A peptide-embedded trifluoromethyl ketone catalyst for enantioselective epoxidation

The development of peptide-based oxidation catalysts that use a transiently generated dioxirane as the chemically active species is reported. The active catalyst is a chiral trifluoromethyl ketone (Tfk) with a pendant carboxylic acid that can be readily incorporated into a peptide. These peptides were capable of epoxidizing alkenes in high yield (up to 89%) and enantiomeric ratios (er) ranging from 69.0:31.0 to 91.0:9.0, depending on the alkene substitution pattern.     

A new cationic,chiral catalyst for highly enantioselective Diels-Alder reactions

[reaction: see text] The Diels-Alder reaction of cyclopentadiene and 2-methacrolein is catalyzed by a chiral Lewis acid to form the exo adduct in 96% yield and 96% ee.     

A new chiral catalyst for the enantioselective Strecker synthesis of alpha-amino acids

[reaction: see text] The chiral ammonium salt 3 is demonstrated to be an effective catalyst for the highly enantioselective Strecker reaction of N-allylbenzaldimines with hydrogen cyanide in CH2Cl2 solution.     

A new class of chiral tetrahydropyran-4-one catalyst for asymmetric epoxidation of alkenes

A new class of chiral α-oxygenated-tetrahydropyran-4-ones for asymmetric epoxidation of alkenes using Oxone^® is described, affording epoxides with up to 83% ee.     

A chiral rhodium carboxamidate catalyst for enantioselective C-H amination

Rh2(S-nap)4, a chiral dirhodium tetracarboxamidate complex, has been developed and shown to be an effective catalyst for the asymmetric, intramolecular C-H amination of sulfamate esters. Enantiomeric excesses range from 60-99% for a collection of disparately substituted 3-arylpropylsulfamates. In addition, Rh2(S-nap)4 is found to promote chemoselective allylic C-H oxidation of unsaturated sulfamates, a property not observed with other dirhodium complexes tested to date.     

Phthalimido-prolinamide: a new chiral catalyst for solvent free enantioselective aldol reactions

A new prolinamide derivative phthalimido-prolinamide 1 was developed for organocatalytic enantioselective direct aldol reactions of various aldehydes with ketones. The catalytic protocol is effective with 15 mol % of catalyst under solvent free and additive free reaction conditions. By employing a catalytic amount of water, the efficiency of the reaction increased further and the desired products β-hydroxy carbonyl compounds were obtained in high yields and stereoselectivities.     

A metal-organic framework material that functions as an enantioselective catalyst for olefin epoxidation

A new microporous metal-organic framework compound featuring chiral (salen)Mn struts is highly effective as an asymmetric catalyst for olefin epoxidation, yielding enantiomeric excesses that rival those of the free molecular analogue. Framework confinement of the manganese salen entity enhances catalyst stability, imparts substrate size selectivity, and permits catalyst separation and reuse.     

A unique binaphthyl strapped iron-porphyrin catalyst for the enantioselective epoxidation of terminal olefins

A new chiral binaphthyl-strapped iron-porphyrin 4 b that exhibits unprecedented catalytic activity toward the enantioselective epoxidation of terminal olefins was synthesized. Typical enantiomeric excesses (ee) of 90 % were measured with a maximum of 97 % for the epoxidation of styrene, whereas the turnover numbers (TON) averaged 16000.     

Catalytic enantioselective epoxidation of homoallylic alcohols by chiral zirconium complexes

Catalytic enantioselective epoxidation of homoallylic alcohols using Zr(Ot-Bu)(4) and tartrate ester (or tartramide) has been developed. In the Zr(Ot-Bu)(4)/diisopropyl tartrate-catalyzed epoxidation, the reverse of the enantiofacial preference was observed, depending on the Zr/ligand ratios of 1:1 or 1:2. [reaction--see text]     

A ROMP-derived, polymer-supported chiral Schrock catalyst for enantioselective ring-closing olefin metathesis

A permanently polymer-immobilised version of Schrock's molybdenum catalyst was realised via polymerisation of chiral 5,5'-bis(norborn-5-ene-2-ylmethyleneoxymethyl)-3,3'-di-tert-butyl-6,6'-dimethylbiphen-2,2'-diol followed by reaction with the catalyst precursor Mo(N-2,6-i-Pr2C6H3)(CHCMe2Ph)(OSO2CF3)2(CH3OCH2CH2OCH3); using this 5-, 6- and 7-membered heterocycles were synthesised via ring-closing metathesis (RCM) from (pro-)chiral substrates in high yields and ee with short reaction times; the catalyst shows low loss of molybdenum during RCM, and was easily separated and recycled.     

A novel and efficient chiral palladium-phosphinooxazolidine catalyst for the enantioselective Diels-Alder reaction

An efficient ruthenium-catalyzed transfer dehydrogenation of amines to imines was acheived under mild conditions using 2,6-dimethoxy benzoquinone (2) or cat. 2/MnO2 as oxidant.     

A chiral iron-sexipyridine complex as a catalyst for alkene epoxidation with hydrogen peroxide

A chiral iron-sexipyridine complex-hydrogen peroxide mixture is a highly efficient catalytic system for styrene epoxidation with excellent reactivity (3 min, 95% yield) and chemoselectivity (98%).     

Design of new chiral phase-transfer catalysts with dual functions for highly enantioselective epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated ketones

A new chiral ammonium bromide, 1-Br, possessing diarylmethanol functionality as a substrate recognition site has been designed as a promising, dual-functioning catalyst for the highly enantioselective epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated ketones under mild phase-transfer conditions. For instance, vigorous stirring of a mixture of chalcone, 1-Br (3 mol %), and 13% NaOCl in toluene at 0 degrees C for 24 h gave rise to epoxy chalcone quantitatively with 96% ee. A variety of alpha,beta-unsaturated ketones can also be epoxidized with rigorous stereochemical control, clearly demonstrating the effectiveness and utility of the present system. Further, a successful single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis of 1-PF6 uncovered its distinctive three-dimensional molecular architecture and provided useful information for postulating the transition state.     

A chiral pyrrolidine-pyrazole catalyst for the enantioselective Michael addition of carbonyls to nitroolefins

An enantioselective Michael reaction of carbonyl compounds to nitroolefins has been accomplished using a novel chiral pyrrolidine-pyrazole catalyst. This newly prepared catalyst was found to be very effective in providing good yields as well as good diastereo- and enantio-selectivities. The mechanism of the reaction has also been substantiated by mass spectral studies.     

A new heterogeneous chiral (salen)manganese(III) system for enantioselective epoxidation of non‐functionalized olefins

This communication describes the design and application of a novel catalytic epoxidation system derived from the initial immobilization of a homogeneous sulfonato (salen)Mn(III) complex on two solid carriers (silica gel and siliceous earth) and subsequent dispersion of the supported manganese complexes into ionic liquid 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMImPF₆) and 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMImBF₄) for recycling. The performance of chiral (salen)Mn(III) system in enantioselective epoxidation of olefins was investigated systematically. Even higher enantioselectivity than that of the homogeneous counterpart was obtained with similar catalytic activity. In particular, the best catalytic result is that the combination of the silica gel‐supported (salen)Mn(III) catalyst and BMImPF₆ affords 97–100% ee for epoxidation of α‐methylstyrene, and high ee values were retained even after three cycles. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Highly enantioselective epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated esters by chiral dioxirane

This paper describes a highly enantioselective epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated esters using the fructose-derived ketone 2 as catalyst and Oxone as oxidant. High ee's have been obtained for a number of trans and trisubstituted substrates (82-98% ee). The results described show that it is feasible for dioxiranes to effectively epoxidize electron-deficient olefins with high ee's.     

A new efficient iron catalyst for olefin epoxidation with hydrogen peroxide

A new aminopyridine ligand derived from bipiperidine (the product of full reduction of bipyridine, bipy) coordinates to iron(II) in a cis-α fashion, yielding a new selective catalyst for olefin epoxidation with H(2)O(2) under limiting substrate conditions.     

Liquid-phase synthesis of chiral tartrate ligand library for enantioselective sharpless epoxidation of allylic alcohols

This paper reports a successful development of a group of efficient soluble polymer-supported chiral tartrate ligands by liquid-phase synthesis for Sharpless epoxidation of a variety of allylic alcohols through ligand diversity. The influence of substituent in chiral tartrate ligands on the enantioselectivities of the reaction was disclosed. Moderate chemical yields and good enantiomeric excesses were obtained by using soluble polymer-supported tartrate ester in the epoxidation of allylic alcohols with Ti(O-i-Pr)(4)/tert-butyl hydroperoxide.     

Dendritic chiral auxiliaries on silica: a new heterogeneous catalyst for enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to benzaldehyde

This article reports the first work on the use of silica supported dendritic chiral auxiliaries for the enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to benzaldehyde: the control of dendrimer propagation on the silica surface is of prime importance to obtain enhanced conversion, selectivity, and enantioselectivity.