Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with nitroalkenes catalyzed by Cu(Ⅱ)-imine complex

A series of new ligands L₁-L₇ were readily prepared in one step.Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with nitroalkenes catalyzed by a novel Cu（Ⅱ）-L complex has been developed.The remarkable advantages of this reaction are mild reaction conditions,simple workup procedure,high yields of products and the use of ethanol as a green solvent.     

Recyclable graphite oxide catalyzed Friedel-Crafts addition of indoles to α,β-unsaturated ketones

The Friedel-Crafts addition of indoles to α,β-unsaturated ketones, and nitro styrenes was studied with graphite oxide as catalyst. Various indole derivatives were synthesized in good to excellent yields. The preparation of graphite oxide catalyst from simple and readily available starting materials makes this method more affordable. The heterogeneous graphite oxide can be easily recovered and recycled up to five cycles without loss of activity.     

Asymmetric synthesis of β2-tryptophan analogues via Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with a chiral nitroacrylate

The asymmetric Friedel-Crafts alkylation of various indoles with a chiral nitroacrylate provides optically active β-tryptophan analogues after reduction of the nitro group and removal of the chiral auxiliary. This reaction generally occurs in good yield and high diastereoselectivity (up to 90:10).     

Highly enantioselective Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indole and pyrrole with β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoester catalyzed by chiral dicationic palladium complex

The chiral dicationic Pd complexes, bearing sterically demanding diphosphine ligands as Lewis acid catalysts, are shown to catalyze the asymmetric Friedel-Crafts (F-C) alkylations of indoles and pyrroles with β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoesters, to provide the F-C alkylation products with benzylic stereocenters in high yields and enantioselectivities. The reactive chelated structure, formed by the chiral dicationic Pd complex and the electrophile, would be important to gain a high level of asymmetric induction in the F-C alkylation. The F-C products can be readily functionalized to give α-hydroxy esters via catalytic asymmetric ene sequences.     

Chiral phosphoric acid catalyzed aza-Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with cyclic aryl α-ketimino esters

A highly enantioselective aza-Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with cyclic aryl α-ketimino esters catalyzed by a chiral phosphoric acid has been developed, the corresponding α,α-disubstituted unnatural α-amino ester derivatives were obtained in moderate to high yields (67–85%) with high enantioselectivities (up to 93% ee) under mild reaction conditions.     

Chiral sulfonimide as a Brønsted acid organocatalyst for asymmetric Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with imines

Binaphthyl-based chiral sulfonimide (CSI) is demonstrated for the first time to be an efficient, strong Br?nsted acid in asymmetric organocatalysis. A series of CSIs were synthesized and screened in the asymmetric Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with imines. Good to excellent yields and enantioselectivities have been achieved. It was proved that it was crucial to wash the CSI catalyst with HCl before use.     

Morpholine catalyzed direct C3 alkenylation of indoles with α,β-unsaturated aldehydes

Organocatalytic direct C3 alkenylation of indoles has been developed. Simple and readily available morpholine trifluoroacetic acid salt is employed as an efficient catalyst in this oxidative dehydrogenative reaction. Simplicity and practicality constitute the most attractive advantages of this reaction.     

Highly enantioselective Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles and pyrrole with β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoesters catalyzed by heteroarylidene-tethered bis(oxazoline) copper complexes

The simple and cheap chiral catalyst, heteroarylidene-tethered Ph-bis(oxazoline)-Cu(OTf)(2), can efficiently catalyze the asymmetric F-C alkylation of indoles and pyrrole with β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoesters. The 3-indolyl adducts were obtained in up to >99% ee. Moreover, the 2-pyrrolyl adducts were achieved in up to 92% ee for the first time.     

Dy(OTf)3/Pybox-catalyzed enantioselective Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with α,β-unsaturated trifluoromethyl ketones

The first catalytic enantioselective Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indoles with α,β-unsaturated trifluoromethyl ketones has been accomplished. The reaction was achieved in the presence of the Dy(OTf)₃/Pybox complex, producing the desired products in high yields (up to 99%) with good enantioselectivities (up to 86% ee). The absolute stereochemistry of the resulting adducts was determined by X-ray analysis.     

Palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of indoles by C–N bond axially chiral phosphine ligands

The palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of indoles with 1,3-diphenyl-2-propenyl acetate using P/N-type ligands such as N-aryl indole, C–N bond axially chiral aminophosphine (aS)-L4, gave the desired products 1 in good yields and with moderate to high enantioselectivities (up to 90% ee).     

Desymmetrizing asymmetric ring expansion of cyclohexanones with α-diazoacetates catalyzed by chiral aluminum Lewis acid

Chiral aluminum Lewis acid catalyst composed of Me(3)Al and 3,3'-bis(trimethylsilyl)-BINOL in a 2:1 ratio was found to promote novel catalytic asymmetric ring expansion of cyclohexanone with α-substituted α-diazoacetates to give seven-membered rings with an all-carbon quaternary center. Application of this strategy to 4-substituted cyclohexanones opened up a novel way for the catalytic desymmetrizing asymmetric construction of cycloheptanones bearing remote α,δ-chiral centers.     

Calixarene-based chiral primary amine thiourea promoted highly enantioselective asymmetric Michael reactions of α,α-disubstituted aldehydes with maleimides

Calix[4]arene based chiral bifunctional thiourea-primary amines have been shown to act as effective catalysts for the Michael addition of aldehydes to maleimides for the first time. The corresponding adducts were generally obtained preferentially in (R)- or (S)-forms with high yields (up to 99%) and with high to excellent enantioselectivities (up to 98% ee).     

Iron-catalyzed asymmetric epoxidation of β,β-disubstituted enones

The combination of Fe(OTf)(2) and novel phenanthroline ligands enables the catalytic asymmetric epoxidation of acyclic β,β-disubstituted enones, which have been a heretofore inaccessible substrate class. The reaction provides highly enantioenriched α,β-epoxyketones (up to 92% ee) that can be further converted to functionalized β-ketoaldehydes with an all-carbon quaternary center.     

Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of 1,1-disubstituted tetrahydro-β-carbolines by phase-transfer catalyzed alkylations

Efficient catalytic asymmetric synthesis of 1,1-disubstituted tetrahydro-β-carbolines has been achieved via asymmetric alkylation of 1-cyanotetrahydro-β-carbolines using a binaphthyl-modified N-spiro-type chiral phase-transfer catalyst. This is a valuable example of hitherto difficult highly enantioselective alkylations at α-carbon of the cyano group under phase-transfer conditions.     

Catalytic, asymmetric synthesis of α,α-disubstituted amino acids

Copper(salen) complex 1 has been found to catalyse the asymmetric alkylation of enolates derived from a variety of amino acids. There is a clear relationship between the size of the side chain in the substrate and the enantioselectivity of the process, so that the enantioselectivity decreases in the order alanine>aminobutyric acid>allylglycine>leucine>phenylalanine>valine. A transition state model which accounts for the influence of the size of the side chain on the enantioselectivity of the reactions is presented.     

Rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition of sodium tetraarylborates to β,β-disubstituted α,β-unsaturated esters

A rhodium-catalyzed 1,4-addition of sodium tetraarylborates to β,β-disubstituted α,β-unsaturated esters has been developed. Highly efficient asymmetric catalysis has also been described to create quaternary carbon stereocenters at the β-position of esters by tuning the ester group of substrates and employing a readily available chiral diene ligand.     

Enantioselective aldol reactions of α,β-unsaturated ketones with trifluoroacetophenone catalyzed by a chiral primary amine

Chiral primary amine catalyzed direct asymmetric aldol reactions of ketones with trifluoroacetophenone, afforded trifluoromethylated β-hydroxycarbonyl aldol products bearing a quaternary carbon stereogenic center in high yields (up to 93% yield) and with high to excellent enantioselectivities of up to 99% ee.