In organic chemistry, the Diels–Alder reaction is a chemical reaction between a conjugated diene and a substituted alkene, commonly termed the dienophile, to form a substituted cyclohexene derivative. It is the prototypical example of a pericyclic reaction with a concerted mechanism. More specifically, it is classified as a thermally allowed [4+2] cycloaddition with Woodward–Hoffmann symbol [π4s + π2s]. It was first described by Otto Diels and Kurt Alder in 1928. For the discovery of this reaction, they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1950. Through the simultaneous construction of two new carbon–carbon bonds, the Diels–Alder reaction provides a reliable way to form six-membered rings with good control over the regio- and stereochemical outcomes. Consequently, it has served as a powerful and widely applied tool for the introduction of chemical complexity in the synthesis of natural products and new materials. The underlying concept has also been applied to π-systems involving heteroatoms, such as carbonyls and imines, which furnish the corresponding heterocycles; this variant is known as the hetero-Diels–Alder reaction. The reaction has also been generalized to other ring sizes, although none of these generalizations have matched the formation of six-membered rings in terms of scope or versatility. Because of the negative values of ΔH° and ΔS° for a typical Diels–Alder reaction, the microscopic reverse of a Diels–Alder reaction becomes favorable at high temperatures, although this is of synthetic importance for only a limited range of Diels–Alder adducts, generally with some special structural features; this reverse reaction is known as the retro-Diels–Alder reaction.
In organic chemistry, an electrocyclic reaction is a type of pericyclic rearrangement where the net result is one pi bond being converted into one sigma bond or vice versa. These reactions are usually categorized by the following criteria:
In organic chemistry, a cycloaddition is a chemical reaction in which "two or more unsaturated molecules combine with the formation of a cyclic adduct in which there is a net reduction of the bond multiplicity". The resulting reaction is a cyclization reaction. Many but not all cycloadditions are concerted and thus pericyclic. Nonconcerted cycloadditions are not pericyclic. As a class of addition reaction, cycloadditions permit carbon–carbon bond formation without the use of a nucleophile or electrophile.
The Aza-Diels–Alder reaction is a modification of the Diels–Alder reaction wherein a nitrogen replaces sp2 carbon. The nitrogen atom can be part of the diene or the dienophile.
A dendralene is a discrete acyclic cross-conjugated polyene. The simplest dendralene is buta-1,3-diene (1) or [2]dendralene followed by [3]dendralene (2), [4]dendralene (3) and [5]dendralene (4) and so forth. [2]dendralene (butadiene) is the only one not cross-conjugated.
In stereochemistry, a chiral auxiliary is a stereogenic group or unit that is temporarily incorporated into an organic compound in order to control the stereochemical outcome of the synthesis. The chirality present in the auxiliary can bias the stereoselectivity of one or more subsequent reactions. The auxiliary can then be typically recovered for future use.
Azomethine ylides are nitrogen-based 1,3-dipoles, consisting of an iminium ion next to a carbanion. They are used in 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions to form five-membered heterocycles, including pyrrolidines and pyrrolines. These reactions are highly stereo- and regioselective, and have the potential to form four new contiguous stereocenters. Azomethine ylides thus have high utility in total synthesis, and formation of chiral ligands and pharmaceuticals. Azomethine ylides can be generated from many sources, including aziridines, imines, and iminiums. They are often generated in situ, and immediately reacted with dipolarophiles.
Carpanone is a naturally occurring lignan-type natural product most widely known for the remarkably complex way nature prepares it, and the similarly remarkable success that an early chemistry group, that of Orville L. Chapman, had at mimicking nature's pathway. Carpanone is an organic compound first isolated from the carpano trees of Bougainville Island by Brophy and coworkers, trees from which the natural product derives its name. The hexacyclic lignan is one of a class of related diastereomers isolated from carpano bark as mixtures of equal proportion of the "handedness" of its components, and is notable in its stereochemical complexity, because it contains five contiguous stereogenic centers. The route by which this complex structure is achieved through biosynthesis involves a series of reactions that, almost instantly, take a molecule with little three-dimensionality to the complex final structure. Notably, Brophy and coworkers isolated the simpler carpacin, a phenylpropanoid with a 9-carbon framework, recognized its substructure as being dimerized within the complex carpanone structure, and proposed a hypothesis of how carpacin was converted to carpanone in plant cells:
Absinthin is a naturally produced triterpene lactone from the plant Artemisia absinthium (Wormwood). It constitutes one of the most bitter chemical agents responsible for absinthe's distinct taste. The compound shows biological activity and has shown promise as an anti-inflammatory agent, and should not be confused with thujone, a neurotoxin also found in Artemisia absinthium.
Endiandric acid C, isolated from the tree Endiandra introrsa, is a well characterized chemical compound. Endiadric acid C is reported to have better antibiotic activity than ampicillin.
The retro-Diels–Alder reaction is the reverse of the Diels–Alder (DA) reaction, a [4+2] cycloelimination. It involves the formation of a diene and dienophile from a cyclohexene. It can be accomplished spontaneously with heat, or with acid or base mediation.
Ketene cycloadditions are the reactions of the pi system of ketenes with unsaturated compounds to provide four-membered or larger rings. [2+2], [3+2], and [4+2] variants of the reaction are known.
The nitrone-olefin (3+2) cycloaddition reaction is the combination of a nitrone with an alkene or alkyne to generate an isoxazoline or isoxazolidine via a (3+2) cycloaddition process. This reaction is a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition, in which the nitrone acts as the 1,3-dipole, and the alkene or alkyne as the dipolarophile.
Phenol oxidation with hypervalent iodine reagents leads to the formation of quinone-type products or iodonium ylides, depending on the structure of the phenol. Trapping of either product is possible with a suitable reagent, and this method is often employed in tandem with a second process.
In organic chemistry, a xylylene (sometimes quinone-dimethide) is any of the constitutional isomers having the formula C6H4(CH2)2. These compounds are related to the corresponding quinones and quinone methides by replacement of the oxygen atoms by CH2 groups. ortho- and para-xylylene are best known, although neither is stable in solid or liquid form. The meta form is a diradical. Certain substituted derivatives of xylylenes are however highly stable, such as tetracyanoquinodimethane and the xylylene dichlorides.
The inverse electron demand Diels–Alder reaction, or DAINV or IEDDA is an organic chemical reaction, in which two new chemical bonds and a six-membered ring are formed. It is related to the Diels–Alder reaction, but unlike the Diels–Alder reaction, the DAINV is a cycloaddition between an electron-rich dienophile and an electron-poor diene. During a DAINV reaction, three pi-bonds are broken, and two sigma bonds and one new pi-bond are formed. A prototypical DAINV reaction is shown on the right.
1,4-Naphthoquinone or para-naphthoquinone is a quinone derived from naphthalene. It forms volatile yellow triclinic crystals and has a sharp odor similar to benzoquinone. It is almost insoluble in cold water, slightly soluble in petroleum ether, and more soluble in polar organic solvents. In alkaline solutions it produces a reddish-brown color. Vitamin K is a derivative of 1,4-naphthoquinone. It is a planar molecule with one aromatic ring fused to a quinone subunit. It is an isomer of 1,2-naphthoquinone.
Rubicordifolin is a natural product that is produced by Rubia cordifolia, a plant of the family Rubiaceae. The molecule is isolated from the roots of Rubia cordifolia and was first characterized in 1993. In 2004, the first synthesis of rubicordifolin was accomplished. The molecule has been shown to have cytotoxic properties in vitro.
1,3-Diphenylisobenzofuran is a highly reactive diene that can scavenge unstable and short-lived dienophiles in a Diels-Alder reaction. It is furthermore used as a standard reagent for the determination of singlet oxygen, even in biological systems. Cycloadditions with 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran and subsequent oxygen cleavage provide access to a variety of polyaromatics.
Spirotetronate cyclase AbyU is an enzyme responsible for catalyzing the intramolecular Diels–Alder cycloaddition in the abyssomicin C biosynthetic pathway. A key step in the biosynthesis of this compound catalyzed by AbyU involves intramolecular [4+2] cycloaddition—also known as the Diels-Alder reaction—to form a heterobicyclic ring system precursor consisting of tetronic acid and a cyclohexene ring that are spiro-linked.
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