A Theoretically‐Guided Optimization of a New Family of Modular P,S‐Ligands for Iridium‐Catalyzed Hydrogenation of Minimally Functionalized Olefins

A library of modular iridium complexes derived from thioether‐phosphite/phosphinite ligands has been evaluated in the asymmetric iridium‐catalyzed hydrogenation of minimally functionalized olefins. The modular ligand design has been shown to be crucial in finding highly selective catalysts for each substrate. A DFT study of the transition state responsible for the enantiocontrol in the Ir‐catalyzed hydrogenation is also described and used for further optimization of the crucial stereodefining moieties. Excellent enantioselectivities (enantiomeric excess (ee) values up to 99 %) have been obtained for a range of substrates, including E‐ and Z‐trisubstituted and disubstituted olefins, α,β‐unsaturated enones, tri‐ and disubstituted alkenylboronic esters, and olefins with trifluoromethyl substituents.     

Enantio‐ and Diastereoselective Hydrofluorination of Enals by N‐Heterocyclic Carbene Catalysis

In contrast to well‐established asymmetric hydrogenation reactions, enantioselective protonation is an orthogonal approach for creating highly valuable methine chiral centers under redox‐neutral conditions. Reported here is the highly enantio‐ and diastereoselective hydrofluorination of enals by an asymmetric β‐protonation/α‐fluorination cascade catalyzed by N‐heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs). The two nucleophilic sites of a homoenolate intermediate, generated from enals and an NHC, are sequentially protonated and fluorinated. The results show that controlling the relative rates of protonation, fluorination, and esterification is crucial for this transformation, and can be accomplished using a dual shuttling strategy. Structurally diverse carboxylic acid derivatives with two contiguous chiral centers are prepared in a single step with excellent d.r. and ee values.     

Highly Enantioselective Synthesis of Indolines: Asymmetric Hydrogenation at Ambient Temperature and Pressure with Cationic Ruthenium Diamine Catalysts

A highly enantioselective synthesis of indolines by asymmetric hydrogenation of 1H‐indoles and 3H‐indoles at ambient temperature and pressure, catalyzed by chiral phosphine‐free cationic ruthenium complexes, has been developed. Excellent enantio‐ and diastereoselectivities (up to >99 % ee, >20:1 d.r.) were obtained for a wide range of indole derivatives, including unprotected 2‐substituted and 2,3‐disubstituted 1H‐indoles, as well as 2‐alkyl‐ and 2‐aryl‐substituted 3H‐indoles.     

手性双哌啶衍生物用于甲基三氧化铼催化烯烃不对称环氧化反应

以N-烷基-4-哌啶酮为原料,制备了几个手性双哌啶衍生物配体.以尿素-过氧化氢复合物(UHP)为氧化剂,甲醇为溶剂,将这些配体用于甲基三氧化铼(MTO)催化的前手性烯烃的环氧化反应,考察了各种反应参数对催化剂催化性能的影响.结果表明,手性双哌啶衍生物的加入可降低MTO的催化活性,但可提高环氧化物的选择性;这些配体对前手性烯烃的环氧化反应有较低的手性诱导作用,对映体过量值(ee值)只有4%-11%.讨论了对映选择性低的原因.     

Development of new thiazole-based iridium catalysts and their applications in the asymmetric hydrogenation of trisubstituted olefins

New thiazole-based chiral N,P-ligands that are open-chain analogues of known cyclic thiazole ligands have been synthesized and evaluated in the iridium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of trisubstituted olefins. Chirality was introduced into the ligands through a highly diastereoselective alkylation using Oppolzer's camphorsultam as chiral auxiliary. In general, the new catalysts are as reactive and selective as their cyclic counterparts for the asymmetric hydrogenation of various trisubstituted olefins.     

Highly enantioselective hydrogenation of styrenes directed by 2'-hydroxyl groups

A new synthetic strategy that turns styrene-type olefins into excellent substrates for Rh-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation by installing a 2'-hydroxyl substituent is described. This methodology accommodates trisubstituted olefinic substrates in various E/Z mixtures, leading to valuable benzylic chiral compounds including (R)-tolterodine. It is also demonstrated that the 2'-hydroxyl groups could be readily removed in high yield without loss of ee from the products. Thus, this technology represents an attractive alternative to the Ir(P-N) catalyst system for the asymmetric hydrogenation of unfunctionalized olefins.     

N‐Heterocyclic Carbene Catalyzed Dynamic Kinetic Resolution of Pyranones

The dynamic kinetic resolution of 6‐hydroxypyranones with enals or alkynals through an asymmetric redox esterification is catalyzed by a chiral N‐heterocyclic carbene. The resulting esters are obtained in good to high yields and with high levels of enantio‐ and diastereocontrol. The reaction products are further derivatized to obtain functionalized sugar derivatives and natural products.     

Chiral Sulfide Catalysis for Desymmetrizing Enantioselective Chlorination

An unprecendented chiral sulfide catalyzed desymmetrizing enantioselective chlorination is disclosed. Various aryl‐tethered diolefins and diaryl‐tethered olefins afforded teralins and tricyclic hexahydrophenalene derivatives, respectively, bearing multiple stereogenic centers in high yields with excellent enantio‐ and diastereoselectivities. In contrast, the tertiary amine catalyst (DHQD)₂PHAL led to a diastereomeric product. The products could be transformed into a variety of compounds, such as spiro‐N‐heterocycles.     

Selective Arene Hydrogenation for Direct Access to Saturated Carbo‐ and Heterocycles

Arene hydrogenation provides direct access to saturated carbo‐ and heterocycles and thus its strategic application may be used to shorten synthetic routes. This powerful transformation is widely applied in industry and is expected to facilitate major breakthroughs in the applied sciences. The ability to overcome aromaticity while controlling diastereo‐, enantio‐, and chemoselectivity is central to the use of hydrogenation in the preparation of complex molecules. In general, the hydrogenation of multisubstituted arenes yields predominantly the cis isomer. Enantiocontrol is imparted by chiral auxiliaries, Brønsted acids, or transition‐metal catalysts. Recent studies have demonstrated that highly chemoselective transformations are possible. Such methods and the underlying strategies are reviewed herein, with an emphasis on synthetically useful examples that employ readily available catalysts.     

Enantioselective synthesis of beta2-amino acids via Rh-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation with BoPhoz-type ligands: important influence of an N-H proton in the ligand on the enantioselectivity

A series of BoPhoz-type ligands were successfully applied in the rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of a number of beta-substituted or unsubstituted alpha-(phthalimidomethyl)acrylates, affording good to excellent enantioselectivities. The results suggested that the presence of an N-H proton in the BoPhoz backbone could significantly improve the enantioselectivity, and ligand (Sc,Rp)-1d, bearing two CF3-groups in the 3,5-position of the phenyl ring of aminophosphino moiety, showed the highest enantioselectivity.     

过渡金属催化的不对称氢化反应的国内研究进展

手性过渡金属催化剂催化的不对称氢化反应是制备光学纯手性氨基酸、 手性醇、 手性胺和手性酸等手性化合物的重要手段和途径. 本文主要概括了近20年内中国科学家在手性膦配体及其过渡金属催化剂的设计合成及不对称催化氢化新反应两方面的研究进展, 并展望了该领域的发展前景.     

Catalytic Generation of C1 Ammonium Enolates from Halides and CO for Asymmetric Cascade Reactions

A general strategy for the design of asymmetric cascade reactions using readily available halides and carbon monoxide (CO) as substrates is developed. The key is the catalytic generation of C1‐ammonium enolates for the subsequent asymmetric cascade reactions through the combination of palladium‐catalyzed carbonylation and chiral Lewis base catalysis. Utilizing this strategy, we have established asymmetric formal [1+1+4] and [1+1+2] reactions to afford chiral dihydropyridones and β‐lactams with high yields and high enantio‐ and diastereoselectivities.     

Helical,Axial, and Central Chirality Combined in a Single Cage: Synthesis,Absolute Configuration,and Recognition Properties

The synthesis of eight enantiopure molecular cages (four diastereomeric pairs of enantiomers) comprising a helically chiral cyclotriveratrylene (CTV) unit, three axially chiral binaphthol linkages, and three centrally asymmetric carbon atoms of a trialkanolamine core, is described. These new cages constitute a novel family of hemicryptophanes, which combine three classes of chirality. Their absolute configuration was successfully assigned by a chemical correlation method to overcome the signals overlap in the ECD spectra of the binaphtol and CTV units. Stereoselective recognition of glucose and mannose derivatives was investigated with these new chiral cages. Excellent enantio‐ and diastereoselectivity were reached, since in some cases, both exclusive enantio‐ and diastereo‐discrimination have been observed. In addition, compared with the most relevant hemicryptophanes, these new cages also exhibit improved binding affinities.     

Domino Hydroformylation/Aldol Condensation/Hydrogenation Catalysis: Highly Selective Synthesis of Ketones from Olefins

A general and highly chemo‐ and regioselective synthesis of ketones from olefins by domino hydroformylation/aldol condensation/hydrogenation reaction has been developed. A variety of olefins are efficiently converted into various ketones in good to excellent yields and regioselectivities in the presence of a specific rhodium phosphine/base–acid catalyst system.     

Diastereo‐ and Enantioselective anti‐Selective Hydrogenation of α‐Amino‐β‐keto Ester Hydrochlorides and Related Compounds Using Transition‐Metal–Chiral‐Bisphosphine Catalysts

This review describes our recent works on the diastereo‐ and enantioselective synthesis of anti‐β‐hydroxy‐α‐amino acid esters using transition‐metal–chiral‐bisphosphine catalysts. A variety of transition metals, namely ruthenium (Ru), rhodium (Rh),iridium (Ir), and nickel (Ni), in combination with chiral bisphosphines, worked well as catalysts for the direct anti‐selective asymmetric hydrogenation of α‐amino‐β‐keto ester hydrochlorides, yielding anti‐β‐hydroxy‐α‐amino acid esters via dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) in excellent yields and diastereo‐ and enantioselectivities. The Ru‐catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of α‐amino‐β‐ketoesters via DKR is the first example of generating anti‐β‐hydroxy‐α‐amino acids. Complexes of iridium and axially chiral bisphosphines catalyze an efficient asymmetric hydrogenation of α‐amino‐β‐keto ester hydrochlorides via dynamic kinetic resolution. A homogeneous Ni–chiral‐bisphosphine complex also catalyzes an efficient asymmetric hydrogenation of α‐amino‐β‐keto ester hydrochlorides in an anti‐selective manner. As a related process, the asymmetric hydrogenation of the configurationally stable substituted α‐aminoketones using a Ni catalyst via DKR is also described.     

Bicyclic phosphine-thiazole ligands for the asymmetric hydrogenation of olefins

New bicyclic thiazole-based chiral N,P-chelating ligands were developed. High activities and enantioselectivities were achieved in the iridium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of olefins with the new ligands.     

Recycling asymmetric hydrogenation catalysts by their immobilisation onto ion-exchange resins

New systems based on cationic chiral phosphine-rhodium complexes anchored to a commercial cation-exchange gel-type resin showed high efficiency and easy recycling in the asymmetric hydrogenation of prochiral olefins.     

Experimental and Computational Study of the Catalytic Asymmetric 4π‐Electrocyclization of N‐Heterocycles

The first asymmetric metal‐catalyzed Nazarov cyclization of N‐heterocycles has been developed. The use of a chiral catalyst allows the enantioselective electrocyclization of N‐heterocycles under mild conditions and the corresponding products are obtained in good yields with excellent enantio‐ and diastereoselectivity. The reaction mechanism and the absolute configuration of the obtained products are explained by means of computational studies.     

Phosphine-phosphite ligands: chelate ring size vs. activity and enantioselectivity relationships in asymmetric hydrogenation

A series of new phosphine-phosphite ligands P(C)(n)OP (n = 1-4) have been synthesized and used for rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of prochiral olefins in order to study the effect of the chelate ring size. Excellent ees (up to 97.5%) were obtained in the hydrogenation of dimethyl itaconate and an increase of activity and enantioselectivity was observed in the hydrogenation of (Z)-α-acetamidocinnamic acid methyl ester with the increasing length of the backbone of the ligands.     

Kinetic Resolution of Acylsilane Cyanohydrins via Organocatalytic Cycloetherification

An asymmetric cyanation of acylsilanes involving the in‐situ formation of chiral acylsilane cyanohydrins followed by their kinetic resolution via organocatalytic cycloetherification is described. The highly enantio‐ and diastereoselective cycloetherification was crucial for achieving a high efficiency in the kinetic resolution. Consequently, acylsilane cyanohydrins containing a tetrasubstituted chiral carbon atom bearing silyl, cyano, and hydroxy groups were obtained in an enantioenriched form. This protocol therefore offers an efficient catalytic approach to optically active acylsilane cyanohydrins, which exhibit potential as chiral building blocks for the synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant chiral organosilanes.