An alkoxide anion-triggered tert-butyloxycarbonyl group migration. Mechanism and application

We report a fast N→O tert-butyloxycarbonyl (Boc) migration of the imide (3R,4R)-tert-butyl 3-((6-(bis(tert-butoxycarbonyl)amino)-4-methylpyridin-2-yl)methyl)-4-hydroxypyrrolidine-1-carboxylate (2) via a base-generated alkoxide. The mechanism of the migration is intramolecular, involving an unusual nine-membered cyclic transition state.