ADDITIVE PUMMERER REACTIONS OF VINYLIC SULFOXIDES - SYNTHESIS OF GAMMA-HYDROXY-ALPHA,BETA-UNSATURATED ESTERS, ALPHA-HYDROXYKETONES, AND 2-PHENYLSULFENYL ALDEHYDES AND PRIMARY ALCOHOLS

Treatment of beta-monosubstituted vinylic sulfoxides 1 with trifluoroacetic anhydride in dichloromethane gave excellent yields of 1,2-bis(trifluoroacetoxy)thioethers 6. Mildly basic methanolysis of 2-alkyl-substituted 6 gave alpha-hydroxyaldehydes 11 as monomer-dimer mixtures; similar treatment of the 2-aryl analogues afforded aryl (hydroxymethyl) ketones 12. Compounds 11 underwent Wittig reactions with methoxycarbonylmethylenetriphenylphosphorane to give high yields of gamma-hydroxy-alpha,beta-unsaturated esters 13, predominantly as the E-isomers. beta-Monosubstituted vinylic sulfoxides 1 possessing a beta-aryl group, and beta-disubstituted vinylic: sulfoxides 3 reacted with trifluoromethanesulfonic anhydride-sodium acetate in acetic anhydride to give 2-(phenylsulfenyl)acylals 14. These gave 2-phenylsulfenyl aldehydes 15 upon basic methanolysis, and the corresponding primary alcohols 16 on reduction with sodium borohydride. Reaction of both geometric isomers of enantiomerically pure vinylic sulfoxide 1o with TFAA gave racemic 6o as a mixture of diastereomers. Reaction of optically pure (E)- and (Z)-1p with trifluoromethanesulfonic anhydride-sodium acetate in acetic anhydride gave acylal 19 in 10.5 and 23% e.e., respectively.