 desaturase has also been proposed, but its existence has been questioned. Instead, it has been shown that unsaturation at the A4 position is effected by retroconversion i.e. A6 unsaturation in the endoplasmic reticulum, followed by one cycle of P-oxidation (-C2) in peroxisomes [11], This is illustrated in the biosynthesis of DHA (22 6, n-3) above. In severe essential fatty acid deficiency, the abnormal polyenes, such as 20 3, n-9 are also synthesized de novo to substitute for the normal polyunsaturated acids. 

The unified highly convergent total and formal syntheses of ( + )-macro-sphelides B (441 X = O) and A (441 X = a-OH, p-H), respectively, have been described (483). Key features of the syntheses include the concise synthesis of the optically active S-hydroxy-y-keto a, 3-unsaturated acid fragment 442 via the direct addition of a fra/i.s-vinylogous ester anion equivalent to a readily available Weinreb amide, and the facile construction of the 16-membered macrolide core of the macrosphelide series via an INOC. 

One of the first applications of the then newly developed Ru-binap catalysts for a,/ -unsaturated acids was an alternative process to produce (S)-naproxen. (S)-Naproxen is a large-scale anti-inflammatory drug and is actually produced via the resolution of a racemate. For some time it was considered to be one of the most attractive goals for asymmetric catalysis. Indeed, several catalytic syntheses have been developed for the synthesis of (S)-naproxen intermediates in recent years (for a summary see [14]). The best results for the hydrogenation route were obtained by Takasago [69] (Fig. 37.15), who recently reported that a Ru-H8-binap catalyst achieved even higher activities (TON 5000, TOF 600 h 1 at 15 °C, 50 bar) [16]. 

In the original Doebner-von Miller synthesis of quinolines an arylamine condenses with two molecules of an aldehyde most of the variants have been dealt with in Section 2.08.2.2.3.ii since the intermediate (often used directly) is an a,-unsaturated aldehyde. Two further major variations, the Beyer modification and the Doebner cinchoninic acid synthesis, will be dealt with here, since intermediates are rarely isolated. 

Ultra-violet absorption, 13, 132, 218 Umpolung, 211 Unsaturated acids afi-, from Perkin reaction, 227 j8y-, synthesis, 234... 

Bromolactonization of /3,y-unsaturated acids has proven to be a much more satisfactory method of synthesis of /3-lactones, giving good yields of stable crystalline -y-bromo-/3-lactones, except when the substitution at the -y-carbon atom can favor development of carbonium character there. Thus 1,4-dihydrobenzoic acid and 2-methyl-l,4-dihydrobenzoic acid form /3-lactones (equation 95), while 3-methyl-l,4-dihydrobenzoic acid forms the -y-lactone (75JOC2843). The reaction of the sodium salt of a-methylcinnamic acid with bromine in water or methanol also gives /3-lactone, but the yield is low (78JOC3131). 

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