Asymmetric alkylation of diarylmethane derivatives

Deprotonation-alkylation of prochiral diarylmethane substrates using sec-BuLi and (−)-sparteine has been carried out in excellent yields and up to 94% ee. A variety of enantioselective alkylations, silylations and stannylations have been performed on four different diarylmethanes. Surrogates for (+)-sparteine have also been applied in this study including a novel surrogate.     

Asymmetric alkylation of diarylmethane derivatives. Improved results using methoxyethoxy substituent

Alkylation of 2-methoxyethoxyphenyl phenyl methane using sec-BuLi and (−)-sparteine has been carried out in excellent yields and up to 94% ee. The best results were obtained in allylation reactions but methylation, ethylation, benzylation and trimethylsilylation have all been carried out with acceptable ee.     

Chiral diamines for asymmetric synthesis: an efficient RCM construction of the ligand core of (−)- and (+)-sparteine

An efficient RCM-based approach was applied to the total asymmetric synthesis of a tricyclic diamine and, formally, of its enantiomer, widely known as efficient and versatile chiral ligands of the sparteine-like type.     

Bis(μ-iodo)bis((−)-sparteine)dicopper(I) catalyzed Sonogashira-type reaction under palladium and phosphine-free conditions

An efficient and inexpensive protocol for the Sonogashira-type cross coupling reactions of phenylacetylenes with a variety of haloarenes including activated aryl chlorides employing the structurally well-characterized bis(μ-iodo)bis((−)-sparteine)dicopper(I) catalyst is described.     

Nickel(II)-catalyzed asymmetric alkylation of acyclic oxocarbenium ions with carboxylic acid derivatives

A nickel(II)-catalyzed asymmetric alkylation of acyclic oxocarbenium ions generated in situ from corresponding acetals with carboxylic acid derivatives to prepare β-alkoxyl carbonyl moieties with diverse α-substituents has been disclosed. The method exhibited broad scope of acetals and carboxylic acid derivatives with excellent enantioselectivity and good functional group compatibility, and can be conducted in a gram-scale without obvious loss of efficiency.     

Asymmetric synthesis of (−)-tetrahydrolipstatin

Attempts toward the asymmetric synthesis of (−)-tetrahydrolipstatin are described. A palladium catalyzed Wacker-type reaction to convert an alkene to a ketone, highly diastereoselective reduction of a β-hydroxy ketone, selective oxidation of a diol, and modular synthesis are the key features of the successful approach.     

Asymmetric alkylation of 5-alkyl-2-aminothiazolones using a C2-symmetric chiral tetraamine base

The diastereoselective alkylation of a series of 5-alkyl-2-aminothiazolones utilizing a C₂-symmetric chiral tetraamine base is reported.     

Ir-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation using chiral diaminophosphine oxides: DIAPHOXs. Formal enantioselective synthesis of (−)-paroxetine

An Ir-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation using chiral diaminophosphine oxide is described. Asymmetric allylic alkylation of terminal allylic carbonates proceeded using 5 mol % of Ir catalyst, 5 mol % of DIAPHOX 1i, 10 mol % of NaPF₆, 10 mol % of LiOAc, and N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide (BSA), affording the corresponding branched products in excellent yield and in up to 95% ee. The developed catalytic asymmetric reaction was successfully applied to a formal enantioselective synthesis of (−)-paroxetine.     

Asymmetric syntheses of (−)-isoretronecanol and (−)-trachelantamidine

Short and concise total asymmetric syntheses of (−)-isoretronecanol and (−)-trachelantamidine are reported. Oxidative cleavage of tert-butyl (S,S,S,Z)-7-[N-benzyl-N-(α-methylbenzyl)amino]cyclohept-3-ene-1-carboxylate, followed by hydrogenolysis promoted in situ cyclisation/reduction, which provided rapid access to the bicyclic core within (−)-isoretronecanol. Analogous treatment of the C(1)-epimer gave (−)-trachelantamidine. Overall, the syntheses of (−)-isoretronecanol and (−)-trachelantamidine were completed in eight and seven steps and 20 and 9.5% yield, respectively, from commercially available starting materials.     

Dynamic resolution of N-alkyl-2-lithiopyrrolidines with the chiral ligand (−)-sparteine

A selection of 2-lithiopyrrolidines with different N-alkyl-substituents were prepared and tested for their dynamic resolution in the presence of the chiral ligand (−)-sparteine. Good yields of the electrophile-quenched products were obtained with enantiomer ratios up to 85:15 using branched N-alkyl derivatives. The major product was shown to have the opposite absolute configuration compared with that obtained in the asymmetric deprotonation of N-Boc-pyrrolidine with (−)-sparteine. The enantioselectivity arises from a dynamic thermodynamic resolution in which the minor diastereomeric complex reacts faster with the electrophile.     

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of cyclic α-alkyl-amino acid derivatives by C,N-double alkylation

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of various cyclic α-alkyl-amino acid derivatives having a tetrasubstituted α-carbon, such as α-alkylprolines has been accomplished by asymmetric phase-transfer C-alkylation of α-alkyl-amino acid derivatives and subsequent intramolecular N-alkylation.     

Asymmetric synthesis of naturally occurring (−)-seimatopolides A and B

Asymmetric total synthesis of polyhydroxylated naturally occurring nonenolide seimatopolide A (3S,6S,7S,9R) and seimatopolide B (3S,6R,9R) is described in this article. An E-selective cross metathesis (CM) reaction between two suitable fragments followed by macrolactonization reaction is the main highlight of our synthesis for the two natural products. The fragment containing 6S,7S,9R stereocenters for seimatopolide A has been synthesized from l-tartaric acid as a chiral pool starting material, by employing (R)-CBS-mediated stereoselective keto reduction reaction. Another fragment, which is common for both the molecules, containing the 3S stereocenter was prepared by ME-DKR (metal enzyme combined dynamic kinetic resolution) method. The fragment having 6R,9R stereocenters for seimatopolide B has been prepared from n-decanal by adopting (R)-CBS-mediated keto reduction and Brown asymmetric allylation reaction.     

Enantioselective alkylation of lactams and lactones via lithium enolate formation using a chiral tetradentate lithium amide in the presence of lithium bromide

Enantioselective alkylation of lactams and lactones can be realized up to 98% ee by deprotonation with a chiral tetradentate lithium amide (4b) in the presence of lithium bromide, and subsequent alkylation with active alkylating agents in non-chelating solvents.     

A short enantioselective synthesis of (−)-chloramphenicol and (+)-thiamphenicol using tethered aminohydroxylation

An efficient enantioselective synthesis of (−)-chloramphenicol (1) and (+)-thiamphenicol (2) is described. These antibiotics have been synthesized from commercially available 4-nitrobenzaldehyde and 4-(methylthio)benzaldehyde, respectively, using tethered aminohydroxylation and Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation as the chirality inducing steps.     

Asymmetric synthesis of (−)-codonopsinine

The asymmetric synthesis of (−)-codonopsinine was achieved in 7 steps (from commercially available tert-butyl crotonate) in 5% overall yield and >99:1 dr. The key step in this synthesis involved ring-closing iodoamination of a functionalised homoallylic amine, which occurred with concomitant N-debenzylation, to give a 3-iodopyrrolidine that was elaborated to (−)-codonopsinine.     

Asymmetric synthesis of (−)-acaterin

The asymmetric synthesis of (−)-acaterin, an inhibitor of acyl-CoA cholesterol acyl transferase has been achieved starting from the commercially available starting materials, octan-1-ol and methyl (R)-lactate. The key steps are a Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation and a Wittig olefination.     

Asymmetric alkylation of aromatic aldehydes with dialkylzinc catalyzed by novel amino derivatives of hydroxytetrahydropyran

Novel, specially prepared, tetrahydropyran‐based γ‐amino alcohols (S)‐2‐(aminomethyl)‐3‐hydroxy‐6‐ethoxy(phenoxy)‐tetrahydropyrans ( I ) (amino = n‐Bu₂N, piperidinyl, pyrrolidinyl, azetidinyl) were tested as catalysts in the asymmetric addition of Et₂Zn and n‐Bu₂Zn to (hetero)aromatic aldehydes. In most cases the phenoxy derivatives of I acted more enantioselectively than the ethoxy ones. The dibutylamino derivaties showed the least enantioselectivity; the pyrrolidinyl derivatives were more active as catalysts than piperidinyl and azetidinyl compounds. The highest enantioselectivity was observed in the addition of Et₂Zn to benzaldehyde in the presence of (S)‐2‐(N‐pyrrolidinylmethyl)‐3‐hydroxy‐6‐phenoxytetrahydropyran. The corresponding alcohol was prepared with 72% ee (R‐configuration). The addition of dibutylzinc proceeded slowly and less selectively. The alkylation of (hetero)aromatic aldehydes with Et₂Zn and n‐Bu₂Zn was also studied in the presence of the known optical inductor (1S,2R)‐N,N‐dibutylnorephedrine. Some chiral aromatic secondary alcohols were synthesized in high chemical yields and up to 93% ee enantioselectivity. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Enantioselective divergent approaches to both (−)-platensimycin and (−)-platencin

Enantioselective divergent approaches to (−)-platencin and (−)-platensimycin have been developed. A rationally designed chiral synthetic intermediate, possessing a useful α,β-unsaturated sulfone functionality, which served as a masked ketone as well as a good Michael acceptor, was successfully prepared via the highly enantioselective catalytic asymmetric intramolecular cyclopropanation (CAIMCP) developed in our laboratory.     

Asymmetric alkylation of glycine imine esters using solid supports preloaded with base

Investigations into the use of solid supports preloaded with base for the asymmetric alkylation of a benzophenone-derived glycine-imine was described. Residual traces of water on the support dramatically accelerated the reactions to complete within a few minutes. The conditions employed in the present synthesis are mild, efficient and general.     

Asymmetric synthesis of (−)-(S,S)-homaline

The asymmetric synthesis of (−)-(S,S)-homaline was achieved in 8 steps from commercially available starting materials using the diastereoselective conjugate addition of the novel lithium amide reagent lithium (R)-N-(3-chloropropyl)-N-(α-methyl-p-methoxybenzyl)amide to methyl cinnamate to install the correct stereochemistry. Subsequent functional group manipulation of the resultant β-amino ester and Sb(OEt)₃-mediated macrolactamisation was followed by homodimerisation to give (−)-(S,S)-homaline in 18% overall yield, representing the first asymmetric, and by far the most efficient synthesis of this natural product reported to date.