COMMUNICATION
Table 1. Optimisation of the reaction conditions.[a]
Table 2. AuI-catalysed formation of ten-membered cycloalkynes by cyclo-
isomerisation of symmetrical diynes.[a]
Entry
Substrate[b]
Product
t [h]
Yield[c] [%]
1
2
3
1a R=Me
1c R=Ph
1d R=p-FC6H4
2a
2c
2d
8
17
2
85
95
89
Entry
Catalyst
T [8C]
t [h]
Yield[b] [%]
1
2
3
4
5
6
4
4
20
65
65
65
20
65
40
2
24
24
24
24
95
98
12[c]
–
–
–
[Au
[Au
U
E
ACHTUNGTRENNUNG
HNTf2
HNTf2
4
5
1e n=1
1 f n=2
2e
2 f
48
18
70[d,e]
82
[a] Reaction monitored by 1H NMR spectroscopy; X=C
ACTHNUGTRNEGNU(CO2Me)2.
[b] Isolated yields. [c] Yield determined by using NMR spectroscopy.
the reaction mixture to 658C in the presence of 4 mol% of
gold complex 4 increased the rate of the reaction (2 h) with-
out affecting the yield (Table 1, entry 2), whereas the use of
triphenylphosphine–gold complexes led to poor or no con-
version (Table 1, entries 3–4). A control experiment per-
formed in the presence of HNTf2 also showed that the for-
mation of 2b was not catalysed by a Brønsted acidic species
(Table 1, entries 5–6).
To explore the scope of this new transformation, a series
of symmetrical diynes 1a–i were subjected to the optimal re-
action conditions (4 mol% of 4 in CDCl3 heated to reflux).
The reaction proved to be general, and cycloalkynes 2a–i
could be isolated in yields ranging from 70% to 98%
(Table 2). The formation of cycloalkyne 1a could be im-
proved to a yield of 85% with a reduced reaction time
(Scheme 1 vs. Table 2, entry 1). The methyl substituent on
the alkene moiety could be substituted by an aromatic ring
(Table 2, entries 2, 3) and the esters on the linker by diace-
toxymethyl groups whithout loss of efficiency (Table 2,
entry 7). Other carbocyclic (Table 2, entries 4, 5) or aromatic
residues (Table 2, entries 6–9) were also tolerated at posi-
6
7
8
9
1b R=H
1g R=H[f]
1h R=F
2b
2g
2h
2i
2
1
1
8
98
90
98
81
1i R=OMe
[a] Reaction conditions: Catalyst 4 (4 mol%), c=0.1m, CDCl3, reflux.
[b] X=C(CO2Me)2. [c] Isolated yields. [d] 8 mol% of catalyst 4. [e] Yield
determined by using NMR spectroscopy, not isolated. [f] X=C-
(CH2OAc)2.
AHCTUNGTRENNUNG
AHCTUNGTRENNUNG
entries 1–3).[13] Interestingly, the removal of an unsaturated
bond on one alkynyl chain did not affect the course and the
efficiency of the reaction but greatly increased the selectivi-
ty (Table 3, entries 4–7).[14] For instance, diynes 1m,n, which
have an aromatic ring, were highly selectively transformed
into cycloalkynes 2m,n (Table 3, entries 4, 5), whereas cyclo-
alkyne 2o was the only detectable product in the reaction of
diyne 1o (Table 3, entry 6). To further highlight the synthet-
ic possibilities of the process, the transformation was at-
tempted with diyne substrates in which one alkynyl chain
has been shortened by one carbon (Table 3, entries 8–10).
We were pleased to see that a series of nine-membered cy-
cloalkynes 2q–s could also be produced in high yields (82–
88%), even if the selectivities were lower than those ob-
tained for the formation of the analogous ten-membered cy-
cloalkynes (Table 3, entries 5, 7 vs. entries 8, 9). It is interest-
ing to note that all the transformations attempted (Table 2
and Table 3) specifically furnished alkyne–alkyne coupling
products with no detectable formation of byproducts de-
rived from a cyclisation onto an aromatic ring or an alkene
moiety. While the transformation proved to be fairly gener-
al, limits in reactivity were found with symmetrical diyne 1t
and internal alkynes 1u,v, which failed to afford the corre-
sponding cycloalkynes (Figure 1).
ꢀ
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tions C(3) C(4) and C(8) C(9) of the 1,10-enyne. Surprins-
ingly, the conversion of diyne 1e, which has a cyclopentenyl
motif, proved to be more difficult and a higher loading of
catalyst was required to produce the corresponding cycloal-
kyne 2e in 70% yield.[12] It is also interesting to note the in-
fluence of the aromatic ring substituents on the course of
the reaction (Table 2, entries 2, 3 and 6, 8, 9). The presence
of an electron-withdrawing group (fluorine) tended to speed
up the reaction whereas a slower reaction was observed
with an electron-donating group (methoxy).
We next focused our attention on the case of unsymmetri-
cal diynes. The results of this study are shown in Table 3.
Unsymmetrical diynes 1j–s reacted cleanly and gave isomer-
ic mixtures of cyclodiynes 2j–s and 2’j–s in good yield (76–
93%) with modest to excellent selectivity.
The transformations of substrates 1j–l, which have two
unsaturated bonds conjugated to the alkyne functionalities,
were rapid and efficient but the selectivity was low (Table 3,
To gain more insight into the reaction mechanism, deuter-
ated symmetrical diyne [D]-1i was subjected to the opti-
mised conditions and its conversion monitored by H NMR
1
spectroscopy (Table 4).
Chem. Eur. J. 2009, 15, 8966 – 8970
ꢁ 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
8967