Abstract
An efficient [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of cyanocyclopropanecarbonates and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates mediated by 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene for the synthesis of highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives in moderate to good yields (79%−87%) was developed. The structures of two typical products were confirmed by X-ray crystallography.
Keywords
Introduction
Five-membered carbocycles are usefully structural units as important building blocks that are widely found in lots of natural products,1,2 for example, sepaconitine, 3 phomopsterone B, 4 nitidasin, 5 retigeranic acid A, 6 (+)-podoandin, 7 steroids: dehydroepiandrosterone, and vitamin D (Figure 1). Such compounds containing five-membered carbocycles have been identified to have significant pharmaceutical values such as potential anti-HIV agents 8 (Figure 1), mannosidase inhibitors, 9 cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors, 10 nucleoside-type antibodies, 11 and potent potentiators of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) receptors. 12

Examples of five-membered carbocycle-containing natural products and bioactive molecules.
Due to the excellent biological and pharmaceutical activities of these compounds, the construction of the five-membered carbocycle systems has become a topic of great interest among synthetic chemists.13–15 A range of methods have been reported for their synthesis including the Sm-promoted reductive dimerization cyclization of gem-diactivated alkenes, 16 catalytic tandem Michael addition/radical cyclization/oxygenation reactions of γ-unsaturated esters, amides, ketones, and nitriles with gem-diactivated alkenes, 17 phosphine-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloadditions of allenoates and dual activated olefins, 18 and Pd/organic amine co-catalytic cascade reaction of γ-unsaturated esters and substituted enals. 19 Later, Pd/organocatalysis-promoted stereoselective [3 + 2] cycloaddition between vinylcyclopropanes and α,β-unsaturated aldehydes results in the synthesis of highly substituted cyclopentanes.20–22
Although a variety of methodologies and protocols have been reported for the formation of densely substituted cyclopentanes, it is of importance to explore a novel and efficient synthetic method. The annulations and cycloadditions of donor–acceptor cyclopropanes (D-A cyclopropanes) with all-carbon partners have proved to be powerful synthetic tools to form carbocyclic compounds. D-A cyclopropanes have a prominent role in the synthesis of five-membered carbocycle synthesis based on the [3 + 2] cycloaddition of functionalized D-A cyclopropanes with alkenes, alkynes, allenes, enol ethers, and enamines. 23 As a new type of D-A cyclopropanes as three-carbon synthons, 2-aroyl-3-aryl-1-cyanocyclopropane-1-carboxylates with one donor (aryl) and three acceptor (aroyl, cyano, and carboxylate) substituents in the vicinal positions have been used in the construction of heterocycles and carbocycles. Because of the high polarization of two of three C–C bonds of the ring, the cyclopropanes may be transformed into two 1,3-dipoles via a ring-opening reaction for the diversity of reactions. 4 Recently, we have reported the opening ring of 1-cyanocyclopropane-1-carboxylates promoted by various bases.24–27 Among them is an efficient and straightforward synthetic protocol for the preparation of fully substituted cyclopentadienes via [3 + 2] cycloaddition of 1-cyanocyclopropane-1-carboxy esters with β-nitrostyrenes. 28
In continuation of our interests in constructing the heterocycles and carbocycles, based on our studies on the reactivity of 2-aroyl-3-aryl-1-cyanocyclopropane carbonates, we envisioned that the reaction of 2-aroyl-3-aryl-1-cyanocyclopropane carbonates with substituted 3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates may offer an efficient approach to cyclopentane skeletons via [3 + 2] cycloadditions. Herein, we report a new approach for the synthesis of highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives via a simple [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of cyanocyclopropanecarbonates and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates.
Results and discussion
In order to explore the optimal reaction conditions, we began our investigation by studying the [3 + 2] annulation of D-A cyclopropane
Using the optimized reaction conditions, the scope of this DBU-mediated [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of cyanocyclopropanecarbonates and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates was probed. As shown in Table 1, both electron-deficient and electron-rich aromatic groups were similarly viable affording the products in good yields (79%−87%). Substrates bearing methoxy, methyl, chloro, and bromo at the 3- or 4-position of the aryl displayed similar reactivity, but substrates bearing chloro and bromo at the 2-position of the aryl showed slightly lower activities to furnish the products (Table 1, entries 5 and 6).
Synthesis of 1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylates
Yields were isolated.
The molecular structures of all 1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylates

Molecular structure of 1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylates
Crystal data and structure refinement for
Based on the above experimental results, a possible mechanism is proposed in Scheme 1. First, in the presence of DBU, the deprotonation of D-A cyclopropane

The proposed mechanism.
Conclusion
In summary, we have demonstrated that highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives can be successfully prepared with complete relative stereoselectivity via a simple [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of cyanocyclopropanecarbonates and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates. This reaction involves a highly efficient domino sequence consisting of ring opening of donor–acceptor cyclopropanes and regioselective cycloaddition as key unit steps. The reaction appears to be general for a variety of cyanocyclopropanecarbonates and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates and tolerates the presence of aromatic moieties with electron-withdrawing and electron-donating substituents.
Experimental
General
All melting points (m.p.) were determined in a Yanaco melting point apparatus and are uncorrected. IR spectra were recorded on a Nicolet FT-IR 5DX spectrometer. The 1H NMR (400 MHz) and 13C NMR (100 MHz) spectra were recorded on a Bruker AV-400 spectrometer with tetramethylsilane (TMS) as an internal reference in CDCl3 solution. The J values are given in hertz. Only discrete or characteristic signals for the 1H NMR are reported. High-resolution electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectra were obtained on a maXis UHR-TOF (ESI) mass spectrometer. X-ray crystallographic analysis was performed with a SMART APEX-II diffractometer using monochromatic Mo KR radiation (λ) 0.71073 Å and integrated with the SAINT-Plus program. All calculations were performed with programs from the SHELXTL crystallographic software package. Flash chromatography was performed on silica gel (230–400 mesh) eluted with the ethyl acetate–hexane mixture. All reactions were monitored by thin-layer chromatography (TLC). (E)-Acrylates
General procedure for the synthesis of 1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate derivatives
To a mixture of ethyl (1RS,2RS,3SR)-2-aroyl-3-aryl-1-cyanocyclopropanecarbonates
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5SR)-4-(4-chlorobenzoyl)-2-(3-chlorophenyl)-1,3-dicyano-5-(p-tolyl)cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4SR,5RS)-2,4-bis(3-chlorophenyl)-1,3-dicyano-5-(4-methoxy benzoyl)cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5SR)-4-benzoyl-1,3-dicyano-2,5-di-m-tolyl cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5SR)-4-benzoyl-2,5-bis(3-chlorophenyl)-1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5RS)-2,4-bis(2-bromophenyl)-5-(4-chloro benzoyl)-1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5RS)-4-benzoyl-2,5-bis(2-chlorophenyl)-1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4SR,5RS)-2,4-bis(4-bromophenyl)-5-(4-chloro benzoyl)-1,3-dicyanocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4SR,5RS)-2,4-bis(4-bromophenyl)-1,3-dicyano-5-(4-methoxybenzoyl)cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5SR)-4-(4-chlorobenzoyl)-1,3-dicyano-2,5-di-p-tolylcyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Diethyl (1RS,2SR,3RS,4RS,5SR)-4-(4-bromobenzoyl)-1,3-dicyano-2-(m-tolyl)-5-(p-tolyl)cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylate (
Supplemental Material
ESI – Supplemental material for Novel synthesis of highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives via [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of donor–acceptor cyclopropanes and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates
Supplemental material, ESI for Novel synthesis of highly functionalized cyclopentane derivatives via [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of donor–acceptor cyclopropanes and (E)-3-aryl-2-cyanoacrylates by Chenlu Dai, Mingshuang Li, Mengjun Chen, Naili Luo and Cunde Wang in Journal of Chemical Research
Footnotes
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article: Financial support of this research by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NNSFC 21173181) is gratefully acknowledged by authors. A Project Funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions.
Supplemental material
Full details of the X-ray structure and crystal refinement of compounds
Crystallographic data for 3d and 3g have been deposited with the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Center with the deposition number CCDC 1821304 and 1848037. The data can be obtained free of charge on application to CCDC, 12 Union Road, Cambridge CB2 1EZ, UK (fax +44 1223 336033, e-mail:
References
Supplementary Material
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