Fragmentation of alkoxy radicals: Tandem β-fragmentation-cycloperoxyiodination reaction

Catalytic, transannular carbonyl-olefin metathesis reactions

Transannular carbonyl-olefin metathesis reactions complement existing procedures for related ring-closing, ring-opening, and intermolecular carbonyl-olefin metathesis. We herein report the development and mechanistic investigation of FeCl₃-catalyzed transannular carbonyl-olefin metathesis reactions that proceed via a distinct reaction path compared to previously reported ring-closing and ring-opening protocols. Specifically, carbonyl-ene and carbonyl-olefin metathesis reaction pathways are competing under FeCl₃-catalysis to ultimately favor metathesis as the thermodynamic product. Importantly, we show that distinct Lewis acid catalysts are able to distinguish between these pathways to enable the selective formation of either transannular carbonyl-ene or carbonyl-olefin metathesis products. These insights are expected to enable further advances in catalyst design to efficiently differentiate between these two competing reaction paths of carbonyl and olefin functionalities to further expand the synthetic generality of carbonyl-olefin metathesis.

Advances in Synthetic Applications of Hypervalent Iodine Compounds

The preparation, structure, and chemistry of hypervalent iodine compounds are reviewed with emphasis on their synthetic application. Compounds of iodine possess reactivity similar to that of transition metals, but have the advantage of environmental sustainability and efficient utilization of natural resources. These compounds are widely used in organic synthesis as selective oxidants and environmentally friendly reagents. Synthetic uses of hypervalent iodine reagents in halogenation reactions, various oxidations, rearrangements, aminations, C-C bond-forming reactions, and transition metal-catalyzed reactions are summarized and discussed. Recent discovery of hypervalent catalytic systems and recyclable reagents, and the development of new enantioselective reactions using chiral hypervalent iodine compounds represent a particularly important achievement in the field of hypervalent iodine chemistry. One of the goals of this Review is to attract the attention of the scientific community as to the benefits of using hypervalent iodine compounds as an environmentally sustainable alternative to heavy metals.

Mitomycin Synthetic Studies: Stereocontrolled and Convergent Synthesis of a Fully Elaborated Aziridinomitosane

Full details of a stereocontrolled and convergent synthetic route to 9a-desmethoxymitomycin A (1) are reported. The target molecule possesses the parent tetrahydropyrrolo[1,2-a]indole ring system characteristic of the mitomycin family of antitumor agents. The synthesis was based on the diastereocontrolled addition of a fully elaborated cinnamylstannane to a pyrrolidine-based N-acyliminium ion as the key convergent step, which resulted in the installation of the C9 and C9a stereogenic centers.

Tandem beta-Fragmentation-Hydrogen Abstraction Reaction of Alkoxy Radicals in Steroidal Systems

A number of tertiary or hemiacetalic steroidal alcohols, 2-hydroxy-3,4-dinor-2,3-secocholestan-5-one 2,5-hemiacetal (1), 2beta,3beta-dihydro-3'H-cyclopropa[2,3]-cholestan-5alpha-ol (7), 3beta-phenyl-5alpha-hydroxycholestan-2-one (10), 5alpha-hydroxycholestan-3-one (15), 3beta,5alpha-dihydroxycholestan-7-one 3-acetate (21), and 4,4-dimethyl-19-hydroxy-5alpha-cholestan-3-one 19,3-hemiacetal (27) have been prepared in order to test a new tandem beta-fragmentation-hydrogen abstraction reaction. The alkoxy radicals generated by irradiation of these alcohols with visible light in the presence of (diacetoxyiodo)benzene, iodine, and molecular oxygen undergo a beta-fragmentation reaction followed by peroxidation of the C-radical formed. The peroxy radical reacts further with iodine to give an alkoxy radical and iodoxyl radical (IO(*)). The new alkoxy radical can produce intramolecular functionalization of suitably positioned carbons by hydrogen abstraction through a six-membered cyclic transition state to give tetrahydrofurans or can be intramolecularly trapped by carbonyl groups suitably disposed so as to generate a new alkoxy radical that can afford gamma-lactones by beta-fragmentation.