Cobalt-Catalyzed Regiodivergent and Enantioselective Intermolecular Coupling of 1,1-Disubstituted Allenes and Aldehydes

Catalytic enantioselective coupling of 1,1-disubstituted allenes and aldehydes through regiodivergent oxidative cyclization followed by stereoselective protonation or reductive elimination promoted by chiral phosphine-Co complexes is presented. Such processes represent unprecedented and unique reaction pathways for Co catalysis that enable catalytic enantioselective generation of metallacycles with divergent regioselectivity accurately controlled by chiral ligands, affording a wide range of allylic alcohols and homoallylic alcohols that are otherwise difficult to access without the need of pre-formation of stoichiometric amounts of alkenyl- and allyl-metal reagents in up to 92 % yield, >98 : 2 regioselectivity, >98 : 2 dr and >99.5 : 0.5 er.     

Construction of All-Carbon Chiral Quaternary Centers through CuI-Catalyzed Enantioselective Reductive Hydroxymethylation of 1,1-Disubstituted Allenes with CO2

A catalytic enantioselective construction of all-carbon chiral quaternary centers through reductive hydroxymethylation of 1,1-disubstituted allenes with CO₂ has been developed. In the presence of a copper/Mandyphos catalyst, CO₂ is transformed into an alcohol oxidation level by an asymmetric reductive C−C bond formation with allenes by using hydrosilane (HSi(OMe)₂Me) as a reductant. The resulting chiral homoallylic alcohols are versatile synthetic intermediates and can be conveniently converted into a variety of useful chiral chemicals.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed C-C bond forming transfer hydrogenation: carbonyl allylation from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level employing acyclic 1,3-dienes as surrogates to preformed allyl metal reagents

Under the conditions of ruthenium-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation, commercially available acyclic 1,3-dienes, butadiene, isoprene, and 2,3-dimethylbutadiene, couple to benzylic alcohols 1a-6a to furnish products of carbonyl crotylation 1b-6b, carbonyl isoprenylation 1c-6c, and carbonyl reverse 2-methyl prenylation 1d-6d. Under related transfer hydrogenation conditions employing isopropanol as terminal reductant, isoprene couples to aldehydes 7a-9a to furnish identical products of carbonyl isoprenylation 1c-3c. Thus, carbonyl allylation is achieved from the alcohol or the aldehyde oxidation level in the absence of preformed allyl metal reagents. Coupling to aliphatic alcohols (isoprene to 1-nonanol, 65% isolated yield) and allylic alcohols (isoprene to geraniol, 75% isolated yield) also is demonstrated. Isotopic labeling studies corroborate a mechanism involving hydrogen donation from the reactant alcohol or sacrificial alcohol (i-PrOH).     

Diene hydroacylation from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level via ruthenium-catalyzed C-C bond-forming transfer hydrogenation: synthesis of beta,gamma-unsaturated ketones

Under the conditions of ruthenium-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation, isoprene couples to benzylic and aliphatic alcohols 1a-g to deliver beta,gamma-unsaturated ketones 3a-g in good to excellent isolated yields. Under identical conditions, aldehydes 2a-g couple to isoprene to provide an identical set of beta,gamma-unsaturated ketones 3a-g in good to excellent isolated yields. As demonstrated by the coupling of butadiene, myrcene, and 1,2-dimethylbutadiene to representative alcohols 1b, 1c, and 1e, diverse acyclic dienes participate in transfer hydrogenative coupling to form beta,gamma-unsaturated ketones. In all cases, complete branch regioselectivity is observed, and, with the exception of adduct 3j, isomerization to the conjugated enone is not detected. Thus, formal intermolecular diene hydroacylation is achieved from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level. In earlier studies employing a related ruthenium catalyst, acyclic dienes were coupled to carbonyl partners from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level to furnish branched homoallylic alcohols. Thus, under transfer hydrogenative coupling conditions, all oxidation levels of substrate (alcohol or aldehyde) and product (homoallyl alcohol or beta,gamma-unsaturated ketone) are accessible.     

Amplification of anti-diastereoselectivity via Curtin-Hammett effects in ruthenium-catalyzed hydrohydroxyalkylation of 1,1-disubstituted allenes: diastereoselective formation of all-carbon quaternary centers

Under the conditions of ruthenium-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation, 1,1-disubstituted allenes 1a-c and alcohols 2a-g engage in redox-triggered generation of allylruthenium-aldehyde pairs to form products of hydrohydroxyalkylation 3a-g, 4a-g, and 5a-g with complete branched regioselectivity. By exploiting Curtin-Hammett effects, good to excellent levels of anti-diastereoselectivity (4:1 to >20:1) are obtained. Thus, all carbon quaternary centers are formed in a diastereoselective fashion upon carbonyl addition from the alcohol oxidation level in the absence of premetalated nucleophiles or stoichiometric byproducts. Exposure of allene 1b to equimolar quantities of alcohol 2a and aldehyde 6b under standard reaction conditions delivers adducts 4a and 4b in a 1:1 ratio. Similarly, exposure of allene 1b to equimolar quantities of aldehyde 6a and alcohol 2b provides adducts 4a and 4b in an identical equimolar ratio. Exposure of allene 1b to d(2)-p-nitrobenzyl alcohol, deuterio-2a, under standard reaction conditions delivers the product of hydrohydroxyalkylation, deuterio-4a, which incorporates deuterium at the carbinol position (>95% (2)H) and the interior vinylic position (34% (2)H). Competition experiments involving exposure of allene 1b to equimolar quantities of benzylic alcohols 2a and deuterio-2a reveal no significant kinetic effect. The collective data corroborate rapid, reversible alcohol dehydrogenation, allene hydrometalation, and (E)-, (Z)-isomerization of the transient allylruthenium in advance of turnover-limiting carbonyl addition. Notably, analogous allene-aldehyde reductive C-C couplings employing 2-propanol as the terminal reductant display poor levels of anti-diastereoselectivity, suggesting that carbonyl addition is not turnover-limiting in reactions conducted from the aldehyde oxidation level.     

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed CC Coupling of Fluorinated Alcohols with Allenes: Dehydrogenation at the Energetic Limit of β‐Hydride Elimination

Ruthenium(II) complexes catalyze the C? C coupling of 1,1‐disubstituted allenes and fluorinated alcohols to form homoallylic alcohols bearing all‐carbon quaternary centers with good to complete levels of diastereoselectivity. Whereas fluorinated alcohols are relatively abundant and tractable, the corresponding aldehydes are often not commercially available because of their instability.     

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed C?C Coupling of Fluorinated Alcohols with Allenes: Dehydrogenation at the Energetic Limit of β‐Hydride Elimination

Ruthenium(II) complexes catalyze the C C coupling of 1,1‐disubstituted allenes and fluorinated alcohols to form homoallylic alcohols bearing all‐carbon quaternary centers with good to complete levels of diastereoselectivity. Whereas fluorinated alcohols are relatively abundant and tractable, the corresponding aldehydes are often not commercially available because of their instability.     

Cu(I)–NHC‐Catalyzed Silylation of Allenes: Diastereoselective Three‐Component Coupling with Aldehydes

Copper‐catalyzed silylation of aryl allenes using a silylborane reagent affords vinyl silane building blocks with high efficiency. The use of a seven‐membered NHC ligand proved crucial for high regioselectivity. The catalytically generated allylcoppper intermediates were intercepted by aldehydes in a diastereoselective three‐component coupling to furnish homoallylic alcohols.     

Highly enantioselective reductive cyclization of acetylenic aldehydes via rhodium catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation

Catalytic hydrogenation of acetylenic aldehydes 1a-12a using chirally modified cationic rhodium catalysts enables highly enantioselective reductive cyclization to afford cyclic allylic alcohols 1b-12b. Using an achiral hydrogenation catalyst, the chiral racemic acetylenic aldehydes 13a-15a engage in highly syn-diastereoselective reductive cyclizations to afford cyclic allylic alcohols 13b-15b. Ozonolysis of cyclization products 7b and 9b allows access to optically enriched alpha-hydroxy ketones 7c and 9c. Reductive cyclization of enyne 7a under a deuterium atmosphere provides the monodeuterated product deuterio-7b, consistent with a catalytic mechanism involving alkyne-carbonyl oxidative coupling followed by hydrogenolytic cleavage of the resulting oxametallacycle. These hydrogen-mediated transformations represent the first examples of the enantioselective reductive cyclization of acetylenic aldehydes.     

Alkyne-aldehyde reductive C-C coupling through ruthenium-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation: direct regio- and stereoselective carbonyl vinylation to form trisubstituted allylic alcohols in the absence of premetallated reagents

Nonsymmetric 1,2-disubstituted alkynes engage in reductive coupling to a variety of aldehydes under the conditions of ruthenium-catalyzed transfer hydrogenation by employing formic acid as the terminal reductant and delivering the products of carbonyl vinylation with good to excellent levels of regioselectivity and with complete control of olefin stereochemistry. As revealed in an assessment of the ruthenium counterion, iodide plays an essential role in directing the regioselectivity of C-C bond formation. Isotopic labeling studies corroborate reversible catalytic propargyl C-H oxidative addition in advance of the C-C coupling, and demonstrate that the C-C coupling products do not experience reversible dehydrogenation by way of enone intermediates. This transfer hydrogenation protocol enables carbonyl vinylation in the absence of stoichiometric metallic reagents.     

Iridium-catalyzed C-C coupling via transfer hydrogenation: carbonyl addition from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level employing 1,3-cyclohexadiene

Under hydrogen autotransfer conditions employing a catalyst derived from [Ir(cod)Cl]2 and BIPHEP, 1,3-cyclohexadiene (CHD) couples to benzylic alcohols 1a-9a to furnish carbonyl addition products 1c-9c, which appear as single diastereomers with variable quantities of regioisomeric adducts 1d-9d. Under related transfer hydrogenation conditions employing isopropanol as terminal reductant, identical carbonyl adducts 1c-9c are obtained from the aldehyde oxidation level. Isotopic labeling studies corroborate a mechanism involving hydrogen donation from the reactant alcohol or sacrificial alcohol (i-PrOH).     

Preparation of homoallylic alcohols by nickel-catalyzed cyclizations of allenyl aldehydes

The direct cyclization of allenyl aldehydes with organozincs in the presence of Ni(COD)(2) provides synthetically versatile homoallylic alcohols. Both monosubstituted and 1,3-disubstituted allenes participate in the process, with the latter allowing preparation of stereochemically defined trisubstituted alkenes. [reaction: see text]     

Enantioselective iridium-catalyzed carbonyl allylation from the alcohol or aldehyde oxidation level via transfer hydrogenative coupling of allyl acetate: departure from chirally modified allyl metal reagents in carbonyl addition

Under the conditions of transfer hydrogenation employing an iridium catalyst generated in situ from [Ir(cod)Cl]2, chiral phosphine ligand (R)-BINAP or (R)-Cl,MeO-BIPHEP, and m-nitrobenzoic acid, allyl acetate couples to allylic alcohols 1a-c, aliphatic alcohols 1d-l, and benzylic alcohols 1m-u to furnish products of carbonyl allylation 3a-u with exceptional levels of asymmetric induction. The very same set of optically enriched carbonyl allylation products 3a-u are accessible from enals 2a-c, aliphatic aldehydes 2d-l, and aryl aldehydes 2m-u, using iridium catalysts ligated by (-)-TMBTP or (R)-Cl,MeO-BIPHEP under identical conditions, but employing isopropanol as a hydrogen donor. A catalytically active cyclometallated complex V, which arises upon ortho-C-H insertion of iridium onto m-nitrobenzoic acid, was characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The results of isotopic labeling are consistent with intervention of symmetric iridium pi-allyl intermediates or rapid interconversion of sigma-allyl haptomers through the agency of a symmetric pi-allyl. Competition experiments demonstrate rapid and reversible hydrogenation-dehydrogenation of the carbonyl partner in advance of C-C coupling. However, the coupling products, which are homoallylic alcohols, experience very little erosion of optical purity by way of redox equilibration under the coupling conditions, although isopropanol, a secondary alcohol, may serve as terminal reductant. A plausible catalytic mechanism accounting for these observations is proposed, along with a stereochemical model that accounts for the observed sense of absolute stereoinduction. This protocol for asymmetric carbonyl allylation transcends the barriers imposed by oxidation level and the use of preformed allyl metal reagents.     

Hydroaminomethylation Beyond Carbonylation: Allene–Imine Reductive Coupling by Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Transfer Hydrogenation

Ruthenium(II)‐catalyzed hydrogen transfer from 2‐propanol mediates reductive coupling of 1,1‐disubstituted allenes with formaldimines with complete branch‐regioselectivity, thus representing a new method for hydroaminomethylation beyond classical hydroformylation/reductive amination.     

Nickel-catalyzed coupling of terminal allenes, aldehydes, and silanes

The development of a nickel-catalyzed coupling of terminal allenes, aldehydes, and silanes is described. This transformation selectively provides 1,1-disubstituted allylic alcohols, protected as a silyl ether. The choice of the reducing agent is essential for achieving selectivity in this coupling process. A trialkylphosphine (Cyp₃P) and an N-heterocyclic carbene (IPr) are complementary in this reaction.     

Unlocking Hydrogenation for C-C Bond Formation: A Brief Overview of Enantioselective Methods

Hydrogenation of π-unsaturated reactants in the presence of carbonyl compounds or imines promotes reductive C-C coupling, providing a byproduct-free alternative to stoichiometric organometallic reagents in an ever-increasing range of C=X (X = O, NR) additions. Under transfer hydrogenation conditions, hydrogen exchange between alcohols and π-unsaturated reactants triggers generation of electrophile-nucleophile pairs, enabling carbonyl addition directly from the alcohol oxidation level, bypassing discrete alcohol oxidation and generation of stoichiometric byproducts.     

Gold(I)-catalyzed propargyl Claisen rearrangement

Homoallenic alcohols are prepared from propargyl vinyl ethers using a trinuclear gold(I)-oxo complex, [(Ph3PAu)3O]BF4, as a catalyst for propargyl Claisen rearrangement at room temperature. The gold(I)-catalyzed reaction is effective for a diverse collection of propargyl vinyl ethers, including substrates containing aryl and alkyl groups at the propargylic position, and hydrogen, aryl, and alkyl substituents at the alkyne terminus. Tertiary propargyl vinyl ethers can be employed in the reaction, at slightly elevated temperatures, to afford tetrasubstituted allenes. Importantly, the rearrangement of 1,2-disubstituted vinyl ethers proceeds with excellent diastereoselectivity, and the rearrangement of chiral nonracemic propargyl vinyl ethers proceeds with excellent chirality transfer to furnish enantioenriched allenes.     

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Reductive Coupling of 1,3‐Enynes and Aldehydes by Transfer Hydrogenation: anti‐Diastereoselective Carbonyl Propargylation

Under the conditions of ruthenium‐catalyzed transfer hydrogenation employing isopropanol as a source of hydrogen, isopropoxy‐substituted enyne 1 b and aldehydes 3 a – 3 l engage in reductive coupling to provide products of propargylation 4 a – 4 l with good to complete levels of anti‐diastereoselectivity. The unprotected tertiary hydroxy moiety of isopropoxy enyne 1 b is required to enforce diastereoselectivity. Deuterium‐labeling studies corroborate reversible enyne hydrometalation in advance of carbonyl addition. As demonstrated in the conversion of 4 f – h and 4 k to 5 f – h and 5 k , the isopropoxy group of the product is readily cleaved upon exposure to aqueous sodium hydroxide to reveal the terminal alkyne.     

B-alkyl Suzuki couplings for the stereoselective synthesis of substituted pyrans

Unprotected homoallylic alcohols can be directly converted to cis-2,6-disubstituted pyrans by palladium catalyzed B-alkyl Suzuki coupling and subsequent Michael addition.     

Regio- and stereoselective synthesis of alkyl allylic ethers via gold(I)-catalyzed intermolecular hydroalkoxylation of allenes with alcohols

Reaction of 1-phenyl-1,2-butadiene with 2-phenyl-1-ethanol catalyzed by a 1:1 mixture of a gold(I) N-heterocyclic carbene complex and AgOTf at room temperature for 1 h led to isolation of (E)-(3-phenethoxy-1-butenyl)benzene in 96% yield as a single regio- and stereoisomer. Gold(I)-catalyzed intermolecular allene hydroalkoxylation was effective for monosubsituted, 1,1- and 1,3-disubstituted, trisubstituted, and tetrasubstituted allenes and for a range of primary and secondary alcohols, methanol, phenol, and propionic acid.