1,3-Dipolar cycloadditions of acetylenic sulfones in solution and on solid supports

Several representative acetylenic sulfones were immobilized on a polymer support derived from Merrifield resin by means of ester linkers that were used to couple free carboxylic acid groups on the solid support with benzylic hydroxyl functions on the arylsulfonyl moieties of the acetylenes. Several examples of reversed ester linkers, using Merrifield resin directly, were also successfully prepared. The 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions of the solid-supported acetylenic sulfones were investigated with a series of 1,3-dipoles, including benzyl azide, ethyl diazoacetate, diazomethane, as well as representative nitrile oxides, nitrile imines, nitrile ylides, nitrones, azomethine imines, azomethine ylides, munchnones, and sydnones. In general, analogous cycloadditions were also performed with acetylenic sulfones in solution phase for comparison. The cycloadditions typically afforded good to excellent yields of the desired products in both solution and solid phase, although the latter reactions sometimes required more vigorous conditions. Except in the case of benzyl azide and diazo compounds, where mixtures of regioisomers were obtained, the other 1,3-dipoles reacted with high regioselectivity and afforded essentially unique regioisomers. Cleavage of the products from the resin was smoothly effected by alkaline hydrolysis, while several attempts at reductive desulfonylation with sodium amalgam or samarium diiodide-HMPA resulted in N-O or C-O scission, in addition to cleavage from the polymer. The method provides access to a number of important classes of heterocycles, including variously substituted and functionalized triazoles, pyrazoles, 1,2-oxazoles, pyrroles, as well as their dihydro and bicyclic analogues. The success of the cycloadditions on polymer supports paves the way to future investigations of sequential transformations leading to libraries of useful heterocycles.