Cyclopropanol is an organic compound with the chemical formula C₃H₆O. It contains a

cyclopropyl A cyclopropyl group is a chemical structure derived from cyclopropane, and can participate in organic reactions that constitute cycloadditions and rearrangement organic reactions of cyclopropane. The group has an empirical formula of C3H5 and che ...

group with a

hydroxyl In chemistry, a hydroxy or hydroxyl group is a functional group with the chemical formula and composed of one oxygen atom covalently bonded to one hydrogen atom. In organic chemistry, alcohols and carboxylic acids contain one or more hydro ...

group attached to it. The compound is highly unstable due to the three-membered ring, and is susceptible to reactions that open the ring. It is highly prone to rearrangement, undergoing structural isomerization to form propanal. This property is useful synthetically: cyclopropanol can be used as a

synthon In retrosynthetic analysis, a synthon is a hypothetical unit within a target molecule that represents a potential starting reagent in the retroactive synthesis of that target molecule. The term was coined in 1967 by E. J. Corey. He noted in 1 ...

for the homo

enolate In organic chemistry, enolates are organic anions derived from the deprotonation of carbonyl () compounds. Rarely isolated, they are widely used as reagents in the synthesis of organic compounds. Bonding and structure Enolate anions are electr ...

of propanal. The chemical is also useful as a reagent to introduce a cyclopropyl group into

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides a ...

sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...

, and

amine In chemistry, amines (, ) are compounds and functional groups that contain a basic nitrogen atom with a lone pair. Amines are formally derivatives of ammonia (), wherein one or more hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element wi ...

linkages. The resulting cyclopropyl-containing compounds have been used in investigations of potential antiviral drugs and of modulators of

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, res ...

trafficking.

References

{{reflist Cycloalkanols Cyclopropyl compounds