In
organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the science, scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of organic compounds and organic matter, organic materials, i.e., matter in its various forms that contain ...
a methylthiomethyl (MTM)
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
is a
protective group
A protecting group or protective group is introduced into a molecule by chemical modification of a functional group to obtain chemoselectivity in a subsequent chemical reaction. It plays an important role in multistep organic synthesis.
In man ...
for
hydroxyl groups
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 hydroxy ...
. Hydroxyl groups are present in many chemical compounds and they must be protected during
oxidation
Redox ( , , reduction–oxidation or oxidation–reduction) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of the reactants change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state, while reduction is ...
,
acylation
In chemistry, acylation is a broad class of chemical reactions in which an acyl group () is added to a substrate. The compound providing the acyl group is called the acylating agent. The substrate to be acylated and the product include the foll ...
,
halogenation
In chemistry, halogenation is a chemical reaction which introduces one or more halogens into a chemical compound. Halide-containing compounds are pervasive, making this type of transformation important, e.g. in the production of polymers, drug ...
,
dehydration
In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water that disrupts metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds intake, often resulting from excessive sweating, health conditions, or inadequate consumption of water. Mild deh ...
and other reactions to which they are susceptible.
Many kinds of
protective group
A protecting group or protective group is introduced into a molecule by chemical modification of a functional group to obtain chemoselectivity in a subsequent chemical reaction. It plays an important role in multistep organic synthesis.
In man ...
s for hydroxyl groups have been developed and used in organic chemistry, but the number of protective groups for tertiary hydroxyl groups, which are susceptible to acid-catalyzed
dehydration
In physiology, dehydration is a lack of total body water that disrupts metabolic processes. It occurs when free water loss exceeds intake, often resulting from excessive sweating, health conditions, or inadequate consumption of water. Mild deh ...
, is still small because of their poor reactiveness. They can be easily protected with MTM
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
s and recovered in good yield.
To introduce an MTM
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
to a hydroxyl group, two methods are mainly used. One is a typical
Williamson ether synthesis
The Williamson ether synthesis is an organic reaction, forming an ether from an organohalide and a deprotonated alcohol (alkoxide). This reaction was developed by Alexander Williamson in 1850. Typically it involves the reaction of an alkoxide ...
using an MTM
halide
In chemistry, a halide (rarely halogenide) is a binary chemical compound, of which one part is a halogen atom and the other part is an element or radical that is less electronegative (or more electropositive) than the halogen, to make a fl ...
as an MTM resource and
sodium hydride
Sodium hydride is the chemical compound with the empirical formula Na H. This alkali metal hydride is primarily used as a strong yet combustible base in organic synthesis. NaH is a saline (salt-like) hydride, composed of Na+ and H− ions, in co ...
(NaH) as a base. The other is a special method, in which
dimethyl sulfoxide
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is an organosulfur compound with the formula . This colorless liquid is the sulfoxide most widely used commercially. It is an important polar aprotic solvent that dissolves both polar and nonpolar compounds and is ...
(DMSO) and
acetic anhydride
Acetic anhydride, or ethanoic anhydride, is the chemical compound with the chemical formula, formula . Commonly abbreviated , it is one the simplest organic acid anhydride, anhydrides of a carboxylic acid and is widely used in the production of c ...
(Ac
2O) are used. In this case, the reaction proceeds with
Pummerer rearrangement
The Pummerer rearrangement is an organic reaction whereby an alkyl sulfoxide rearranges to an α- acyloxy–thioether (monothioacetal-ester) in the presence of acetic anhydride.
The stoichiometry of the reaction is:
:RS(O)CHR'2 + Ac2O → ...
:
MTM
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
s have another advantage. They are removed by neutral (but toxic)
mercuric chloride
Mercury(II) chloride (mercury bichloride, mercury dichloride, mercuric chloride), historically also sulema or corrosive sublimate, is the inorganic chemical compound of mercury and chlorine with the formula HgCl2, used as a laboratory reagent. ...
, to which most other ethers are stable. As a result, the selective deprotection of polyfunctional molecules becomes possible using MTM
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
s as the
protective group
A protecting group or protective group is introduced into a molecule by chemical modification of a functional group to obtain chemoselectivity in a subsequent chemical reaction. It plays an important role in multistep organic synthesis.
In man ...
s for their hydroxyl groups.
Alcohol protection
Methylthiomethyl (MTM) group is used as a
protecting group
A protecting group or protective group is introduced into a molecule by chemical modification of a functional group to obtain chemoselectivity in a subsequent chemical reaction. It plays an important role in multistep organic synthesis.
In man ...
for
alcohols
In chemistry, an alcohol (), is a type of organic compound that carries at least one hydroxyl () functional group bound to a Saturated and unsaturated compounds, saturated carbon atom. Alcohols range from the simple, like methanol and ethanol ...
in
organic synthesis
Organic synthesis is a branch of chemical synthesis concerned with the construction of organic compounds. Organic compounds are molecules consisting of combinations of covalently-linked hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen atoms. Within the gen ...
. This type of alcohol protecting group is robust under mild acidic reaction conditions.
Most common protection methods
* Treatment of alcohol with
sodium hydride
Sodium hydride is the chemical compound with the empirical formula Na H. This alkali metal hydride is primarily used as a strong yet combustible base in organic synthesis. NaH is a saline (salt-like) hydride, composed of Na+ and H− ions, in co ...
and methylthiomethyl halide
*
Dimethyl sulfoxide
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is an organosulfur compound with the formula . This colorless liquid is the sulfoxide most widely used commercially. It is an important polar aprotic solvent that dissolves both polar and nonpolar compounds and is ...
(DMSO) and
acetic acid
Acetic acid , systematically named ethanoic acid , is an acidic, colourless liquid and organic compound with the chemical formula (also written as , , or ). Vinegar is at least 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main compone ...
(AcOH) in
acetic anhydride
Acetic anhydride, or ethanoic anhydride, is the chemical compound with the chemical formula, formula . Commonly abbreviated , it is one the simplest organic acid anhydride, anhydrides of a carboxylic acid and is widely used in the production of c ...
(Ac
2O) at ambient temperature
Most common deprotection methods
*
Mercury (II) chloride
Mercury(II) chloride (mercury bichloride, mercury dichloride, mercuric chloride), historically also sulema or corrosive sublimate, is the inorganic chemical compound of mercury and chlorine with the formula HgCl2, used as a laboratory reagent. ...
(HgCl
2);
calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a common substance found in Rock (geology), rocks as the minerals calcite and aragonite, most notably in chalk and limestone, eggshells, gastropod shells, shellfish skel ...
(CaCO
3) is used as an acid scavenger for acid sensitive substrates

*
Iodomethane
Iodomethane, also called methyl iodide, and commonly abbreviated "MeI", is the chemical compound with the formula CH3I. It is a dense, colorless, volatile liquid. In terms of chemical structure, it is related to methane by replacement of one hy ...
(MeI) in presence of
sodium bicarbonate
Sodium bicarbonate ( IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda (or simply “bicarb” especially in the UK) is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt composed of a sodium cat ...
(NaHCO
3) at elevated temperatures (this type of reaction is generally carried out in acetone/H
2O solution)
*
Magnesium iodide (MgI
2) and acetic anhydride (Ac
2O) in
ether
In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group, a single oxygen atom bonded to two separate carbon atoms, each part of an organyl group (e.g., alkyl or aryl). They have the general formula , where R and R� ...
at ambient temperature
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Methylthiomethyl Ether
Thioethers
Protecting groups