Electrostatic interactions between substituents as regioselectivity control elements in Diels-Alder cycloadditions. A DFT study of cycloadditions of 1-methoxy-4-trimethylsiloxy dienes with acrylonitrile

Engaging yne-allenones in tunable catalytic silane-mediated conjugate transfer reductions

New tunable catalytic [2+2] cycloaddition/silane-mediated conjugate transfer reductions of yne-allenones have been developed, by which substituent-diverse cyclobutarenes with generally good yields were selectively synthesized by adjusting Fe-H and Cu-H catalytic systems. Use of the Fe-H system triggers 1,6-conjugate reduction to dihydrocyclobuta[a]naphthalen-4-ols whereas the Cu-H complex enables 1,4-conjugate reduction to cyclobuta[a]naphthalen-4(2H)-ones.

Atom-economic synthesis of cyclobuta[a]naphthalen-4-ols via a base-promoted [2 + 2] cycloaddition/1,6-nucleophilic addition cascade

A first atom-economic [2 + 2] cycloaddition/1,6-conjugate addition cascade of yne-allenones with C-nucleophiles including 1,3-dicarbonyls and α,α-dicyanoolefins under base-promoted conditions has been established, enabling the direct construction of C(sp3)-C(sp3) bonds to generate cyclobuta[a]naphthalen-1-ols with generally good yields. These resulting products have a cyclobutene unit that contains both an aryl and alkyl group.

The application of the ONIOM hybrid method to the cycloaddition reactions of bromo-substituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones

We investigate the performance of Our own N-layered Integrated molecular Orbital and molecular Mechanics (ONIOM) hybrid computational method applied to Diels–Alder reactions of bromo-2(H)-pyran-2-ones, combining the B3LYP/6–31G(d) method with a variety of low-level methods. We show that ONIOM is able to reproduce full B3LYP calculations, including the prediction of the stereoselectivity, which requires accurate potentials. We focus on the various ways in which the performance and potential errors of ONIOM can be analyzed, and show that the best method combination depends on the property one is interested in.

Frontier orbital interactions in the hetero Diels–Alder cycloaddition of diazadienes

This work deals with the molecular orbital calculation studies performed on different diazadienes to assess their reactivity pattern. The interaction of these diazadienes with various electron-poor and electron-rich dienophiles leads to the formation of diazines and tetrazines as the cycloadducts. The results from frontier orbital interactions were used to rationalize the reactivity and predictability of NDAC and IEDDAC reaction pathways. Correlation studies were also performed to predict reactivity sequence using a number of electronic descriptors, such as electrophilicity index (ω), chemical potential (µ), electronic charge ΔNmax, and chemical hardness η. Moreover, these studies exhibit good compatibility with experimental observations.Key words: AM1, MNDO, PM3, diazadienes, tetrazines, electrophilicity index, chemical potential.

Interplay of Structure and Reactivity in a Most Unusual Furan Diels-Alder Reaction

Difluorinated alkenoate ethyl 3,3-difluoro-2-(N,N-diethylcarbamoyloxy)-2-propenoate reacts rapidly and in high yield with furan and a range of substituted furans in the presence of a tin(IV) catalyst. Non-fluorinated congener 2-(N,N-diethylcarbamoyloxy)-2-propenoate fails to react at all under the same conditions. These reactions have been explored using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. They reveal a highly polar transition state, which is stabilized by the Lewis acid catalyst SnCl(4) and by polar solvents. In the presence of both catalyst and solvent, a two-step reaction is predicted, corresponding to the stepwise formation of the two new carbon-carbon bonds via transition states which have similar energies in all cases. Our experimental observations of the lack of reaction of the non-fluorinated dienophile, the stereochemical outcomes, and the rate acceleration accompanying furan methylation are all well predicted by our calculations. The calculated free energy barriers generally correlate well with measured reaction rates, supporting a reaction mechanism in which zwitterionic character is developed strongly. An in situ ring opening reaction of exo-cycloadduct ethyl exo-2-(N,N-diethylcarbamoyloxy)-3,3-difluoro-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]hept-5-enyl-2-endo-carboxylate, which results in the formation of cyclic carbonate ethyl 4,4-difluoro-5-hydroxy-2-oxo-5,7a-dihydro-4H-benzo[1,3]dioxole-3a-carboxylate by a Curtin-Hammett mechanism, has also been examined. Substantial steric opposition to Lewis acid binding prevents carbonate formation from 2-substituted furans.

Investigation of the Diels-Alder cycloadditions of 2(H)-1,4-oxazin-2-ones

[Reaction: see text]. A variety of 5-chloro-2(H)-1,4-oxazin-2-ones bearing a range of substituents at their 3- and 6-positions undergo Diels-Alder cycloaddition as a 2-azadiene component with electron-rich, electron-deficient, and electron-neutral dienophiles. These reactions proceed with moderate regio- and stereoselectivity to afford relatively stable and readily isolable bridged bicyclic lactone cycloadducts. Chemical manipulation of these cycloadducts affords highly substituted and functionally rich piperidines. The regio- and stereochemical preferences of the cycloadditions of 5-chloro-2(H)-1,4-oxazin-2-ones are investigated computationally using density functional theory (B3LYP/6-31G).

An Experimental and Computational Investigation of the Diels−Alder Cycloadditions of Halogen-Substituted 2(H)-Pyran-2-ones

[reaction: see text] Diels-Alder reactions of 3- and 5-halo-subsituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones with both electron-rich and electron-deficient dienophiles afford stable and readily isolable bridged bicyclic lactone cycloadducts. These cycloadditions proceed with excellent regioselectivity and very good stereoselectivity. In contrast, Diels-Alder reactions of 4-halo-subsituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones afford cycloadducts which are very prone to loss of bridging CO(2) and the subsequent formation of barrelenes ([2.2.2]cyclooctenes). Furthermore, these cycloadditions proceed with only moderate regio- and stereoselectivity. For both series of the 3- and 5-halo-subsituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones and 4-halo-subsituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones, the reactivity patterns do not significantly change between the halogens. The regio- and stereochemical preferences of the cycloadditions of halo-substituted 2(H)-pyran-2-ones are investigated computationally. Calculations were carried out on the transition states leading to the four possible regio- and stereoisomeric cycloadducts by using density functional theory (B3LYP/6-31G). These studies allow prediction of the regio- and stereoselectivity in these reactions which are broadly in line with experimental observations.

Computational and experimental investigation of the Diels-Alder cycloadditions of 4-chloro-2(H)-pyran-2-one

4-Chloro-2(H)-pyran-2-one undergoes thermal Diels-Alder cycloaddition with electron-deficient dienophiles to afford, without any significant selectivity, 6-endo- and 5-endo-substituted bicyclic lactone cycloadducts. In contrast to 3- and 5-bromo-2(H)-pyran-2-one, 4-chloro-2(H)-pyran-2-one does not undergo thermal cycloadditions with electron-rich dienophiles. The regio- and stereochemical preferences of the cycloadditions of 4-chloro-2(H)-pyran-2-one and other related 2(H)-pyran-2-ones are investigated computationally. Calculations were carried out on the transition states leading to the four possible regio- and stereoisomeric cycloadducts using density functional theory (B3LYP/6-31G). These studies allow prediction of the regio- and stereoselectivity in these reactions which are in line with experimental observations.

Total synthesis of the quinone epoxide dimer (+)-torreyanic acid: application of a biomimetic oxidation/electrocyclization/Diels-Alder dimerization cascade

An asymmetric synthesis of the quinone epoxide dimer (+)-torreyanic acid (48) has been accomplished employing [4 + 2] dimerization of diastereomeric 2H-pyran monomers. Synthesis of the related monomeric natural product (+)-ambuic acid (2) has also been achieved which establishes the biosynthetic relationship between these two natural products. A tartrate-mediated nucleophilic epoxidation involving hydroxyl group direction facilitated the asymmetric synthesis of a key chiral quinone monoepoxide intermediate. Thermolysis experiments have also been conducted on a model dimer based on the torreyanic acid core structure and facile retro Diels-Alder reaction processes and equilibration of diastereomeric 2H-pyrans have been observed. Theoretical calculations of Diels-Alder transition states have been performed to evaluate alternative transition states for Diels-Alder dimerization of 2H-pyran quinone epoxide monomers and provide insight into the stereocontrol elements for these reactions.