Three approaches to the synthesis of ;
2;
2-homophenylalanine derivatives using Negishi cross-coupling reaction are reported. In the first two approaches, two protected
204e.gif" alt="greek small letter alpha" title="greek small letter alpha" border="0">-iodomethyl-;
2;-amino esters are each converted into the corresponding organozinc iodides, which then undergo Pd-catalysed cross-coupling with aromatic halides to give ;
2;
2-homophenylalanine derivatives, and the X-ray crystal structure of one product is reported. Alternatively, Negishi cross-coupling of the zinc reagent derived from
N-benzyl 3-iodomethyl
azetidin-
2-one and aryl halides gave 3-benzyl
azetidin-
2-
ones, masked ;
2;
2-homophenylalanine derivatives. The X-ray crystal structure of 1-benzyl-3-[(
p-toluenesulfonyloxy)-methyl]-
azetidin-
2-one confirms the structural assignment.