1,3-Dipolar cycloaddition

The 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition is a chemical reaction between a 1,3-dipole and a dipolarophile to form a five-membered ring. The earliest 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions were described in the late 19th century to the early 20th century, following the discovery of 1,3-dipoles. Mechanistic investigation and synthetic application were established in the 1960s, primarily through the work of Rolf Huisgen. Hence, the reaction is sometimes referred to as the Huisgen cycloaddition (this term is often used to specifically describe the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition between an organic azide and an alkyne to generate 1,2,3-triazole). 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition is an important route to the regio- and stereoselective synthesis of five-membered heterocycles and their ring-opened acyclic derivatives. The dipolarophile is typically an alkene or alkyne, but can be other pi systems. When the dipolarophile is an alkyne, aromatic rings are generally produced. Originally two proposed mechanisms describe the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition: first, the concerted pericyclic cycloaddition mechanism, proposed by Rolf Huisgen; and second, the stepwise mechanism involving a diradical intermediate, proposed by Firestone. After much debate, the former proposal is now generally accepted—the 1,3-dipole reacts with the dipolarophile in a concerted, often asynchronous, and symmetry-allowed π4s + π2s fashion through a thermal six-electron Huckel aromatic transition state. However, a few examples exist of a stepwise mechanism for the catalyst-free 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions of thiocarbonyl ylides, and nitrile oxides Huisgen investigated a series of cycloadditions between the 1,3-dipolar diazo compounds and various dipolarophilic alkenes. The following observations support the concerted pericyclic mechanism, and refute the stepwise diradical or the stepwise polar pathway. Substituent effects: Different substituents on the dipole do not exhibit a large effect on the cycloaddition rate, suggesting that the reaction does not involve a charge-separated intermediate.