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Current Organic Chemistry, Volume 8, No. 8, 2004

 

Contents

 

Heterocyclic Chemistry

Guest Editor: Jan Bergman

 

Biologically Active Mesomeric Betaines and Alkaloids, Derived from 3-Hydroxypyridine, Pyridin-N-oxide, Nicotinic Acid and Picolinic Acid: Three Types of Conjugation and Their Consequences Pp. 653-670

Andreas Schmidt

[Abstract]

 

Heterocyclic Compounds Derived from Ephedrines Pp. 671-693

Alejandro Cruz and Minerva Juarez-Juarez

[Abstract]

 

Preparation of Cyclic 1,3-Diketones and Their Exploitation in the Synthesis of Heterocycles Pp. 695-714

Marko Milan, Milata Viktor, Kada Rudolf, Ilavsky Dusan

[Abstract]

 

Non-Conventional Redox Chemistry of Dihydropyridines and Pyridinium Salts Pp. 715-737

Rodolfo Lavilla

[Abstract]

 

Abstracts

 

[Back to top] Biologically Active Mesomeric Betaines and Alkaloids, Derived from 3-Hydroxypyridine, Pyridin-N-oxide, Nicotinic Acid and Picolinic Acid: Three Types of Conjugation and Their Consequences

Andreas Schmidt

 

Betainic pyridinium alkaloids and analogs are members of the four major classes of heterocyclic mesomeric betaines, i.e. conjugated (CMB), cross-conjugated (CCMB), pseudo-cross-conjugated heterocyclic mesomeric betaines (PCCMB), and conjugated N-ylides and thus offer the possibility of detailed comparisons of the types of conjugation. The chemistry of these systems is surveyed.

 

[Back to top] Heterocyclic Compounds Derived from Ephedrines

Alejandro Cruz and Minerva Juarez-Juarez

 

Ephedra heterocycles are well known due to their biological activity, and they have been widely used in asymmetric synthesis during the last decades. To our knowledge no review about ephedra heterocycles has appeared in the literature. In this paper, the synthetic methodology to access chiral heterocycles derived from ephedra alkaloids is discussed. Some of them have displayed biological activity and others have been used as asymmetric inductors, clearly the ephedra alkaloids are potential candidates to be used in both areas.

 

[Back to top] Preparation of Cyclic 1,3-Diketones and Their Exploitation in the Synthesis of Heterocycles

Marko Milan, Milata Viktor, Kada Rudolf, Ilavsky Dusan

 

Owing to their high reactivity and availability 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds occupy an important place in organic synthesis. It is mainly their high reactivity that predetermines them for the synthesis of various types of compounds, particularly heterocycles.

 

Cyclic 1,3-diketones I(n) (where n is the number of ring carbon atoms), which are suitable precursors for preparation of bicyclic or polycyclic condensed heterocycles, respectively, are an important group of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds. However, at the same time it must be added that in spite of the relatively simple structure of 1,3-cycloalkanediones their syntheses have yet to be satisfactory solved, especially those for medium-sized and large rings.

 

Therefore, currently the chemistry of common cyclic b-diketones, such as 1,3-cyclohexanedione, 5,5-dimethyl-1,3-cyclohexanedione (dimedone), but also that of 1,3-cyclopenta­nedione remains best known. In the literature one can already find a large scope of heterocycles synthesized on the basis of the above three diketones, and also data about their biological activity. Works dealing with exploitation of other, higher cyclic diketones are scarce.

 

This article is a continuation of two reviews published by Strakov [1,2], and expands them by results published till the end of 2001.

 

[Back to top] Non-Conventional Redox Chemistry of Dihydropyridines and Pyridinium Salts

Rodolfo Lavilla

 

The classical redox chemistry of the NADH-NAD+ cofactors and their synthetic analogues (dihydropyridines and pyridinium salts) has been extended to non-biomimetic processes. These involve reactions that bypass the electron transfer processes and allow the functionalization of the heterocyclic parent systems with a broad variety of carbon- and heteroatom-based functional groups. The scope of the methodology, and its applications to organic synthesis are analyzed.