Reactivity and Synthesis Inspired by the Zincke Ring-Opening of Pyridines

The century-old Zincke process for ring-opening of pyridinium salts produces S-amino-2,4-pentaclienals, a type of donor-acceptor dienes known as Zincke aldehydes. Inspired by this reasonably general and often efficient process for dearomatization, my laboratory has used pyridines as a starting point for heterocycle synthesis, which resulted in unusual syntheses of indoles, pyrrolines, and a formal synthesis of the natural product porothramycin A. Furthermore, our study of the reactivity of Zincke aldehydes has led to accidental discoveries of pericyclic cascade reactions that produce Z-alpha,beta-unsaturated amides or polycyclic lactams, depending upon the identity of the substituents on nitrogen. Finally, a base-mediated formal cycloaddition reaction of tryptamine-derived Zincke aldehydes has served as the key step in concise syntheses of the indole alkaloids norfluorocurarine and strychnine.