Enantioselective nitroaldol reaction of alpha-ketoesters catalyzed by cinchona alkaloids

The development of highly enantioselective and general catalytic nitroaldol (Henry) reactions with ketones is a challenging yet desirable task in organic synthesis. In this communication, we report an asymmetric nitroaldol reaction with alpha-ketoesters catalyzed by a new C6'-OH cinchona alkaloid catalyst. This is the first highly efficient organocatalytic asymmetric Henry reaction with ketones. This reaction is operationally simple and affords high enantioselectivity as well as good to excellent yield for a broad range of alpha-ketoesters.     

Recent progress in copper catalyzed asymmetric Henry reaction

Henry reaction is one of the most classical reactions to construct synthetically useful product nitro alcohol, which as a privileged skeleton is widely distributed in various pharmaceuticals. This review summarizes the recent progress of copper-catalyzed asymmetric Henry reaction from 2011 to 2016. The significant progress that has been made in this area will be highlighted and some of challenges that the author believes may be hindering further progress will be revealed.     

不对称催化Henry反应研究进展

Henry反应是一类重要的有机反应. 按照反应中使用催化剂的种类, 分金属络合物催化、有机小分子催化、酶催化、非均相负载催化四大类, 详细介绍了不对称催化Henry反应的研究进展.     

Metal-Organic Frameworks as Versatile Heterogeneous Solid Catalysts for Henry Reactions

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have become one of the versatile solid materials used for a wide range of applications, such as gas storage, gas separation, proton conductivity, sensors and catalysis. Among these fields, one of the more well-studied areas is the use of MOFs as heterogeneous catalysts for a broad range of organic reactions. In the present review, the employment of MOFs as solid catalysts for the Henry reaction is discussed, and the available literature data from the last decade are grouped. The review is organized with a brief introduction of the importance of Henry reactions and structural properties of MOFs that are suitable for catalysis. The second part of the review discusses the use of MOFs as solid catalysts for the Henry reaction involving metal nodes as active sites, while the third section provides data utilizing basic sites (primary amine, secondary amine, amides and urea-donating sites). While commenting on the catalytic results in these two sections, the advantage of MOFs over other solid catalysts is compared in terms of activity by providing turnover number (TON) values and the structural stability of MOFs during the course of the reaction. The final section provides our views on further directions in this field.     

Advances in Copper‐Catalyzed C?C Coupling Reactions and Related Domino Reactions Based on Active Methylene Compounds

Active methylene compounds are a major class of reaction partners for C? C bond formation with sp² C? X (X=halide) fragments. As one of the most‐classical versions of the Ullmann‐type coupling reaction, activated‐methylene‐based C? C coupling reactions have been efficiently employed in a large number of syntheses. Although this type of reaction has long relied on noble‐metal catalysis, the renaissance of copper catalysis at the end of last century has led to dramatic developments in Ullmann C? C coupling reactions. Owing to its low cost, abundance, as well as excellent catalytic activity, the exceptional atom economy of copper catalysis is gaining widespread attention in various organic synthesis. This review summarizes the advances in copper‐catalyzed intermolecular and intramolecular C? C coupling reactions that use activated methylene species as well as in tandem reactions that are initiated by this transformation.     

Trost氮杂半冠醚手性配体在不对称催化反应中的应用

双功能手性金属络合物催化的不对称反应是目前有机化学研究的热点之一。本文综述了氮杂半冠醚手性配体与金属有机试剂络合的双金属催化剂,在催化不对称aldol反应、不对称Henry反应、不对称Michael反应、不对称Mannich反应、不对称Friedel-Crafts烷基化反应、不对称炔基化反应、不对称硅氰化反应、共聚反应、去对称化反应以及不对称Nozaki-Hiyama烯丙基化反应体系中的应用进展,重点介绍了不同催化体系对催化剂和反应底物之间立体效应和电子效应的影响,总结了控制反应立体选择性的规律以及有关催化反应的机理。     

胍在不对称合成中的应用

介绍了胍在不对称合成中的近期研究进展,包括在不对称Henry反应、Michael加成、Strecker反应及其它不对称有机合成中的应用.     

Henry reaction catalyzed by Lipase A from Aspergillus niger

The Henry reaction of aromatic aldehydes and nitroalkanes could be performed by catalyst of Lipase A from Aspergillus niger in organic/water medium, and the corresponding Henry products were obtained in yields up to 94%.     

One‐Pot Sequential Organocatalysis: Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of Trisubstituted Cyclohexanols

A highly diastereoselective (d.r. >99:1) and enantioselective (ee value up to 96 %) synthesis of trisubstituted cyclohexanols was achieved by using a one‐pot sequential organocatalysis that involved a quinidine thiourea‐catalyzed tandem Henry–Michael reaction between nitromethane and 7‐oxo‐hept‐5‐en‐1‐als followed by a tetramethyl guanidine (TMG)‐catalyzed tandem retro‐Henry–Henry reaction on the reaction products of the tandem Henry–Michael reaction. Through a mechanistic study, it has also been demonstrated that similar results may also be achieved with this one‐pot sequential organocatalysis by using the racemic Henry product as the substrate.     

Borax: An Ecofriendly and Efficient Catalyst for One-Pot Synthesis of 3,4-Dihydropyrimidine-2(1H)-ones under Solvent-Free Conditions

Borax in the presence of a very small amount of 5 M sulfuric acid efficiently catalyses the three-component condensation of an aldehyde, β-ketoester, and urea or thiourea to afford the corresponding 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones or 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-thiones in good to excellent yields under solvent-free conditions at 80 °C. Compared with the classical Biginelli reaction conditions, this new method has the advantage of excellent yield, short reaction time (1–2 h), easy workup, and no use of volatile organic solvent.     

Biocatalytic Friedel–Crafts Alkylation Using a Promiscuous Biosynthetic Enzyme

The Friedel–Crafts alkylation is commonly used in organic synthesis to form aryl–alkyl C?C linkages. However, this reaction lacks the stereospecificity and regiocontrol of enzymatic catalysis. Here, we describe a stereospecific, biocatalytic Friedel–Crafts alkylation of the 2‐position of resorcinol rings using the cylindrocyclophane biosynthetic enzyme CylK. This regioselectivity is distinct from that of the classical Friedel–Crafts reaction. Numerous secondary alkyl halides are accepted by this enzyme, as are resorcinol rings with a variety of substitution patterns. Finally, we have been able to use this transformation to access novel analogues of the clinical drug candidate benvitimod that are challenging to construct with existing synthetic methods. These findings highlight the promise of enzymatic catalysis for enabling mild and selective C?C bond‐forming synthetic methodology.     

Recent Advances in Organocatalyzed Asymmetric Sulfa-Michael Addition Triggered Cascade Reactions

The sulfa-Michael addition reaction is a crucial subset of the Michael addition reaction, and aroused the interest of numerous synthetic biologists and chemists. In particular, sulfa-Michael addition triggered cascade reaction has developed quickly in recent years because it offers an efficient method to construct C−S bonds and other bonds in one approach, which is widely applicable for building chiral pharmaceuticals, their intermediates, and natural compounds. This review emphasizes the recent advancements in sulfa-Michael addition-triggered cascade reactions for the stereoselective synthesis of sulfur-containing compounds, including sulfa-Michael/aldol, sulfa-Michael/Henry, sulfa-Michael/Michael, sulfa-Michael/Mannich and some sulfa-Michael triggered multi-step processes. Moreover, some reaction mechanisms and derivatization experiments are introduced appropriately.     

Asymmetric Henry reaction catalyzed by C2-symmetric tridentate bis(oxazoline) and bis(thiazoline) complexes: metal-controlled reversal of enantioselectivity

[reaction: see text] C(2)-symmetric tridentate bis(oxazoline) and bis(thiazoline) ligands with a diphenylamine backbone have been investigated in the catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction of alpha-keto esters with different Lewis acids. Their Cu(OTf)(2) complexes furnished S enantiomers, while Et(2)Zn complexes afforded R enantiomers, both of them with higher enantioselectivities (up to 85% ee). Reversal of enantioselectivity in asymmetric Henry reactions was achieved with the same chiral ligand by changing the Lewis acid center from Cu(II) to Zn(II). The results show that the NH group in C(2)-symmetric tridentate chiral ligands plays a very important role in controlling both the yields and enantiofacial selectivity of the Henry products.     

Catalytic asymmetric Henry reactions of silyl nitronates with aldehydes

A catalytic enantioselective Henry reaction of silyl nitronates with aldehydes has been developed. Different chiral Lewis acids have been tested for the reaction and it has been found that a variety of chiral copper-ligand complexes can catalyze the Henry reaction. The best yield, diastereo- and enantioselectivity of the nitroalcohols formed are obtained by the application of a copper(II)-diphenyl-bisoxazoline complex as the catalyst in the presence of tetrabutylammonium triphenylsilyldifluorosilicate (TBAT). In order to minimize the epimerization of the nitroaldol products they were converted into the corresponding Mosher esters. The reaction proceeds well for different aromatic aldehydes reacting with alkyl nitronates.     

有机小分子催化不对称Henry反应的研究进展

综述了各类有机小分子催化剂(如金鸡纳碱衍生物、手性(硫)脲、手性二级胺、金鸡纳碱-硫脲衍生物、胍-硫脲衍生物等)在不对称Henry反应中的研究进展。参考文献18篇。     

Recent renewed interest in the classical Kukhtin-Ramirez adducts

The classical Kukhtin-Ramirez adducts, namely the 1:1 adducts of trivalent phosphorus reagents and 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds, were found more than half a century ago. Recently this family of organophosphorus compounds has regained remarkable interest from organic chemists. Relevant investigations have unveiled that Kukhtin-Ramirez adducts possess rich and appealing reactivity, particularly serving as nucleophiles, carbene surrogates or 1,1-dipoles in a series of organic reactions including insertion reaction, cyclopropanation reaction and formal (1?+?4) annulation reaction. This digest aims to summarize such encouraging advances. To give the readers a complete portrait about the chemistry of Kukhtin-Ramirez adducts, the early reports are also briefly discussed.     

Preparation of sugar derived β,β′-dihydroxy α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids

A novel strategy for the preparation of β,β′-dihydroxy α,α-disubstituted α-amino acids bearing a sugar moiety has been developed. The procedure is based on two Henry reactions: the first Henry reaction involves a sugar aldehyde and nitroethanol to furnish a sugar derived α-hydroxymethyl α-nitroalkanol while the second Henry reaction is between this nitro sugar and formaldehyde. This sequence provided the expected epimers of sugar derived α,α-dihydroxymethyl α -nitroalkanols, from which the corresponding β,β′-dibenzyloxy α-N-benzyloxycarbonylamino esters were easily obtained. All rights reserved.     

Theoretical investigation of von Braun and von Braun-like reactions

The von Braun reaction, discovered at the dawn of the past century, consists of the reaction between a tertiary amine and cyanogen bromide. It leads to the cleavage of a C─N bond with the formation of an N-dialkylcyanamide and an alkyl bromide and has been extensively used in organic synthesis. A detailed in silico study (PCM/density functional theory [DFT]/B3LYP/6-31++G(d,p) calculations) of this venerable reaction has shown that in the first stage a zwitterionic adduct with a multibonded bromine atom is formed. The widely accepted mechanism involving an S_N2 reaction occurs in the second step, thus accounting for its selectivity. Quantum chemical calculations were performed for the von Braun-like reactions in systems formed by cyclic tertiary amines (N-alkyl azetidines). In these cases, the first stage is almost the same as in the classical von Braun processes, and selective S_N2 mechanisms can occur in the second step.     

Synthesis of the isoquinoline alkaloid, crispine C

The first total synthesis of the isoquinoline alkaloid, crispine C is described in seven steps using a Henry reaction and the Pictet-Gams variant of the Bischler-Napieralski reaction to effect the key transformations.     

Divergent kinetic control of classical versus ozonolytic lactonization: mechanism-based diastereoselection

A strategy has been developed in which mechanistically distinct lactonization reactions are used to prepare diastereomeric delta-lactones relevant to the C1-C9 fragment of (+)-peloruside A. Depending upon which of two reaction types is used, the central (C5) hydroxyl group can be directed to differentiate the C1 versus C9 termini of pseudosymmetric substrates to provide diastereomeric lactones. Thus, the 5-hydroxy-1,9-diester substrate 1 (an azelaic ester) cyclizes under classical (acid- or base-catalyzed) lactonization conditions to give a predominance of one diastereomer, whereas the 5-hydroxy-1,10-diene congener 2 provides the opposite sense of diastereoselectivity when subjected to ozonolytic lactonization (O3, MeOH, NaOH, at -78 degrees C). Thus, this under-utilized oxidative transformation is mechanistically orthogonal to the classical reaction.