Transition-metal-mediated thiosulfinate ester synthesis

Unlike sulfur dioxide (SO{sub 2}), the coordination and organic reaction chemistry of disulfur monoxide (S{sub 2}O) has received little attention. A few Diels-Alder reactions of simple dienes with S{sub 2}O have been reported. However, there were no reports of direct S{sub 2}O complex synthesis prior to our initial work. The authors recently published a synthesis of 4,5-diphenyl-3,6-dihydro-1,2-dithiin 1-oxide (2) which liberates S{sub 2}O via a transition-metal-assisted retro-Diels-Alder reaction. Here we report further on the unusual reactivity of 2 and its utilization in the synthesis of cyclic thiosulfinate esters.