Highly enantioselective nitro-Mannich reaction catalyzed by cinchona alkaloids and N-benzotriazole derived ammonium salts

The catalytic enantio- and diastereoselective nitro-Mannich reaction of α-amido sulfones in the mixed solvent of toluene/H(2)O has been realized using a phase-transfer catalyst (PTC) derived from cinchona alkaloids and N-benzotriazole. It performed well over a wide range of substrates to give the desired products in good yields (up to 94%) with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99% ee) and diastereoselectivities (up to 99:1).     

Diastereo- and enantioselective synthesis of oxazine and oxazolidine derivatives with a chiral quaternary carbon center under multifunctional catalysis

An easy one-pot, multistep cascade reaction which could afford a series of substituted benzo[d]pyrido[2,1-b]oxazolidine and [1,3]oxazine derivatives in a highly enantio- (up to 98% ee) and diastereoselective (4:1 to >20:1 dr) manner with generally good to excellent yields (up to 99%) has been developed. This well designed strategy could be applied to a wide scope of substrates under mild conditions with simple operations.     

Direct catalytic enantio- and diastereoselective aldol reaction using a Zn-Zn-linked-BINOL complex: a practical synthesis of syn-1,2-diols

[reaction: see text] The direct catalytic enantio- and diastereoselective aldol reaction with 2-hydroxy-2'-methoxyacetophenone proceeded smoothly using as little as 1 mol % of a dinuclear zinc catalyst, Zn-Zn-linked-BINOL complex 2, to afford alpha,beta-dihydroxy ketones in a highly syn-selective manner (up to syn/anti 97/3) and in excellent yields (up to 95%) and ees (up to 99%). Efficient transformations of the alpha,beta-dihydroxy ketone into an alpha,beta-dihydroxy ester and an alpha,beta-dihydroxy amide via regioselective rearrangements are also described.     

Chiral phosphoric acid catalyzed inverse-electron-demand aza-Diels-Alder reaction of isoeugenol derivatives

Highly enantio- and diastereoselective three-component inverse electron-demand aza-Diels-Alder reaction of aldehydes, anilines, and isoeugenol derivatives catalyzed by a chiral phosphoric acid catalyst are reported. A wide variety of 2,3,4-trisubstituted tetrahydroquinolines containing an aryl group at the 4-position were obtained in a one-pot process with good to high yields and excellent stereoselectivities (>95:5 dr and up to >99% ee).     

Effective and recyclable dendritic catalysts for the direct asymmetric Michael addition of aldehydes to nitrostyrenes

Direct catalytic enantio- and diastereoselective Michael addition reaction of aldehydes to nitrostyrenes is described using a series of recyclable chiral 2-trimethylsilanyloxy-methyl-pyrrolidine-based dendritic catalysts. Good yields (up to 82%), and high diastereoselectivities (up to syn/anti = 95/5) and enantioselectivities (up to 99% ee) have been obtained.     

Strategy for enantio- and diastereoselective syntheses of all possible stereoisomers of 1,3-polyol arrays based on a highly catalyst-controlled epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated morpholinyl amides: application to natural product synthesis

We describe a new strategy for enantio- and diastereoselective syntheses of all possible stereoisomers of 1,3-polyol arrays. This strategy relies on a highly catalyst-controlled epoxidation of alpha,beta-unsaturated morpholinyl amides promoted by the Sm-BINOL-Ph(3)As[double bond]O (1:1:1) complex, followed by a conversion of morpholinyl amides into ketones and diastereoselective ketone reduction. Highly enantio- (up to >99 % ee) or diastereoselective (up to >99.5:0.5) epoxidation was achieved using 5-10 mol % of the Sm complex to afford synthetically very useful, nearly optically pure alpha,beta-epoxy morpholinyl amides. Stereoselectivity of the epoxidation was controlled by the chirality of BINOL with overwhelming inherent diastereofacial preference for the substrate. Combination with the syn- and anti-selective ketone reduction with the highly catalyst-controlled epoxidation allowed for an iterative strategy for the syntheses of all possible stereoisomers of 1,3-polyol arrays. Eight possible stereoisomers of 1,3,5,7-tetraol arrays were synthesized with high to excellent stereoselectivity. Moreover, the efficiency of the present strategy was successfully demonstrated by enantioselective syntheses of several 1,3-polyol/alpha-pyrone natural products, for example, cryptocaryolone diacetate.     

Highly stereoselective and scalable anti-aldol reactions using N-(p-dodecylphenylsulfonyl)-2-pyrrolidinecarboxamide: scope and origins of stereoselectivities

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective anti-aldol process (up to >99% ee, >99:1 dr) catalyzed by a proline mimetic-N-(p-dodecylphenylsulfonyl)-2-pyrrolidinecarboxamide-has been developed. Catalyst loading as low as 2 mol % can be employed. Use of industry-friendly solvents for this transformation as well as neat reaction conditions have been demonstrated. The scope of this transformation on a range of aldehydes and ketones is explored. Density functional theory computations reveal that the origins of enhanced diastereoselectivity are due to the presence of nonclassical hydrogen bonds between the sulfonamide, the electrophile, and the catalyst enamine that favor the major anti-Re aldol TS in the Houk-List model.     

Synergistic Ir/Cu Catalysis for Asymmetric Allylic Alkylation of Oxindoles: Enantio- and Diastereoselective Construction of Quaternary and Tertiary Stereocenters

3,3-Disubstituted oxindoles bearing quaternary and tertiary stereogenic centers are privileged structural motifs, which widely exist in pharmaceutical and natural products. Herein, a highly regio-, enantio-, and diastereoselective allylic alkylation of 3-alkyl oxindoles through synergistic iridium and copper catalysis is described, which provides a series of 3,3-disubstituted oxindole derivatives containing adjacent quaternary and tertiary stereogenic centers in excellent yields, enantiomeric excess, and diastereomeric ratio (for 30 examples, up to 97 % yield, >99 % ee, and >20 : 1 dr). This method provides exclusive branched selectivity, excellent enantio- and diastereoselectivities, and good functional compatibility. Control experiments suggested that the chiral copper catalyst is required for achieving high reactivities and diastereoselectivities under mild reaction conditions.     

Enantio- and Diastereoselective Synthesis of Chiral Tetrasubstituted α-Amino Allenoates Bearing a Vicinal All-Carbon Quaternary Stereocenter with Dual-Copper-Catalysis

The skeletons of chiral tetrasubstituted allenes bearing a vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenter are of importance but still challenging to synthesize. Herein, we report enantio- and diastereoselective γ-additions of 1-alkynyl ketimines with dual-copper-catalysis under mild conditions, affording chiral tetrasubstituted α-amino allenoates bearing a vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenter in high yields (up to 99 % yield) with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99 % ee) and diastereoselectivities (up to >20 : 1 dr). Importantly, the stereodivergent synthesis of the products was realized by the asymmetric γ-addition reaction and the Grignard reagent promoted epimerization. Moreover, the dual-copper-catalyzed γ-addition reactions were smoothly applied to a gram-scale reaction and adopted to introduce chiral tetrasubstituted allenyl moieties into bioactive molecules. Mechanistic experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrated that the asymmetric γ-addition reactions were catalyzed by double chiral copper catalysts.     

A concise and scalable synthesis of high enantiopurity (-)-D-erythro-sphingosine using peptidyl thiol ester-boronic acid cross-coupling

A short and efficient synthesis of high enantiopurity (-)-D-erythro-sphingosine has been achieved in 71% yield over 6 steps from N-Boc-L-serine. The key steps are high yield, racemization-free, palladium-catalyzed, copper(I)-mediated coupling of the thiophenyl ester of N-Boc-O-TBS L-serine with E-1-pentadecenyl boronic acid and the highly diastereoselective reduction of the resulting peptidyl ketone with LiAl(O-t-Bu)3H. By using this concise route (-)-D-erythro-sphingosine can be prepared on large scale and in high enantio- and diastereopurity (ee >99%, de up to 99%).     

A recyclable fluorous (S)-pyrrolidine sulfonamide promoted direct, highly enantioselective Michael addition of ketones and aldehydes to nitroolefins in water

[reaction: see text] A recycle and reusable fluorous (S)-pyrrolidine sulfonamide organocatalyst has been developed for promoting highly enantio- and diastereoselective Michael addition reactions of ketones and aldehydes with nitroolefins in water. The organocatalyst is conveniently recovered from the reaction mixtures by fluorous solid-phase extraction and can be subsequently reused (up to six cycles) without a significant loss of catalytic activity and stereoselectivity.     

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective 1,3-dimethylallylation of aldehydes

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective pentenylation of aldehydes is described. The homoallylic alcohol derived from 1,3-dimethylallylation of (-)-menthone undergoes an efficient allyl-transfer reaction with a wide range of aliphatic aldehydes in the presence of an acid catalyst to give rise to the corresponding 4-methyl-2(E)-penten-4-yl-5-ol products in good yields with high enantio- and 4,5-syn-selectivities.     

Direct enantioselective Brønsted acid catalyzed N-acyliminium cyclization cascades of tryptamines and ketoacids

A direct enantio- and diastereoselective N-acyliminium cyclization cascade through chiral phosphoric acid catalyzed condensation of tryptamines with γ- and δ-ketoacid derivatives to provide architecturally complex heterocycles has been developed. The reaction is technically simple to perform, atom-efficient, and broad in scope. Employing 10 mol % of (R)-BINOL derived chiral phosphoric acids in refluxing toluene allowed the polycyclic product materials to be generated in good yields (53-99%) and moderate to high enantioselectivities (68-98% ee).     

Enantioselective syn-selective scandium-catalyzed ene reactions

An enantio- and diastereoselective carbonyl-ene reaction catalyzed by chiral scandium pyridyl bis(oxazoline) (pybox) complexes has been developed. Uniformly high enantiomeric excesses and good yields were observed. Use of trisubstituted olefins generated the syn product in high enantio- and diastereoselectivity.     

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective catalytic intramolecular Stetter reaction

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective intramolecular Stetter reaction has been developed. Subjection of alpha,alpha-disubstituted Michael acceptors to an asymmetric intramolecular Stetter reaction results in a highly enantioselective conjugate addition and a diastereoselective proton transfer. Available evidence suggests the diastereoselective protonation occurs via intramolecular delivery to the sterically more hindered face of the enolate. The scope of the trisubstituted Michael acceptors has been examined and found to be broad with respect to the size of the alpha-substituent and nature of the Michael acceptor. Aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes were examined and found to afford the desired product in good overall yield with high enantio- and diastereoselectivity.     

3-Boronoacrolein as an exceptional heterodiene in the highly enantio- and diastereoselective Cr(III)-catalyzed three-component [4+2]/allylboration

This Communication reports the optimization of the first catalytic enantio- and diastereoselective hetero[4+2]/allylboration reaction to provide efficient access to alpha-hydroxyalkyl pyran derivatives. The key substrate 3-boronoacrolein pinacolate appears to be an exceptionally favorable heterodiene for use in Jacobsen's enantioselective reverse electron demand hetero[4+2] reaction with enol ethers, catalyzed by the tridentate (Schiff base)chromium complex 1. This one-pot three-component reaction was successfully applied to a concise total synthesis of (5R,6S)-6-acetoxy-5-hexadecanolide (2), the oviposition attractant pheromone of the female Culex mosquito capable of transmitting the West Nile virus.     

Highly enantio- and diastereoselective tandem generation of cyclopropyl alcohols with up to four contiguous stereocenters

Three highly enantio- and diastereoselective one-pot procedures for the synthesis of cyclopropyl and iodocyclopropyl alcohols with up to four contiguous stereocenters are reported. Route 1 involves asymmetric addition of an alkylzinc reagent to an enal followed by diastereoselective cyclopropanation. Route 2 parallels route 1, except that iodoform is used to generate the zinc carbenoid, and the products are iodocyclopropyl alcohols. Route 3 entails asymmetric vinylation of an aldehyde with divinylzinc reagents and subsequent diastereoselective cyclopropanation.     

Enantio- and diastereoselective allylmetalations: an easy and efficient access to the AB spiroketal of spongistatin

[reaction: see text] A unique combination of highly enantio- and diastereoselective allylmetalations and a one-pot "desacetalization/spiroketalization" have been employed to synthesize the AB spiroketal fragment (C1-C13) of spongistatin in 15 steps and in excellent diastereoselectivity.     

Squaramide-catalysed enantio- and diastereoselective sulfa-Michael addition of thioacetic acid to α,β-disubstituted nitroalkenes

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective sulfa-Michael addition of thioacetic acid to α,β-disubstituted nitroalkenes catalysed by a chiral squaramide organocatalyst has been described. This organocatalytic reaction at an extremely low catalyst loading (0.2 mol%) furnished synthetically useful β-nitro sulfides in excellent yields with good diastereoselectivities and high enantioselectivities (up to 94?:?6 dr, 95% ee). In addition, the catalytic reaction can be performed on a 10 gram scale, and facile transformation into taurine derivative is also presented.     

Lipase-mediated resolution of 4-TMS-3-butyn-2-ol and use of the mesylate derivatives as a precursor to a highly stereoselective chiral allenylindium reagent

[reaction: see text]. An improved procedure for the resolution of 4-trimethylsilyl-3-butyn-2-ol has been developed. The mesylate derivatives of the resolved alcohols have been found to undergo highly enantio-, regio-, and diastereoselective additions to aldehydes, leading to homopropargylic alcohol adducts.