Through a surprisingly nonregioselective
oxidation process, the
reaction of two analogous 2-hydroxy-substituted tribenzotriquinacenes
(TBTQs) <b>8a</b>/<b>8b</b> by <i>o</i>-iodoxybenzoic
acid was found to afford the corresponding <i>C</i><sub><i>s</i></sub>- and <i>C</i><sub>1</sub>-symmetrical
TBTQ-<i>o-</i>quinones <b>6a</b>/<b>6b</b> and <b>7a</b>/<b>7b</b>, respectively, in 1:1 ratio and excellent
combined yields. This finding represents the first example of direct
introduction of a functional group into a sterically hindered, inner
bay-positions of a parent TBTQ skeleton. In contrast, the analogous
reaction with 1-hydroxy-TBTQ <b>15</b> failed to produce the
desired <i>o-</i>quinone <b>7a</b>. After reduction
of the quinones <b>6a</b> and <b>7a</b> to the corresponding
catechols <b>17</b> and <b>23</b>, electrophilic aromatic
substitution could also be realized at the activated inner bay-position(s)
to afford several tri- and tetrafunctionalized TBTQ compounds <b>18</b>, <b>21</b>, and <b>25</b>. The <i><i>C</i><sub>s</sub></i>-symmetrical <i>o-</i>quinone <b>6a</b> was converted into further single-wing extended derivatives
such as TBTQ-based phenazines <b>27a</b>–<b>f</b>, through condensation reactions, and to benzodioxine derivative <b>32</b> by Diels–Alder reaction with tetracyclone. The novel
TBTQ-quinones and the corresponding TBTQ-catechols offer a variety
of new accesses to single-wing-extended and -functionalized TBTQ derivatives.