The direct organocatalytic asymmetric mannich reaction: unmodified aldehydes as nucleophiles

The unprecedented application of unmodified aldehydes as nucleophilic donors in direct catalytic asymmetric Mannich-type reactions is disclosed in a full account. Our efforts in broadening the applicability of chiral pyrrolidine-based catalysts in direct asymmetric Mannich-type reactions led to the highly diastereo- and enantioselective and concise synthesis of functionalized alpha- and beta-amino acids, beta-lactams, and amino alcohols.     

Synthesis of thiazolines linked to a difluoromethylphosphonate diester via dithioester chemistry

[reaction: see text] A two-step, high-yielding synthesis of delta(2)-thiazolines containing a difluoromethylphosphonate diester moiety has been devised using a building block approach. Racemic or chiral beta-amino alcohols and diols were coupled with methyl difluoro(diethoxyphosphono)dithioacetate to give predominantly the corresponding beta-hydroxythioamides, which were then cyclized to provide a series of novel substituted delta(2)-thiazolines.     

Asymmetric syntheses of new functionalized beta-amino alcohols via diastereoselective addition of organometallic reagents onto oxazolidines

Diastereoselective reactions between (S)-phenylglycinol-derived oxazolidines and two unsaturated organolithium reagents afforded chiral beta-amino alcohols having vinyl and alkynylsilane moieties. When the same reactions were performed in the presence of titanium isopropoxide, a dramatic change of regioselectivity was observed, from the alpha- to the gamma-position, thus producing beta-amino alcohols with allyl or allenylsilane functions. A rationalization of the observed diastereoselectivity was suggested for each case.     

Highly enantioselective [4 + 2] cycloaddition reactions catalyzed by a chiral N-methyl-oxazaborolidinium cation

The reaction of lithium aryl borohydrides with salts of beta-amino alcohols provides a new route for the synthesis of oxazaborolidines. This method also leads to the first synthesis of hitherto elusive N-methyl oxazaborolidine cations, specifically the cationic proline derivative 3. Compound 3 is a strong chiral Lewis acid which is very effective for catalysis of [4 + 2]-cycloaddition reactions in good yield and with high enantioselectivity. Several diverse examples illustrate the scope of these catalytic reactions.     

Dimethylzinc-mediated, enantioselective synthesis of propargylic amines

A one-pot, enantioselective synthesis of N-aryl propargylic amines, using alkynylation reagents obtained from dimethylzinc and terminal acetylenes in combination with various aldehydes and o-methoxyaniline as starting materials, has been developed. Enantiopure beta-amino alcohols derived from norephedrine were used as non-covalent chiral auxiliaries, both in stoichiometric or substoichiometric amount. After optimization, propargylic amines were obtained in good to high yields (up to 93%) and with moderate to high enantiomeric excesses (up to 97% ee). The possibility to recover the chiral auxiliary after the reaction was demonstrated.     

Asymmetric synthesis of anti- and syn-beta-amino alcohols by reductive cross-coupling of transition metal-coordinated planar chiral arylaldehydes with aldimines

Samarium iodide-mediated cross-coupling of N-tosyl ferrocenylideneamine with planar chiral ferrocenecarboxaldehydes or benzaldehyde chromium complexes gave diastereoselectively the corresponding anti-beta-amino alcohol derivatives in good yields, while N-tosyl benzylideneamine produced syn-beta-amino alcohols by coupling with planar chiral arylaldehydes. Dynamic kinetic resolution of a configurationally equilibrated reactive species generated from achiral N-tosyl ferrocenilideneamine and benzylideneamine by reduction with samarium iodide was observed in the cross-coupling with planar chiral arylaldehydes giving both antipodes of beta-amino alcohols depending on the planar chirality. The obtained anti-beta-amino alcohol with the ferrocene ring was utilized as a chiral ligand for catalytic asymmetric reduction of acetophenone.     

Synthesis of beta-functionalized porphyrins via palladium-catalyzed carbon-heteroatom bond formations: expedient entry into beta-chiral porphyrins

A procedure was developed for the preparation of beta-monobromo-tetraphenylporphyrin (BrTPP) in a greatly improved yield from the selective bromination of tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP) by NBS. BrTPP was successfully employed as a versatile synthon for convenient synthesis of a wide range of beta-monofunctionalized porphyrins with various heteroatom functionalities via palladium-mediated carbon-heteroatom bond formations. Examples include beta-amino, -amido, -oxo, and -mercaptoporphyrins from reactions with amines, amides, alcohols, and thiols, respectively. Applying the synthetic approach to chiral amides, beta-chiral porphyrins were effectively constructed.     

Small amounts of achiral beta-amino alcohols reverse the enantioselectivity of chiral catalysts in cooperative asymmetric autocatalysis

An asymmetric autocatalytic reaction has been catalyzed by a mixture of chiral and achiral beta-amino alcohols. The absolute configuration of the highly enantioenriched obtained product (>98% ee) was shown to depend not only on the absolute configuration of the chiral catalyst but also on the structure and the amount of achiral catalyst. Even in default versus the chiral catalyst, achiral catalysts were shown to be able to reverse the enantioselectivity of the reaction.     

Convenient asymmetric synthesis of beta-trifluoromethyl-beta-amino acid, beta-amino ketones, and gamma-amino alcohols via Reformatsky and Mannich-type reactions from 2-trifluoromethyl-1,3-oxazolidines

The stereoselective syntheses of beta-trifluoromethyl-beta-amino ester, beta lactams, and beta-amino ketones starting from an oxazolidine derived from trifluoroacetaldehyde hemiacetal and (R)-phenylglycinol are reported. The Mannich-type reaction involving a chiral fluorinated iminium ion occurred in a good yield and with a higher stereoselectivity (dr up to 96:4) than that of the Reformatsky-type reaction. This straightforward strategy was applied to the short syntheses of (R)-3-amino-4,4,4-trifluorobutanoic acid, a series of novel enantiopure unprotected fluorinated beta-amino ketones, and their corresponding gamma-amino alcohols.     

Copper-catalyzed arylation of beta-amino alcohols

[reaction: see text] Methods for synthesizing N-aryl beta-amino alcohols and O-aryl beta-amino alcohols are described. The presence of a neighboring hydroxyl or amino group, respectively, is thought to activate beta-amino alcohols toward these transformations. These protocols significantly increase access to a variety of arylated beta-amino alcohols.     

Direct asymmetric hydroxyamination reaction catalyzed by an axially chiral secondary amine catalyst

A direct asymmetric hydroxyamination reaction of aldehydes with nitrosobenzene was found to be catalyzed by the novel axially chiral secondary amine catalyst (S)-1d. The resulting optically enriched hydroxyamination products were readily converted to beta-amino alcohols or 1,2-diamines in one pot.     

Synthesis of alpha-substituted beta-amino acids using pseudoephedrine as a chiral auxiliary

[reaction: see text] beta-Amino acids are becoming increasingly attractive as intermediates in the synthesis of a variety of molecular structures. However, few methods are available for the synthesis of alpha-substituted beta-amino acids that are both readily scalable and highly stereoselective. Herein we report a new method for synthesizing alpha-substituted beta-amino acids that satisfies both of these requirements using enantiomerically pure pseudoephedrine as a chiral auxiliary.     

Asymmetric synthesis of syn-alpha-substituted beta-amino ketones by using sulfinimines and prochiral Weinreb amide enolates

Syn-alpha-substituted beta-amino Weinreb amides are new chiral building blocks for asymmetric synthesis of syn-alpha-substituted beta-amino acids, aldehydes, and ketones and are prepared by addition of prochiral lithium enolates of Weinreb amides to sulfinimines (N-sulfinyl imines).     

A catalytic asymmetric method for the synthesis of gamma-unsaturated beta-amino acid derivatives

Catalytic enantioselective synthesis of beta-amino acid derivatives is an area of intense interest, due to the importance of these compounds as components in pharmaceutical agents and peptidomimetics. In this report, we present the first catalytic enantioselective method for the synthesis of gamma-unsaturated beta-amino acids and their corresponding 1,3-amino alcohol derivatives. This methodology takes advantage of a highly enantioselective vinylzinc addition to an aldehyde to set chirality. The resulting allylic alcohols are then transformed into the corresponding allylic amines via Overman's [3,3]-sigmatropic imidate rearrangement, and subsequent one-pot deprotection-oxidation of a pendant oxygen leads to the gamma-unsaturated beta-amino acid derivatives of high enantiopurity.     

Treatment of N,N-dibenzylamino alcohols with sulfonyl chloride leads to rearranged beta-chloro amines, precursors to beta-amino acids, and not to tetrahydroisoquinolines

[reaction: see text] Very recently, the unexpected formation of 3-substituted 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines starting from N,N-dibenzyl-protected beta-amino alcohols was reported. The authors claimed that treatment with tosyl chlorides induced intramolecular Friedel-Crafts alkylation. Reexamination of the reactions in our laboratory clearly proved rearranged chloro amines instead of the initially assumed tetrahydoisoquinoline structures. The chloro amines investigated can be employed as highly useful intermediates for an EPC synthesis of beta-amino nitriles and beta-amino acids.     

A high-throughput screening protocol for fast evaluation of enantioselective catalysts

A new high-throughput screening protocol that allows fast evaluation of enantioselective catalysts has been developed. The usefulness of norephedrine-derived beta-amino alcohols as catalysts for the enantioselective alkylation of prochiral aldehydes has been determined by simultaneous screening of three representative substrates. GC analysis of the crude product mixture using a selectively modified cyclodextrin as the chiral stationary phase avoids time-consuming workup procedures. The chemical yield, enantioselectivity, substrate specificity, and catalytic activity of the chiral catalysts as well as the induced absolute configuration have been determined in a single screening experiment and two short GC runs.     

N-sulfinyl beta-amino Weinreb amides: synthesis of enantiopure beta-amino carbonyl compounds. Asymmetric synthesis of (+)-sedridine and (-)-allosedridine

[reaction: see text] N-Sulfinyl beta-amino Weinreb amides are prepared by condensation of sulfinimines with the potassium enolate of N-methoxy-N-methylacetamide. These new chiral building blocks are useful for the asymmetric synthesis of beta-amino carbonyl compounds, as illustrated here by the concise enantioselective syntheses of sedum alkaloids (+)-sedridine and (-)-allosedridine.     

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of alpha- and beta-amino phosphonic acid derivatives

Catalytic asymmetric reactions provide one of the most powerful and economical synthetic approaches to a variety of enantiomerically enriched compounds. As being analogues of the corresponding alpha- and beta-amino acids, optically active alpha- and beta-amino phosphonic acid derivatives have found widespread use in medicinal chemistry and the pharmaceutical sciences. Using catalytic amounts of chiral materials, asymmetric synthesis of enantiomerically enriched alpha- and beta-amino phosphonates has been a subject of growing interest. This tutorial review contains a compilation of the catalytic asymmetric synthetic methods developed to date and highlights their utility for obtaining these target compounds.     

Novel approach for asymmetric synthesis of fluorinated beta-amino sulfones and allylic amines

[reaction: see text] Enantiomerically pure gamma-fluoroalkyl beta-amino sulfones are readily synthesized in three steps starting from fluorinated imidoyl chlorides and arylmethyl sulfones. A complementary two-step sequence starting from chiral fluorinated beta-amino sulfoxides has also been developed. To illustrate the application of this procedure, a new method for the synthesis of alpha-fluoroalkyl allylic amines in optically pure form involving a Julia methylenation-desulfonylation reaction is presented.     

trans-Cyclopropyl beta-amino acid derivatives via asymmetric cyclopropanation using a (Salen)Ru(II) catalyst

trans-Cyclopropyl beta-amino acid derivatives can be synthesized in five steps with excellent enantioselectivities using a chiral (Salen)Ru(II) cyclopropanation catalyst in the key asymmetry-induction step. This facile synthesis proceeds with high overall yield and can be used to prepare a number of carbamate-protected (Cbz and Boc are demonstrated) beta-amino acid derivatives.