Wittig-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction

Important and widely used variants of the Wittig reaction are based on carbanionic organophosphorus reagents, and are known as the Wadsworth-Emmons reaction, Wittig-Horner reaction or Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction. As first reported by Horner, carbanionic phosphine oxides can be used today carbanions from alkyl phosphonates 13 are most often used. The latter are easily prepared by application of the Arbuzov reaction. The reactive carbanionic species—e.g. 14 —is generated by treatment of the appropriate phosphonate with base, e.g. with sodium hydride ... 

The (Horner-)Wadsworth-Emmons reaction generally is superior to the Wittig reaction, and has found application in many cases for the synthesis of a ,/3-unsaturated esters, a ,/3-unsaturated ketones and other conjugated systems. Yields are often better then with the original Wittig procedure. However the Wadsworth-Emmons method is not suitable for the preparation of alkenes with simple, non-stabilizing alkyl substituents. 

Scheme 2.19 provides some examples of the Peterson olefination. The Peterson olefination has not been used as widely in synthesis as the Wittig and Wadsworth-Emmons reactions, but it has been used advantageously in the preparation of relatively... 

The Witting reaction has been investigated in aqueous conditions.305 Wittig olefination reactions with stabilized ylides (known as the Wittig-Homer or Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction) are sometimes performed in an organic/water biphase system.306 Very often, a phase-transfer catalyst is used. Recently, the use of water alone as solvent... 

A tandem enzymatic aldol-intramolecular Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction has been used in the synthesis of a cyclitol.310 The key steps are illustrated in Scheme 8.33. The phosphonate aldehyde was condensed with dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) in water with FDP aldolase to give the aldol adduct, which cyclizes with an intramolecular Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction to give the cyclo-pentene product. The one-pot reaction takes place in aqueous solution at slightly acidic (pH 6.1-6.8) conditions. The aqueous Wittig-type reaction has also been investigated in DNA-templated synthesis.311... 

For the synthesis of alkenes, the Wittig and Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reactions have become important tools. Triphenylphosphine that is used in the Wittig reaction can be immobilized either on the polymer or can be used in solution for solid-phase chemistry (Scheme 3.18). The Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction for example is used for the synthesis of aldehyde building blocks [261]. 

The protected methyl glycoside 3 is converted to the corresponding aldehyde by Swern oxidation using oxalyl chloride activated DMSO. Further reaction with triethyl phosphonoacetate and sodium hydride -known as the Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction - provides selectively the trans et /Tun saturated ester 4 in 72 % yield. This valuable alternative to the Wittig olefination protocol uses phosphonate esters as substrates which are readily available from alkyl halides and trialkyl phosphites via the Arbuzov rearrangement.9 co2Et Reaction of the phosphonate with a suitable base gives the... 

P-nucleophiles (— precursors for Wittig or Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction)... 

Oxaphosphetane Fragmentation, Last Step of Wittig and Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons Reactions... 

In addition to the Wittig- und Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons reactions, we know a third alkene-forming reaction between carbonyl and phosphororganic compounds, i.e. the Wittig-Homer reaction. In Section 11.2, you will learn that in the course of this reaction a. syn-elim-ination of Ph2P(=0)0 takes places, i.e. another / elimination of I let1/I let2. 

The Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction represents a methodologically more important and more commonly used supplement to the Wittig reaction (cf. Section 11.1.3) than the Wittig-Homer reaction (Section 11.2). 

B. M. Heron, Heterocycles from Intramolecular Wittig, Homer and Wadsworth-Emmons Reactions, Heterocycles 1995, 41, 2357. 

Although the Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction is not an ylide reaction, it represents methodologically such an important supplement to the Wittig reaction discussed in Figure 9.3 that we include its discussion here. 

Scheme 1. Schematic representation of the Wittig and Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reactions. LG = leaving group.

However, although the Wittig reaction is regiospecific, i.e. the alkene is formed in a particular position in the molecule, it is stereoselective rather than stereospecific. Both cis and trans geometrical isomers can be formed. The ratio of geometrical isomers may be varied. The phospho-nate variant of the process (the Wadsworth-Emmons reaction) leads to trans alkenes. 

Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons Reactions of Phosphonate Anions. - As with the Horner modification of the Wittig reaction, the principal focus of papers that mention the Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction relate to synthetic applications. The use of pressure to induce the synthesis of P-amino esters, p-thioesters and P-thionitriles via tandem Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons and Michael reactions has been reported. The reagent (l-tritylimidazol-4-yl)methylphosphonate (99) has been prepared and, when treated with aldehydes and ketones, affords (E)-vinylimidazoles in high yields. ... 

Starting from (+)-diethyl tartrate (2), bromobutenolide 18 was obtained in nine steps. Three of the four C=C double bonds were built up using a Wittig reaction (11—>12), an Ando- y Q Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction (13— 15) and (3-elimination (16 18). From (-)-actinol (3) stannane 23 and sulfone 24 were synthesized in 9 and 13 steps, respectively. Their common intermediate, alkyne 22, was synthesized using methoxycarbonylation. Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation and Ci-elongation with lithio trimethylsilyldiazomethane. Stannane 23 was obtained upon hydrostannylation and TBS deprotection. Sulfone 24 was obtained after addition to methyl tetrolate, reduction, Mukaiyama redox condensation, acetylation and catalytic oxidation. 

The use of anions derived from a phosphine oxide (132) or a diethyl phosphonate (133) to form al-kenes was originally described by Homer.Although these papers laid the foundations for the use of phosphoryl-stabiliz carbanions for alkene synthesis, it was not until Wadsworth and Emmons published a more detailed account of the general applicability of the reaction that phosphonates bet e widely used. Since the work of Wadsworth and Emmons was significant and crucial to the acceptance of this methodology, the reaction of a phosphonate caibanion with a carbonyl derivative to form an alkene is referred to as a Homer-Wadsworth-Emmons reaction (abbreviated HWE). The phosphine oxide variation of the Wittig alkenation is called the Homer reaction. 

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