Theoretical Study of 1-Methoxy-2-sulfanylethan-1-yl Cation: Insight into Intermediates in Glycosidation Reactions

Spectroscopic and X-ray crystallographic evidence for electrostatic effects in 4-substituted cyclohexanone-derived hydrazones, imines, and corresponding salts

The axial conformer of several 4-substituted cyclohexanone hydrazone salts was found to predominate in solution. Changes in the charge of the molecule and the polarity of the solvent led to changes in the conformational preference of each molecule that were consistent with electrostatic stabilization of the axial conformer. (1)H NMR spectroscopic analysis was utilized to determine the structure of cyclohexanone-derived substrates by comparison to conformationally restricted trans-decalone derivatives and computational models. X-ray crystallography demonstrated that the axial configuration of a pendant benzyloxy group is the preferred conformation of an iminium ion in the solid state. The structure of a neutral hydrazone was also determined to favor the axial configuration for a pendant benzyloxy group in the solid state.

A synthetic route to highly substituted 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines via Yb(OTf)3 -catalyzed diastereoselective ring opening of bridged oxazolidines: asymmetric synthesis of 2-azapodophyllotoxin

We herein report a robust and efficient synthetic route to highly functionalized enantiopure 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines (THIQs) from Garner aldehyde. We utilized the inherent chirality of Garner aldehyde through 1,2- and 1,3-/1,4-asymmetric inductions iteratively to obtain 1,2,3,4-tetrasubstitued THIQs using rigid and isolable bridged oxazolidines without any external chiral sources. All possible stereoisomers of bridged oxazoliodines were efficiently synthesized from L- and D-Garner aldehydes and transformed into fully functionalized THIQs via diastereoselective ring opening with various nucleophiles in the presence of Yb(OTf)(3). This methodology furnished four out of eight possible diastereomers of 1,2,3,4-tetrasubstituted THIQs despite the electronic nature of substituents on the aryl rings. Finally, the enantioselective synthesis of 2-azapodophyllotoxin was achieved with an overall yield of 35.4% (eight steps) from D-Garner aldehyde using this synthetic route.

Origin of stereocontrol in the construction of the 12-oxatricyclo[6.3.1.0(2,7)]dodecane ring system by Prins-pinacol reactions

Polycyclic products containing the 12-oxatricyclo[6.3.1.0(2,7)]dodecane moiety having either the trans (8a-e) or cis (9a-e) relative configuration of the oxacyclic bridge and the cis angular substituents are formed stereospecifically by Prins-pinacol cyclizations of unsaturated alpha-dithianyl acetals 14a-e or 15a-e. These results show that the topography (boat or chair) of the Prins cyclization of the sulfur-stabilized oxocarbenium ions generated from acetals 14a-e or 15a-e is controlled by the stereoelectronic influence of the allylic substituents, with steric effects playing a minor role. A complex molecular rearrangement that is terminated by a thio-Prins-pinacol reaction is also identified.

Cyclization reactions through DDQ-mediated vinyl oxazolidinone oxidation

Vinyl oxazolidinones react with DDQ to form alpha,beta-unsaturated acyliminium ions in a new method for forming electrophiles under oxidative conditions. Appended nucleophiles undergo 1,4-addition reactions with these intermediates to form cyclic vinyl oxazolidinones with good levels of diastereocontrol, highlighting a new approach to utilizing oxidative carbon-hydrogen bond functionalization to increase molecular complexity.

The effect of electrostatic interactions on conformational equilibria of multiply substituted tetrahydropyran oxocarbenium ions

The three-dimensional structures of dioxocarbenium ions related to glycosyl cations were determined by an analysis of spectroscopic, computational, and reactivity data. Hypothetical low-energy structures of the dioxocarbenium ions were correlated with both experimentally determined (1)H NMR coupling constants and diastereoselectivity results from nucleophilic substitution reactions. This method confirmed the pseudoaxial preference of C-3 alkoxy-substituted systems and revealed the conformational preference of the C-5 alkoxymethyl group. Although the monosubstituted C-5 alkoxymethyl substituent preferred a pseudoequatorial orientation, the C-5-C-6 bond rotation was controlled by an electrostatic effect. The preferred diaxial conformer of the trans-4,5-disubstituted tetrahydropyranyl system underscored the importance of electrostatic effects in dictating conformational equilibria. In the 2-deoxymannose system, although steric effects influenced the orientation of the C-5 alkoxymethyl substituent, the all-axial conformer was favored because of electrostatic stabilization.

Electrostatic Effects on the Reactions of Cyclohexanone Oxocarbenium Ions

Nucleophilic substitution reactions of 4-substituted cyclohexanone acetals display different selectivities depending upon the electronic nature of the substituent. Alkyl groups favor equatorial positions in the oxocarbenium ions, but alkoxy groups prefer axial conformers. The reactions of acetals with alkoxy groups constrained to either equatorial or axial positions suggest that the presence of an axial alkoxy group distorts the oxocarbenium ion, changing its inherent preferences for facial attack.

Nucleophilic Substitution Reactions of Sulfur-Substituted Cyclohexanone Acetals: An Analysis of the Factors Controlling Stereoselectivity

The reactions of cyclohexanone acetals substituted with thiophenyl groups (and other heteroatoms) at C-2 demonstrate the powerful influence that these substituents have on the stereoselectivity of nucleophilic substitution reactions. The trans selectivities of these reactions correlate with the behavior of the corresponding ketones. These experiments lend support to the possibility that the reactions of the acetals, which proceed via oxocarbenium ions, are operating under Felkin-Anh control.

Electrostatic interactions in cations and their importance in biology and chemistry

Electrostatic effects exert strongly stabilizing influences on cations, in many cases controlling the conformational preferences of these cations. The lowest energy conformers are ones where the positive charge is brought closest to substituents bearing partial negative charges. These conformational biases, along with stereoelectronic effects, can control the stereoselectivity of reactions involving carbocationic intermediates.

Structural evidence that alkoxy substituents adopt electronically preferred pseudoaxial orientations in six-membered ring dioxocarbenium ions

Nucleophilic substitution reactions of monosubstituted tetrahydropyran acetals give opposite selectivities when a remote alkyl or alkoxy substituent is present at C-4. Coupled with earlier computational reports on the intermediates of glycosylation reactions, these results are consistent with the preference for the oxocarbenium ion intermediate derived from alkoxy-substituted tetrahydropyran acetals to occupy a pseudoaxial conformation. Theoretical, spectroscopic, and X-ray crystallographic evidence of this conformational preference in an analogous and more stable dioxocarbenium ion are provided. This contrasteric preference for an axial orientation of an alkoxy substituent likely derives from the electronically favored pseudoaxial orientation of remote electronegative substituents in neutral six-membered rings possessing electron-deficient carbon atoms.

Using Nucleophilic Substitution Reactions to Understand How a Remote Alkyl or Alkoxy Substituent Influences the Conformation of Eight-Membered Ring Oxocarbenium Ions

[reaction: see text] A remote alkoxy substituent strongly stabilizes one particular conformer of an eight-membered ring oxocarbenium ion by a through-space electrostatic effect. X-ray crystallographic analysis of a crystalline derivative proves that kinetically controlled nucleophilic substitution favors the 1,4-trans product. Nucleophilic substitution of the corresponding alkyl-substituted acetate, however, is unselective. A computational model has been developed and experimentally validated to predict the low-energy conformers of C3-, C4-, or C5-alkyl- or alkoxy-substituted eight-membered ring oxocarbenium ions.

Stereochemistry of Nucleophilic Substitution Reactions Depending upon Substituent: Evidence for Electrostatic Stabilization of Pseudoaxial Conformers of Oxocarbenium Ions by Heteroatom Substituents

Lewis acid-mediated nucleophilic substitution reactions of substituted tetrahydropyran acetates reveal that the conformational preferences of six-membered-ring cations depend significantly upon the electronic nature of the substituent. Nucleophilic substitutions of C-3 and C-4 alkyl-substituted tetrahydropyran acetates proceeded via pseudoequatorially substituted oxocarbenium ions, as would be expected by consideration of steric effects. Substitutions of C-3 and C-4 alkoxy-substituted tetrahydropyran acetates, however, proceeded via pseudoaxially oriented oxocarbenium ions. The unusual selectivities controlled by the alkoxy groups were demonstrated for a range of other heteroatom substituents, including nitrogen, fluorine, chlorine, and bromine. It is believed that the pseudoaxial conformation is preferred in the ground state of the cation because of an electrostatic attraction between the cationic carbon center of the oxocarbenium ion and the heteroatom substituent. This analysis is supported by the observation that selectivity diminishes down the halogen series, which is inconsistent with electron donation as might be expected during anchimeric assistance. The C-2 heteroatom-substituted systems gave moderately high 1,2-cis selectivity, while small alkyl substituents showed no selectivity. Only in the case of the tert-butyl group at C-2 was high 1,2-trans selectivity observed. These studies reinforce the idea that ground-state conformational effects need to be considered along with steric approach considerations.

Nucleophilic Additions to Fused Bicyclic Five-Membered Ring Oxocarbenium Ions: Evidence for Preferential Attack on the Inside Face

Evidence is provided that nucleophilic attack on five-membered ring oxocarbenium ions occurs from the inside face of the envelope. An eight-five fused-bicyclic system in which two substituents are constrained to pseudoequatorial positions underwent nucleophilic addition with selectivity that was comparable to an unconstrained monocyclic system. On the other hand, a bicyclic six-five analogue underwent reaction with low selectivity. This observation indicates that minimization of eclipsing interactions by attacking inside the envelope is not enough to control selectivity, but that the changes in the overall three-dimensional structure of the ring must be favorable as well. In the bicyclic six-five series, the six-membered ring is accommodated in the cation, but it destabilizes the transition state structure leading to the first-formed product of inside attack.

Computational insight into the reaction intermediates in the glycosylation reaction assisted by donor heteroatoms

We studied the geometric and electronic structure of several cations (9 and 18-23) that are usually proposed as intermediates for glycosylation reactions using DFT methods. For ions 9 and 18-23 the geometries obtained corresponded to an open ion (6b type) irrespective of the exocyclic heteroatom (S, Se, I) and the size of the cycle (furanoses as well as pyranoses). We studied how substituents bonded to the exocyclic heteroatom (R in SR and SeR) affect the structure of ions and found that the geometry approached that of episulfonium and episelenonium ions (6a type) when the substituents were electron donors. The tert-butyl group and the 2,4,6-trimethyl- and 2,4,6-trimethoxyphenyl and trimethylsilyl groups produced the strongest of these effects. The presence of an electron-withdrawing group (CO-CF(3)) bonded to the hydroxymethyl group produced a similar but weaker effect. We analyzed this behavior in terms of molecular orbital interactions.

One-pot synthesis of C-glycosylic compounds (C-glycosides) from D-glucal, p-tolylsulfenyl chloride and aromatic/heteroaromatic compounds in the presence of Lewis acids

In the presence of Zn(CN)(2), benzylated 2-thio-2-S-(p-tolyl)pyranosyl chlorides (2) generated in situ from tri-O-benzyl-D-glucal and p-TolSCl, smoothly react with thiophene, 2-methylthiophene, furan, 2-methylfuran, and N-methylpyrrole to give heteroaryl 2-thio-2-S-(p-tolyl)-C-beta-D-glucopyranosylic compounds (C-glycosides) in good yields. Upon treatment with SnCl(4), the reaction of chlorides 2 with thiophene or 1,4-dimethoxybenzene provides the corresponding benzylated C-beta-D-glucofuranosylic derivatives. Under the same conditions, the use of 2-methylthiophene, furan, 2-methylfuran, or N-methylpyrrole yields (2S,3R,4R,5S)-1,3,4-tribenzyloxy-6,6-diheteroaryl-5-(p-tolylthio)-2-hexanoles. Treatment of 2 and mesitylene with AgBF(4) yielded 1,6-anhydro-3,4-di-O-benzyl-2-thio-2-S-(p-tolyl)-beta-D-glucose.

Stereoselective synthesis of 2-S-ethyl(phenyl)-2-thio-beta-glucopyranosides via 1,2-migration and concurrent glycosidation of ethyl(phenyl) 2,3-orthoester-1-thio-alpha-mannopyranosides

1,2-Migration and concurrent glycosidation of ethyl(phenyl) 2,3-orthoester-1-thio-alpha-D- and L-mannopyranosides under the action of TMSOTf readily afforded the corresponding 2-S-ethyl(phenyl)-2-thio-beta-glucopyranosides, ready precursors to 2-deoxy-arabino-hexopyranosides (2-deoxy-beta-glucopyranosides).

Synthesis of thio-linked disaccharides by 1-->2 intramolecular thioglycosyl migration: oxacarbenium versus episulfonium ion intermediates

The conversion of 1,1'-thio-linked glucopyranosyl alpha-D-mannopyranosides to 1,2-thio-linked methyl sophorosides or methyl kojibiosides is described. The method involves the 1-->2-migration of the thioglucopyranosyl portion of the nonreducing disaccharide with inversion of configuration at C-2 of the mannopyranose ring and concomitant formation of the methyl glucopyranoside. The thioglucosyl migration does not occur when electron-withdrawing benzoate protecting groups are present. The rearrangement occurs with retention of configuration in the migrating thioglucoside but the methyl glycoside is formed as a mixture of alpha- and beta-isomers. This is attributed to a mechanism involving an oxacarbenium-ion intermediate rather than an episulfonium-ion intermediate. The relevance of this work to recent theoretical predictions concerning the relative stability of such intermediates is discussed.