Intra- and intermolecular trapping of cyclopentapyrazine carbenes derived from 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles

Spirocyclic Products via Carbene Intermediates from Thermolysis of 1,2-Dialkynylpyrrole and 1,2-Diethynylimidazole

The thermal rearrangements of 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles have been shown to lead to trapping products of cyclopenta[b]pyrazine carbene intermediates. Here we show that a similar rearrangement also occurs in the case of 1,2-diethynyl-1H-pyrrole, and that trapping the intermediate cyclopenta[b]pyridine carbene with solvent THF affords an ylide that undergoes a Stevens rearrangement to a spirocyclic product. An analogous rearrangement and trapping is observed for thermolysis of 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles in THF or 1,4-dioxane.

Preparation and Utility of N-Alkynyl Azoles in Synthesis

Heteroatom-substituted alkynes have attracted a significant amount of interest in the synthetic community due to the polarized nature of these alkynes and their utility in a wide range of reactions. One specific class of heteroatom-substituted alkynes combines this utility with the presence of an azole moiety. These N-alkynyl azoles have been known for nearly 50 years, but recently there has been a tremendous increase in the number of reports detailing the synthesis and utility of this class of compound. While much of the chemistry of N-alkynyl azoles mirrors that of the more extensively studied N-alkynyl amides (ynamides), there are notable exceptions. In addition, as azoles are extremely common in natural products and pharmaceuticals, these N-alkynyl azoles have high potential for accessing biologically important compounds. In this review, the literature reports of N-alkynyl azole synthesis, reactions, and uses have been assembled. Collectively, these reports demonstrate the growth in this area and the promise of exploiting N-alkynyl azoles in synthesis.

S3S63 Terminal Ynamides: Synthesis, Coupling Reactions and Additions to Common Electrophiles

Ynamides consist of a polarized triple bond that is directly attached to a nitrogen atom carrying a sulfonyl, an alkoxycarbonyl, an acyl or another electron withdrawing group. The triple bond polarization renders ynamides broadly useful building blocks with synthetic opportunities that go far beyond traditional alkyne chemistry. The versatile reactivity of ynamides in cycloadditions, cycloisomerizations, regioselective additions with various nucleophiles or electrophiles, ring-closing metathesis, and many other reactions has been investigated in detail during the past decades. A common feature of these methods is that the triple bond is consumed and either cleaved or transformed to a new functionality. The wealth of reports on these ynamide reactions is in stark contrast to the dearth of carbon-carbon bond formations that leave the triple bond of terminal ynamides intact. The recent introduction of effective synthetic methods for the preparation of terminal ynamides has set the stage to fully explore the synthetic potential of this intriguing class of compounds. This digest letter summarizes the most effective routes to terminal ynamides and the current state of selective nucleophilic addition, substitution and coupling reactions, including the first examples of asymmetric synthesis.

Cytotoxic 1,2-dialkynylimidazole-based aza-enediynes: aza-Bergman rearrangement rates do not predict cytotoxicity

A new class of potential antitumor agents inspired by the enediyne antitumor antibiotics has been synthesized: the 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles. The aza-Bergman rearrangement of these 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles has been investigated theoretically at the B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level and experimentally by measuring the kinetics of rearrangement in 1,4-cyclohexadiene. There is a good correlation between the theoretical and experimental results; subtle substituent effects on the initial aza-Bergman cyclization barrier predicted by theory are confirmed by experiment. Yet, despite the ability of these 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles to undergo Bergman rearrangement to diradical/carbene intermediates under relatively mild conditions, there is no correlation between the rate of Bergman cyclization and cytotoxicity to A459 cells. In addition, cytotoxic 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles do not cause nicking of supercoiled plasmid DNA or cleavage of bovine serum albumin. An alternative mechanism for cytotoxicity involving the unexpected selective thiol addition to the N-ethynyl group of certain 1,2-dialkynylimidazoles is proposed.