Angewandte
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Chemie
forms the complex A with the Lewis-basic amide moiety
(Scheme 2c). With a complex-induced proximity effect,[7]
subsequent ortho deprotonation takes place to form the
arylsodium B, which undergoes nucleophilic addition to the
amide carbonyl group to provide the four-membered ring
anionic carbinolamine C. To release the ring strain of C, ring-
lacetamide (1i) provided the corresponding benzaldehyde 2i
in 65% yield, whereas that of a-triphenylacetamide (1j)
afforded the N,N-dimethylbenzamide 2j in 61% yield. The
resulting bulky ortho-diphenylmethyl moiety of 2j might
impede further hydride reduction, by the NaH/iodide com-
posite, of the rearranged amide moiety.
À
opening takes place through C C bond cleavage to generate
Interestingly, the treatment of the a-(2-tolyl)acetamide
1k with the NaH/iodide composite provided the 2-indanone
4k as the sole product (Scheme 4a), in which use of the NaH/
the arylamide D (1,3-carbamoyl migration). Further hydride
reduction of the amide moiety of D results in the formation of
the aldehyde 2a.
This process is a sequence of unprecedented anionic
C-Fries-type rearrangement[8,9] and amide reduction enabled
by the NaH/iodide composite, thus offering concise access to
arylaldehydes bearing secondary alkyl groups at the ortho-
position (2) from readily available a-quaternary a-arylaceta-
mides (1). Thus, we next investigated the scope and limita-
tions of this multistep molecular transformation
(Scheme 3).[10] The substituent R1, either a methoxy or
Scheme 4. Lateral sodiation for the synthesis of 4k. [a] The reactions
were conducted using 0.5 mmol of 1k in THF (2.5 mL: 0.2m) and
yields of isolated 4k are noted above.
LiI system rendered the process faster.[13] Again, NaH alone
was not sufficient for promoting the reaction, thus indicating
the unique reactivity from the NaH/iodide composite. In this
Scheme 3. Substrate scope for the synthesis of arylaldehydes 2 bearing
secondary alkyl groups at the ortho-position. [a] The reactions were
conducted using 0.5 mmol of 1 in THF (2.5 mL: 0.2m) for 14 h and
yields of the isolated products are noted above. [b] 9,10-Dihydrophe-
nanthren-9-ol (3e) was obtained together with the aldehyde 2e from
the reaction of the amide 1e (see the Supporting Information for more
details). [c] The reaction was completed after 18 h to afford the
benzamide 2j in 61% yield instead of the corresponding benzalde-
hyde.
case, the transient NaH/amide complex E, in turn, undergoes
3
À
lateral benzylic C(sp ) H sodiation exclusively to generate
the benzyl sodium F, which cyclizes with the amide moiety to
give the five-membered ring anionic carbinol amine G
(Scheme 4b). Elimination of sodium dimethylamide produces
4k. Further hydride reduction of the carbonyl group could be
prevented by formation of the enolate H by a-deprotonation.
2-Indanones are a privileged scaffold for production of
pharmaceutical drugs based on the 2-aminoindane core.[14] As
the current protocol with the NaH/iodide composite could be
an attractive alternative to synthesizing 2-indanones,[15] the
scope and limitations were explored (Scheme 5).[10] The
method allowed construction of the spirocyclic 2-indanones
4l–n efficiently. Installation of two different alkyl groups
(benzyl and methyl groups) at C1 of 4o was readily
accomplished. Lateral sodiation of the methylene moiety
also worked with the current protocol, thus furnishing 4p and
4q in moderate to good yields. As for the substituent R4 on
the benzene ring, methyl, methoxy, and fluoro groups were
introduced (4r–t), while the yield of 5-fluoro-2-indanone (4t)
was moderate.
phenyl group, on the aryl group was tolerated (2b–e). The
reaction of the meta-phenyl substrate 1d resulted in selective
installation of the formyl group at the sterically less hindered
carbon center of 2d (marked in red). Interestingly, when the
ortho-phenyl substrate 1e was employed, not only the
biarylaldehyde 2e but also the 9,10-dihydrophenanthren-9-
ol 3e were isolated in 54% and 10% yields, respectively.
Formation of 3e might be triggered by remote sodiation[11] at
À
the biaryl C H bond (marked in blue) by the NaH/NaI
composite, and then followed by a sequence of cyclization and
reduction.[12] It is worthy to note that a pyridyl moiety (2 f) is
compatible in the present process. The protocol allowed the
synthesis of benzaldehydes having cyclohexyl (2g) and
tetrahydropyranyl (2h) moieties. The reaction of a-dipheny-
We next attempted construction of a phenanthrene scaf-
fold by a lateral sodiation/cyclization sequence of biaryl
2
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Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2017, 56, 1 – 5
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