Mechanistically Diverse Copper-, Silver-, and Gold-Catalyzed Acyloxy and Phosphatyloxy Migrations:  Efficient Synthesis of Heterocycles via Cascade Migration/Cycloisomerization Approach

A set of cycloisomerization methodologies of alkynyl ketones and imines with concurrent acyloxy, phosphatyloxy, or sulfonyloxy group migration, which allow for the efficient synthesis of multisubstituted furans and N-fused heterocycles, has been developed. Investigation of the reaction course by way of employing ¹⁷O-labeled substrates allowed for elucidation of the mechanisms behind these diverse transformations. It was found that, while the phosphatyloxy migration in conjugated alkynyl imines in their cycloisomerization to N-fused pyrroles proceeded via a [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement, the analogous cycloisomerization of skipped alkynyl ketones proceeds through two consecutive 1,2-migrations, resulting in an apparent 1,3-shift, followed by a subsequent 1,2-migration through competitive oxirenium and dioxolenylium pathways. Investigations of the 1,2-acyloxy migration of conjugated alkynyl ketones en route to furans demonstrated the involvement of a dioxolenylium intermediate. The mechanism of cycloisomerization of skipped alkynyl ketones containing an acyloxy group was found to be catalyst dependent; Lewis and Brønsted acid catalysts caused an ionization/S_N1‘ isomerization to the allene, followed by cycloisomerization to the furan, whereas transition metal catalysts evoked a Rautenstrauch-type mechanistic pathway. Furthermore, control experiments in the cycloisomerization of skipped alkynyl ketones under transition metal catalysis revealed that, indeed, these reactions were catalyzed by transition metal complexes as opposed to Brønsted acids resulting from hydrolysis of these catalysts with eventual water. Further synthetic utility of the obtained phosphatyloxy-substituted heterocycles was demonstrated through their efficient employment in the Kumada cross-coupling reaction with various Grignard reagents.