Organocatalytic direct asymmetric aldol reactions of 3-isothiocyanato oxindoles to ketones: stereocontrolled synthesis of spirooxindoles bearing highly congested contiguous tetrasubstituted stereocenters

The first example of a direct catalytic asymmetric intermolecular aldol reaction of 3-isothiocyanato oxindoles to simple ketones with bifunctional thiourea-tertiary amine as catalyst is reported. This strategy provides a promising approach for the asymmetric synthesis of a range of enantioenriched spirocyclic oxindoles bearing two highly congested contiguous tetrasubstituted carbon stereocenters. Versatile transformations of the spirocyclic oxindole products into other structurally diverse spirocyclic oxindoles have also been demonstrated.     

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of spirooxindoles by a mannich-type reaction of isothiocyanato oxindoles

Easy access: a strontium/Schiff base complex as catalyst for the title reaction provided straightforward access to enantiomerically enriched spiro[imidazolidine-4,3'-oxindole] compounds, as well as a spiro[imidazoline-4,3'-oxindole] through a two-step conversion from the Mannich adduct.     

Organocatalytic asymmetric [3+2]-cycloaddition of 3-isothiocyanato oxindoles with 1,3,5-trisubstituted-hexahydro-1,3,5-triazines to access spiro-imidazolidinethione-oxindoles

An efficient asymmetric [3 + 2]-cycloaddition reaction of 3-isothiocyanato oxindoles and formaldimines in-situ generated from 1,3,5-trisubstituted-hexahydro-1,3,5-triazines with a cinchona alkaloid-derived thiourea as the catalyst has been developed. A range of biologically important spiro-imidazolidinethione-oxindoles were obtained in excellent yields with good enantioselectivities (up to 99% yield and 93% ee).     

Iridium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of 3-substituted unsaturated oxindoles to prepare C3-mono substituted oxindoles

An efficient and enantioselective hydrogenation of 3-substituted unsaturated oxindoles has been developed by an iridium complex of tropos phosphine-oxazoline ligands. It is the first example to prepare chiral C3-mono substituted oxindoles via asymmetric catalysis. And the reaction provides instant access to this kind of compounds with excellent conversion and enantioselectivities (up to 93% ee).     

Organocatalytic domino reactions: synthesis of densely functionalized cyclohexene derivatives

A highly enantioselective domino reaction of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and 4-acetyl-5-oxohexanal catalyzed by a chiral secondary amine catalyst has been developed, providing an efficient synthetic approach for the synthesis of densely functionalized chiral cyclohexene derivatives with high yields (up to 96%) and enantioselectivities (up to 97% ee) under mild conditions.     

A novel organocatalytic multi-component reaction: an efficient synthesis of polysubstituted pyrano-fused spirooxindoles

A practical, simple, and efficient method for the synthesis of pyrano-fused spirooxindoles via an organocatalytic three-component reaction of isatins, malononitrile, and dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylate in the presence of 3,4-dimethylaniline as an organocatalyst in ethanol is reported. The structures of these products are confirmed by IR, ¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies.     

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of 3,3-disubstituted oxindoles: diazooxindole joins the field

The catalytic asymmetric synthesis of 3,3-disubstituted oxindoles, a big family of privileged scaffolds in natural products and drugs, is of current interest. Recently, the catalytic asymmetric functionalization of diazooxindoles emerges as a potentially general and flexible strategy for this purpose, with several notable examples coming out in 2013. In this digest, synthetic applications of diazooxindoles have been summarized and discussed, which might be helpful for readers to understand the special properties of this type of donor/acceptor cyclic diazo reagent and to develop new catalytic asymmetric reactions.     

Nickel chloride-catalyzed one-pot three-component synthesis of pyrazolophthalazinyl spirooxindoles

A direct and efficient approach for the preparation of pyrazolophthalazinyl spirooxindoles has been developed through one-pot three-component reaction of easily available isatin, malononitrile or cyanoacetic ester, and phthalhydrazide catalyzed by nickel chloride in polyethylene glycol 600. Desired products were obtained in high to excellent yields using a simple workup procedure.     

An expedient synthesis of spirooxindoles incorporating 2-amino pyran-3-carbonitrile unit employing dialkyl acetone-1,3-dicarboxylates

Spirooxindoles are a class of molecules possessing significant biological effects such as antiviral, antifungal, antibacterial and anticancer properties. Herein we report a series of spirooxindole molecules having 2-amino pyran-3-carbonitrile and with two ester groups. These molecules were prepared by the reaction of dialkyl acetone-1,3-dicarboxylate and isatilidenes in the presence of triethyl amine.     

Palladium-catalyzed cascade synthesis of spirocyclic oxindoles via regioselective C2-H arylation and C8-H alkylation of naphthalene ring

A simultaneous C2-H arylation and C8-H alkylation of naphthalene ring has been achieved by palladiumcatalyzed cascade reaction of N-(2-halophenyl)-2-(naphthalen-1-yl)acrylamides with aryl iodides,which provides an efficient method for synthesizing various aryl-substituted spirocyclic oxindoles.The protocol enables three C-C bonds formation via an intramolecular Heck reaction and sequentially regioselective C-H bond activation.     

Organocatalytic stereoselective conjugate addition of 3-substituted oxindoles with in situ generated ortho-quinone methides

A novel method for the stereoselective conjugate addition of 3-substituted oxindoles to in situ generated o-QMs was described. This process was catalyzed efficiently by a cinchonidine-derived squaramide catalyst in oil-water phase, furnishing the corresponding 3,3-disubsituted oxindole derivatives in moderate to high yields (up to 98%) with high stereoselectivities (up to 95%?ee, 15.4:1?dr). The utility of this reaction was also investigated by the gram-scale synthesis and derivatization of one of the products.     

One-pot approach for the stereoselective synthesis of spirocyclopropyl oxindoles from isatins and arsonium salts

A one-pot approach for highly stereoselective synthesis of spirocyclopropyl oxindoles 3 with good to excellent yields from the reaction of isatins 1 and arsonium salts 2 in the presence of K₂CO₃ is described. The structure of product 3 was confirmed by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, IR, MS, EA, and X-ray diffraction as well.     

An expedient approach for the synthesis of dispiropyrrolidine bisoxindoles, spiropyrrolidine oxindoles and spiroindane-1,3-diones through 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions

A series of dispiropyrrolidine bisoxindoles were synthesized via a multicomponent 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction of isatin, sarcosine and isatylidene malononitrile in refluxing methanol. Also a series of spiropyrrolidine oxindoles and spiroindane-1,3-diones were synthesized using 2-(1H-Indole-3-carbonyl)-3-phenyl-acrylonitrile and 2-(1,3-dioxo-indan-2-ylidene)-malononitrile as dipolarophiles, respectively.     

Organocatalytic enantioselective tandem Michael addition-oxidation of 3-substituted oxindoles with 1,4-benzoquinone

By employing a chiral bifunctional thiourea-tertiary amine as catalyst, enantioselective tandem Michael addition-oxidation of 3-monosubstituted oxindoles with 1,4-benzoquinones were realized. The reactions afforded a wide range of 3,3-disubstituted oxindoles with moderate to good yields (up to 87%) in moderate to good enantioselectivities (up to 96%).     

Monoclinic zirconia nanoparticle-catalyzed regioselective synthesis of some novel substituted spirooxindoles through one-pot multicomponent reaction in a ball mill: A step toward green and sustainable chemistry

A highly efficient, green as well as atom economical protocol for the synthesis of substituted spirooxindoles from m-ZrO₂ NPs catalyzed multicomponent reaction of isatin derivatives with ethyl cyanoacetate and 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds in a ball mill has been established. Because of the simple and readily available starting materials, easy operation, and high bioactivity of substituted spirooxindoles, this strategy can be broadly applied to medicinal chemistry. The recyclability of the m-ZrO₂ Nps catalyst is another emphasis of proposed methodology.     

Stereocontrolled synthesis of the ABCDE ring moiety of ciguatoxin CTX3C

The ABCDE ring moiety of ciguatoxin CTX3C, a major causative agent of ciguatera poisoning, was stereoselectively synthesized. The key transformations are a chiral auxiliary-based asymmetric alkylation and an asymmetric aldol condensation, which controlled the formation of the C11 and C21-stereocenters, respectively. A highly practical and efficient route to the ABCD ring fragment, a common precursor for the divergent synthesis of the left wings of ciguatoxins, was also established.