STEREOSELECTIVE SYNTHESIS OF 7-MEMBERED CARBOCYCLES BY A TANDEM CYCLOPROPANATION COPE REARRANGEMENT BETWEEN RHODIUM(II)-STABILIZED VINYLCARBENOIDS AND DIENES

Rhodium (II)-catalyzed decomposition of vinyldiazomethanes in the presence of dienes generated 1,4-cycloheptadienes by a tandem cyclopropanation/Cope rearrangement. Excellent stereocontrol of up to three stereogenic centers in the cycloheptadienes was achieved. The stereoselectivity of the initial cyclopropanation ranged from 4:1 to > 20:1, favoring cis-divinylcyclopropanes, and good regiocontrol was observed in the cyclopropanation of unsymmetrical dienes. Unless sterically encumbered, the cis-divinylcyclopropanes rearranged cleanly to cycloheptadienes under the reaction conditions. The trans-divinylcyclopropanes, when formed, were sufficiently stable to be observed in the crude reaction mixtures, but most were prone to facile 1,5-homodienyl rearrangements.