Ruthenium-Catalyzed Selective Hydrogenation of bis-Arylidene Tetramic Acids. Application to the Synthesis of Novel Structurally Diverse Pyrrolidine-2,4-diones

Abstract

Catalytic hydrogenation of 3,5-bis-arylidenetetramic acids, known for their biological activity, has been developed. The chemoselective ruthenium-catalyzed reduction of the exocyclic carbon-carbon double bonds on pyrrolidine-2,4-dione ring system, containing other reducible functions, has been investigated. Depending on the substrate the yield of the hydrogenation process can reach up to 95%. The structural elucidation has been established using NMR and HRMS spectral data.

Keywords

• hydrogenation
• homogeneous catalysis
• ruthenium catalysts
• BINAP
• arylidenetetramic acid