High-pressure and thermally induced intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions of furfuryl fumarates. Influence of tether substituents on diastereoselectivity

Ring fission of chiral cyclic acetals plus intramolecular [4 + 2] cycloaddition: a sequential access to medium-size lactones. Application to the synthesis of carbasugars

A set of alpha,beta-unsaturated cyclic acetals were reacted with t-butyllithium in THF. A conjugate elimination took place, triggering a ketal ring cleavage when two eq. of TMEDA were added to the medium. The lithium alcoholate thus obtained could be trapped in situ by 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl acrylate. The resulting acryloyl (1Z,3E)-dienyl ether was then submitted to an intramolecular Diels-Alder cycloaddition under high pressure (12 kbar, 50 degrees C). Depending on the structure of the linkage between the diene and the acrylate, the expected ("fused") lactones were obtained with total endo- or exo-selectivities and high to complete diastereoselectivities. A remarkable inversion of selectivity, from endo to exo, with respect to the stereochemical elements of the tether could be observed in these cases. A five step diastereoselective transformation of two of the resulting nine-membered ring lactones into modified carbasugars was finally achieved in 23% overall yield.

Theoretical model of internal rotation in monosubstituted derivatives of furfural

The present work explores the effect of substitution in all free positions of furfural on conformational preferences of formyl group by using ab-initio calculations at the MP2/6-31G(p,d) level of theory. Theoretical modeling was made in vacuo. The selected substituents were -CH(3), NH(2), NO(2) and F groups in 3, 4, 5 and ipso carbonyl positions. Geometries of all derivatives were analyzed and it is ascertained that substitution has not important consequences on furan ring geometry. Differences of energy between OO-cis and trans conformers and energy barriers between them are described and extreme cases are explained. Interesting features appear in the cases of -NH(2) and -NO(2) groups, and particularly when the 3 and ipso carbonyl positions are substituted. Variations in energy barriers are correlated with variations in C2-C6 distances for the transition states and planar forms. Substitution effect on Mülliken charges are analyzed and related with internal rotation energy barriers and differences between conformers.