Chemistry of Spontaneous Alkylation of Methimazole with 1,2-Dichloroethane

Spontaneous S-alkylation of methimazole (1) with 1,2-dichloroethane (DCE) into 1,2-bis[(1-methyl-1H-imidazole-2-yl)thio]ethane (2), that we have described recently, opened the question about its formation pathway(s). Results of the synthetic, NMR spectroscopic, crystallographic and computational studies suggest that, under given conditions, 2 is obtained by direct attack of 1 on the chloroethyl derivative 2-[(chloroethyl)thio]-1-methyl-1H-imidazole (3), rather than through the isolated stable thiiranium ion isomer, i.e., 7-methyl-2H, 3H, 7H-imidazo[2,1-b]thiazol-4-ium chloride (4a, orthorhombic, space group Pnma), or in analogy with similar reactions, through postulated, but unproven intermediatethiiranium ion 5. Furthermore, in the reaction with 1, 4a prefers isomerization to the N-chloroethyl derivative, 1-chloroethyl-2,3-dihydro-3-methyl-1H-imidazole-2-thione (7), rather than alkylation to 2, while 7 further reacts with 1 to form 3-methyl-1-[(1-methyl-imidazole-2-yl)thioethyl]-1H-imidazole-2-thione (8, monoclinic, space group P 21/c). Additionally, during the isomerization of 3, the postulated intermediate thiiranium ion 5 was not detected by chromatographic and spectroscopic methods, nor by trapping with AgBF4. However, trapping resulted in the formation of the silver complex of compound 3, i.e., bis-{2-[(chloroethyl)thio]-1-methyl-1H-imidazole}-silver(I)tetrafluoroborate (6, monoclinic, space group P 21/c), which cyclized upon heating at 80 °C to 7-methyl-2H, 3H, 7H-imidazo[2,1-b]thiazol-4-ium tetrafluoroborate (4b, monoclinic, space group P 21/c). Finally, we observed thermal isomerization of both 2 and 2,3-dihydro-3-methyl-1-[(1-methyl-1H-imidazole-2-yl)thioethyl]-1H-imidazole-2-thione (8), into 1,2-bis(2,3-dihydro-3-methyl-1H-imidazole-2-thione-1-yl)ethane (9), which confirmed their structures.

4-vinylpyridine derivatives: Protonation, methylation and silver(I) coordination chemistry

( E)-4-[2-(Pyridin-4-yl)vinyl]benzaldehyde, containing both a 4-vinylpyridine and an aldehyde functionality, is utilized to develop new, highly conjugated chalcone compounds and a bis-Schiff base azine compound. The chalcone-containing compounds are further explored for their protonation, methylation and silver(I) coordination chemistry using the pyridine moiety. In parallel, a cyano-containing analogue, ( E)-4-[2-(pyridin-4-yl)vinyl]benzonitrile is also synthesized and studied for its silver(I) coordination chemistry. These new compounds are fully characterized by mass spectrometry, elemental analysis and spectroscopic techniques. The methylated product of ( E)-1-(9-anthryl)-3-{4-[2-(pyridin-4-yl)vinyl]phenyl}prop-2-en-1-one and a silver complex of ( E)-4-[2-(pyridin-4-yl)vinyl]benzonitrile are structurally determined by X-ray crystallography.

Complex formation of silver(I) ion with a glucosinolate derivative: structural and mechanistic insights into myrosinase-mimicking C-S bond cleavage

The crystal structure of an unprecedented silver complex of O-acetylsinigrin has shown chelating bonds of the sulfated thiohydroximate and an η2-bond of the ethylene moiety with Ag(I). Mechanistic studies on...