Various diazo compounds, nitrile oxides, nitrones and azomethine ylides were examined in 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions to enantiomerically pure 5-(R)-menthyloxy-2(5H)-furanone 1a. Pyrazoline 9 was obtained in 100% c.y. as a mixture of 2 diastereoisomers in ratios up to 72: 28, whereas pyrazoline 16 was obtained in 100 % c.y. as a single enantiomer. Photochemically pyrazolines 9 and 10 have been converted to cyclopropanes 11 and 13. Under thermal conditions pyrazoline 9 is converted to 4-methyl-5-menthyloxy-2(5H)-furanone. Isoxazoles 21a-24a were obtained enantiomerically pure via nitrile oxide addition to 1a in 64-67% yield. Nitrone addition afforded isoxazolidines 27, 28 and 34 with complete anti-facial- and regiochemistry, but with endo-exo selectivities up to 76%. Enantiomerically pure isoxazolidines were obtained in 25-75% yield. Pyrrolidine 36 was obtained diastereomerically pure in 81% c.y. Pyrrolidines 42 and 45, however, were obtained as diastereomeric mixtures in 37% resp. 6% yield. © 1994.
Chitin represents an abundant source of nitrogenous polysaccharides, making it a suitable feedstock for organonitrogen platform chemicals. In particular, furanic compounds, such as 3-acetamido-5-acetylfuran (3A5AF), can be readily obtained. Furans can be further functionalized using a Diels-Alder (DA) cycloaddition with a variety of dienophiles. Herein, we report on the DA of 3A5AF, dihydroxyethyl acetamidofuran (Di-HAF), and several derivatives, with maleimide dienophiles. The formation of exo and endo isomers was monitored in detail, and reactivity trends were established experimentally. Kinetic modeling allowed us to establish a reaction network that included a hydration side reaction involving specifically the exo isomer which affects the overall endo/exo ratio of the reaction. Carbonyl and alkyl hydroxyl substituents on the furans changed the DA rate significantly and shifted the selectivity from the exo to the endo product. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the presence of a hydroxyl group leads to a thermodynamically favored endo isomer, evidenced by a decreased ΔGendo. Stronger hydrogen bonding interactions and van der Waals interaction in HMFA-involved TS are responsible for its lower ΔG⧧ values as evidenced by noncovalent interaction analysis, probably promoting the cycloaddition rate in the HMFA case. The activation strain model revealed that a faster cycloaddition rate can be attributed to lower interaction and distortion energies in the HMFA case. Additionally, it is the orbital interactions and electrostatic attractions that favor the endo addition in the HMFA case, while easier structural distortion possibly causes the exo selectivity for 3A5AF. These findings aid the development of synthetic strategies for complex chiral skeletons containing compounds based on chitin-derived building blocks.
