Synthesis of a bipyridine-derived achiral thiourea trifluoromethanesulfonic acid salt and its application as an additive in organocatalytic asymmetric reactions

The host–guest complex of a proline–thiourea bipyridine trifluoromethanesulfonic acid salt can catalyze organocatalytic asymmetric reactions such as aldol, Michael, and Mannich in polar protic medium with high stereoselectivities. The privileged bipyridine backbone and the thiourea motif are essential to the activity and enantioselectivity through hydrogen bonding interactions.     

Catalytic enantioselective domino oxa-michael/aldol condensations: asymmetric synthesis of benzopyran derivatives

The first direct organocatalytic asymmetric domino oxa-Michael/aldol condensation reaction is presented. The unprecedentedly simple, chiral, pyrrolidine-catalyzed asymmetric domino reactions between salicylic aldehyde derivatives and alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes proceed with high chemo- and enantioselectivities to give the corresponding chromene-3-carbaldehyde derivatives in high yields and with ee values of 83-98%.     

Synthesis of planar chiral [2.2]paracyclophane-based amino thioureas and their application in asymmetric aldol reactions of ketones with isatins

Several novel [2.2]paracyclophane-based amino thioureas have been designed and synthesized. The [2.2]paracyclophane-based amino thioureas were used as bifunctional catalysts for organocatalytic enantioselective aldol reactions between ketones and isatins, affording the desired adducts containing a chiral tertiary alcohol in high yields (up to 92% yield) and with good enantioselectivity (up to 88% ee). This is a successful example of employing planar chiral [2.2]paracyclophane-based amino thioureas in asymmetric aldol reactions.     

Tandem enantioselective organo- and biocatalysis: a direct entry for the synthesis of enantiomerically pure aldols

Direct proline-catalyzed aldol reactions were linked in sequence with lipase-catalyzed kinetic resolutions to afford enantiomerically pure (>99% ee) aldol adducts in higher conversion than a standard resolution of racemic materials. The combination of organocatalytic aldol reactions and enzymatic kinetic resolutions provided exclusively either the (R)- or (S)-enantiomer of the aldol adducts even though an (R)-selective lipase catalyzed the kinetic resolutions. Furthermore, the one-pot tandem reactions are inexpensive, are operationally simple, circumvents the use of organic solvent and are environmentally benign.     

Enantioselective total synthesis of cis-(+)- and trans-(+)-disparlure

An expedient enantioselective synthetic approach for the gypsy moth sex-attractant pheromone cis-(+)-1 and trans-(+)-disparlure 2 is described employing the optimized combination of organocatalytic MacMillan’s self aldol reaction, Wittig olefination, regioselective ring opening of an epoxide and Mitsunobu esterification reactions as key steps.     

Acetylphosphonate as a surrogate of acetate or acetamide in organocatalyzed enantioselective aldol reactions

Highly enantioselective aldol reactions of acetylphosphonates and activated carbonyl compounds was realized with cinchona alkaloid derived catalysts, in which the acetylphosphonate was directly used as an enolate precursor for the first time. The aldol product obtained was converted in situ to its corresponding ester or amide through methanolysis or aminolysis. The overall process may be viewed as formal highly enantioselective acetate or acetamide aldol reactions, which are very difficult to achieve directly with organocatalytic methods.     

Primary amino acids: privileged catalysts in enantioselective organocatalysis

Despite the recent spectacular advances in asymmetric organocatalysis, proline and its analogues have been predominantly employed as organocatalysts in reactions utilizing enamine intermediates. Recent studies of enantioselective organocatalytic reactions promoted by primary amino acids and their derivatives are described in this account. The primary amino functions, rather than the secondary pyrrolidine moiety, have been shown to provide unique reactivity and stereoselectivity in asymmetric aldol and Mannich reactions.     

Recent applications of organocatalysts in asymmetric aldol reactions

The asymmetric aldol reaction is one of the most powerful synthetic tools for carbon–carbon bond-forming reactions. This method provides a beneficial route to access chiral β-hydroxy carbonyl compounds, which are versatile synthetic motifs found in biologically active natural products and pharmaceutically attractive intermediates. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the many contributions and recent advances in the field of organocatalytic asymmetric aldol reactions.     

Catalytic enantioselective aldol additions of alpha-isothiocyanato imides to aldehydes

Highly enantioselective organocatalytic aldol additions of alpha-isothiocyanato imides to aldehydes are reported. These reactions provide convenient access to enantiomerically enriched and protected beta-hydroxy-alpha-amino acids with catalyst loadings as low as 1 mol%.     

Toward the optimization of continuous-flow aldol and α-amination reactions by means of proline-functionalized silicon packed-bed microreactors

The activity and stability under flow conditions of covalently and non-covalently silica supported proline and proline-like organocatalysts is herein described. The slow aldol reaction of cyclohexanone with p-nitro benzaldehyde and the fast α-amination of isovaleraldehyde with dibenzyl azodicarboxylate have been selected as model reactions for this study. Prospects and limitations of the disclosed continuous-flow organocatalytic approach are widely discussed.     

Fluorogenic aldehydes bearing arylethynyl groups: turn-on aldol reaction sensors for evaluation of organocatalysis in DMSO

Fluorogenic aromatic aldehydes bearing arylethynyl groups were developed. They were used for monitoring the reaction progress of organocatalytic aldol reactions in DMSO through an increase in the fluorescence intensity based on the formation of the florescent aldol product. The ratios of the fluorescence intensities of the aldols to the aldehydes were more than 300. These results suggest that the fluorescence assay system using the aldehyde is useful for the rapid identification of superior aldol catalysts and reaction conditions.     

Enantioselective organocatalytic aldol reaction of ynones and its synthetic applications

[Structure: see text] For the first time, unmodified ynones were used in organocatalytic asymmetric aldol reactions delivering monoprotected anti-alpha,beta-dihydroxyynones in high yields, dr's up to 19:1, and ee's up to 95%. These products can be either reduced to afford enantioenriched unsaturated anti,anti-triol or cyclized using a novel intramolecular phosphine-catalyzed alpha-addition to the ynone. This organocatalytic sequential aldol-cyclization process provides a concise entry to unusual enantioenriched oxygenated heterocycles, which can be used for subsequent structural manipulations.     

Modern aldol methods for the total synthesis of polyketides

The aldol reaction is one of the most important methods for the stereoselective construction of polyketide natural products, not only for nature but also for synthetic chemistry. The tremendous development in the field of aldol additions during the last 30 years has led to more and more total syntheses of complicated natural products. This Review illustrates by means of selected syntheses of natural products the new variants of the aldol addition. This includes aldol additions with various metal enolates, as well as metal-complex-catalyzed, organocatalytic, and biocatalytic methods.     

Organocatalytic direct asymmetric aldol reactions in water

We have developed direct asymmetric cross-aldol reactions that can be performed in water without addition of organic solvents. A bifunctional catalyst with a long hydrophobic alkyl chain efficiently catalyzed the reactions and afforded the desired aldol products in excellent yield with high enantiomeric excess, even when only an equal molar ratio of the donor and acceptor was used. These results reveal an effective design strategy for the development of aqueous organocatalytic systems.     

Dihydroxyacetone variants in the organocatalytic construction of carbohydrates: mimicking tagatose and fuculose aldolases

Dihydroxyacetone variants have been explored as donors in organocatalytic aldol reactions with various aldehyde and ketone acceptors. The protected form of dihydroxyacetone that was chosen for in-depth study was 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxan-5-one, 1. Among the catalysts surveyed here, proline proved to be superior in terms of yield and stereoselectivities in the construction of various carbohydrate scaffolds. In a fashion analogous to aldolase enzymes, the de novo preparation of L-ribulose, L-lyxose, D-ribose, D-tagatose, 1-amino-1-deoxy-D-lyxitol, and other carbohydrates was accomplished via the use of 1 and proline. In reactions using 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxan-5-one 1 as a donor, (S)-proline can be used as a functional mimic of tagatose aldolase, whereas (R)-proline can be regarded as an organocatalytic mimic of fuculose aldolase.     

The organocatalytic vinylogous aldol reaction: recent advances

Over the past decade, organocatalysis has emerged as a powerful tool for stereoselective carbon-carbon bond formation under exceptionally mild conditions. The organocatalytic versions of a large number of traditional synthetic transformations are now well established and the quest for new applications of the basic concepts of organocatalysis continues. This review addresses the emergent interest in the organocatalytic vinylogous aldol reaction. While noteworthy progress has been made in this area, significant challenges lie ahead.     

The first total synthesis of (R)-convolutamydine A

The first total synthesis of (R)-convolutamydine A has been achieved by the organocatalytic addition of acetone to 4,6-dibromoisatin. The absolute configuration was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. DFT studies were used to model the transition states for the aldol reaction and equilibrium geometries of the post-aldol reaction intermediates. The DFT study revealed that the aldol bond forming reaction was considerably endothermic.     

Current applications of organocatalysts in asymmetric aldol reactions: An update

The aldol reaction is one of the most important carbon–carbon bond formations in synthetic organic chemistry. An enantioselective aldol reaction should provide an enantioenriched product. The organocatalytic asymmetric aldol reaction via an in situ generated enamine intermediate is one of the most powerful synthetic tools to achieve enantiomerically pure products. This approach is often used to obtain chiral β-hydroxycarbonyl compounds with excellent enantioselectivity. In this report, we update our previous review regarding the applications of organocatalysts in asymmetric aldol reactions leading to chiral β-hydroxycarbonyl compounds as versatile synthetic motifs frequently found in pharmaceutically desired intermediates and biologically active naturally occurring compounds.     

Organocatalytic Stereoselective Synthesis of 3‐Alkyl‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐oxindoles Catalyzed by Novel Water‐compatible Axially Unfixed Biaryl‐based Bifunctional Organocatalysts

In this work, six novel axially unfixed biaryl‐based water‐compatible bifunctional organocatalysts were designed and synthesized for the organocatalytic access to a variety of 3‐alkyl‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐oxindole derivatives via aldol reactions in water. Organocatalyzed by 5a , the direct aldol reactions of isatins with enolisable ketones underwent readily in water, furnishing the structurally diverse 3‐alkyl‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐oxindoles in various stereoselectivities (up to>99% dr and >99% ee). Moreover, a plausible transition state of the conducted aldol reactions was hypothesized to shed light on the observed stereoselectivities of the obtained 3‐alkyl‐3‐hydroxy‐2‐oxindoles.     

Highly stereoselective direct aldol reactions catalyzed by a bifunctional chiral diamine

The enantioselective organocatalytic direct aldol reactions of ketones with various aldehydes were developed by using chiral 1,2-cyclohexanediamine (DACH) based multifunctional ligands via a noncovalent catalysis mechanism. By using a catalyst, we also obtained functionalized 3-alkyl-3-hydroxyindolin-2-ones in high yields and with good to excellent enantioselectivities.