Copper-catalyzed synthesis of hydrazone derivatives between oxime esters and azodicarboxylates

Abstract

A novel copper-catalyzed reaction of oxime esters with azodicarboxylates is herein described, affording a range of unsymmetrically substituted N-acyl hydrazone derivatives with excellent E selectivity in 31-77% yields. Hydrazone derivatives are useful synthetic intermediates and exhibit a broad spectrum of biological and medical activities. The present reaction is operationally simple and amenable to gram-scale synthesis, which is expected to have potential applications in organic synthesis.