The
second example of selective N1/N4 1,4-cycloaddition (vs C3/C6
1,4-cycloaddition) of 1,2,4,5-tetrazines with preformed or in situ
generated enamines now promoted by the Lewis acid ZnCl2 and with an expanded scope is described. The reaction constitutes
a formal [4 + 2] cycloaddition across two nitrogen atoms (N1/N4 vs
C3/C6) of a 1,2,4,5-tetrazine followed by retro [4 + 2] cycloaddition
loss of a nitrile and aromatization to provide 1,2,4-triazines. Optimization
of reaction parameters, simplification of its implementation through
in situ enamine generation from ketones, definition of the enamine
reaction scope for 3,6-bis(thiomethyl)-1,2,4,5-tetrazine, exploration
of the 1,2,4,5-tetrazine scope, and representative applications of
the product 1,2,4-triazines are detailed. The work establishes and
further extends a powerful method for efficient one-step regioselective
synthesis of 1,2,4-triazines under mild reaction conditions directly
now from easily accessible ketones. It extends the substrate scope
of a solvent (hexafluoroisopropanol) hydrogen bonding-promoted reaction
that we recently reported with aryl-conjugated enamines, permitting
the use of simple ketone-derived enamines and expanding the generality
of the remarkable reaction. The reaction is regioselective with respect
to the site of reaction with unsymmetrical ketones and provides exclusively
a single 1,2,4-triazine regioisomer consistent with our previously
established stepwise mechanism of formal N1/N4 1,4-cycloaddition,
overcoming the challenges observed in conventional approaches to 1,2,4-triazines.