Asymmetric syn-selective Henry reaction catalyzed by the sulfonyldiamine-CuCl-pyridine system

A catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction has been developed with use of a sulfonyldiamine-CuCl complex as a catalyst. A series of new binaphthyl-containing sulfonyldiamine ligands (2a-h) were readily synthesized in two steps starting from commercially available chiral 1,2-diamines. The (R,R)-diamine-(R)-binaphthyl ligand (2d)-CuCl complex smoothly catalyzed the enantioselective Henry reaction with the assistance of pyridine to give the corresponding adduct with high enantiomeric excess (up to 93%). Moreover, the 2d-CuCl-pyridine system promotes the diastereoselective Henry reaction in syn-selective manner to give the adduct in up to 99% yield with 92:8 syn/ anti selectivity. The enantiomeric excess of the syn-adduct was 84% ee.     

Asymmetric Henry reactions of aldehydes with various nitroalkanes catalyzed by copper(II) complexes of novel chiral N‐monoalkyl cyclohexane‐1,2‐diamines

A number of novel chiral diamines 3 , (1R,2R)‐N‐monoalkylcyclohexane‐1,2‐diamines, were designed and synthesized from trans‐cyclohexane‐1,2‐diamine and applied to the catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction of benzaldehyde and nitromethane to provide β‐nitroalcohol in high yield (up to 99%) and good enantiomeric excess (up to 89%). By using ligand (1R,2R)‐N¹‐(4‐methylpentan‐2‐yl)cyclohexane‐1,2‐diamine ( 3g ), the reaction was optimized in terms of the metal ion, temperature, solvent and base. Further experiments indicated that the complex, 3g –Cu(OAc)₂, was an efficient catalyst in the asymmetric Henry reaction between different aldehydes and nitromethane, and the desired products have been obtained with high chemical yields (up to 99%) and high enantiomeric excess (up to 93%). The optimized catalyst promoted the diastereoselective Henry reaction of various aldehyde substrates and nitroalkane, which gave the corresponding anti‐selective adduct with up to 99% yield and 83:17 anti/syn selectivity. Upon scaling up to gram quantities, the β‐nitroalcohol was obtained in good yield (96%) with excellent selectivities (93% ee). The chiral induction mechanism was tentatively explained on the basis of a previously proposed transition‐state model. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Highly enantioselective Henry (nitroaldol) reaction of aldehydes and alpha-ketoesters catalyzed by N,N'-dioxide-copper(I) complexes

A new chiral N,N'-dioxide-Cu(I) catalyst has been developed for the asymmetric Henry (nitroaldol) reaction. The approach benefited from the easy modification of the chiral space. As the highly effective N-oxide ligand, 1d has been adopted for the Henry reaction with both aromatic and heteroaromatic aldehydes. The corresponding nitro-alcohol products were obtained in good yields with high enantiomeric excesses up to 98%. Moreover, alpha-ketoesters were also catalyzed by this catalyst to give attractive optically active alpha-hydroxy beta-nitro esters containing chiral quaternary carbon centers (up to 99% ee). On the basis of a combination of several techniques including the 1H NMR, ESI-HRMS, and MM2 calculations, the proposed mechanism was presented to explain the origin of reactivity and asymmetric inductivity.     

Practical asymmetric Henry reaction catalyzed by a chiral diamine-Cu(OAc)2 complex

The chiral diamine ligand 3 was designed and synthesized from (R,R)-1,2-diphenylethylenediamine, (S)-2,2'-dibromomethyl-1,1'-binaphthalene, and o-xylylene dibromide. The resulting 3-Cu(OAc)2 complex was a highly efficient catalyst for the Henry reaction, giving the various nitroaldols with over 90% ee (up to >99%). The reaction was performed in n-propyl alcohol at room temperature, and the Henry adducts were produced in high yield with excellent enantiomeric excess; these attributes are desirable in a catalyst for practical use.     

Synthesis of tetrahydroisoquinoline (TIQ)–oxazoline ligands and their application in enantioselective Henry reactions

A novel family of eleven new tetrahydroisoquinoline (TIQ)–oxazoline intermediates and five corresponding copper(II) catalysts has been developed and applied to the catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction of various aldehydes with nitromethane to provide β-hydroxy nitroalkanes in high conversion (>99%). This paper describes the synthesis of the TIQ compounds from l-dihydroxyphenylalanine (l-DOPA) as the starting material. The chiral ligands were complexed in situ with various transition metals such as Cu, Sc, Co, Zn, Ni and Mn and tested as a chiral catalyst for the Henry reaction. The reaction was optimized in terms of the metal, counter ion, solvent, temperature and over a range of substrates. The corresponding catalyst with copper(II) acetate and 2-propanol as the solvent provides the best enantioselectivities (up to 77% ee) of the corresponding nitroalcohol for 4-chlorobenzaldehyde.     

Copper(II)-containing C2-symmetric bistetracarboline amides in enantioselective Henry reactions

A series of new C₂-symmetric chiral diamides were synthesized from l-tryptophan and used as chiral ligands chelated with Cu(II) in enantioselective Henry reactions. Ligand 4a with CuCl₂·2H₂O (5%) showed effective catalytic efficiency in Henry reaction. High yields (up to 99%) and excellent enantioselectivities (up to 98%) were achieved for both aromatic and aliphatic aldehyde substrates.     

Synthesis of chiral 1-substituted tetrahydroisoquinolines by the intramolecular 1,3-chirality transfer reaction catalyzed by Bi(OTf)3

The intramolecular 1,3-chirality transfer reaction of chiral amino alcohols 1 with 99% ee was developed to construct chiral 1-substituted tetrahydroisoquinoline 2. Bi(OTf)(3) (10 mol %)-catalyzed cyclization of 1 (R = H) afforded (S)-1-(E)-propenyl tetrahydroisoquinoline 2 (R = H) in 83% yield with a ratio of 98:2. The stereochemistry at the newly formed chiral center was produced by a syn S(N)2'-type process. In this reaction, the substituent on the benzene ring of 1 significantly affected the reactivities and selectivities. A plausible reaction mechanism was proposed.     

New highly asymmetric Henry reaction catalyzed by Cu(II) and a C(1)-symmetric aminopyridine ligand, and its application to the synthesis of miconazole

A new catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction has been developed that uses a C(1)-symmetric chiral aminopyridine ligand derived from camphor and picolylamine. A variety of aromatic, heteroaromatic, aliphatic, and unsaturated aldehydes react with nitromethane and other nitroalkanes in the presence of DIPEA (1.0 equiv), Cu(OAc)(2)*H(2)O (5 mol %), and an aminopyridine ligand (5 mol %) to give the expected products in high yields (up to 99 %), moderate-to-good diastereoselectivites (up to 82:18), and excellent enantioselectivities (up to 98 %). The reaction is air-tolerant and has been used in the synthesis of the antifungal agent miconazole.     

Synthesis of chiral organocatalysts derived from aziridines: application in asymmetric aldol reaction

We report the synthesis of a new series of highly efficient chiral organocatalysts derived via the regio- and stereoselective ring opening of chiral aziridines with azide anions. The catalysts have proved to be very efficient for a direct asymmetric aldol reaction, both with cyclic as well as acyclic ketones in brine with 2 mol % of catalyst loading, and afforded the products in excellent yields (up to 99%) and enantioselectivities (up to >99%). The chiral aldol adduct obtained has further been converted to a chiral azetidine ring via a convenient pathway.     

Asymmetric hydrogenation of aromatic ketones catalyzed by the TolBINAP/DMAPEN-ruthenium(II) complex: a significant effect of N-substituents of chiral 1,2-diamine ligands on enantioselectivity

Asymmetric hydrogenation of acetophenone in the presence of Ru(II) catalysts coordinated by TolBINAP and a series of chiral 1,2-diamines was studied. The sense and degree of enantioselectivity were highly dependent on the N-substituents of the diamine ligands. The N-substituent effect was discussed in detail. Among these catalysts, the (S)-TolBINAP/(R)-DMAPEN-Ru(II) complex showed the highest enantioselectivity. The mode of enantioface selection was interpreted by using transition state models based on the X-ray structure of the catalyst precursor. The chiral catalyst effected the hydrogenation of alkyl aryl ketones and arylglyoxal dialkyl acetals to afford the chiral alcohol in >99% ee in the best cases. Hydrogenation of racemic benzoin methyl ether with the chiral catalyst through dynamic kinetic resolution gave the anti-alcohol (syn:anti = 3:97) in 98% ee, while the reaction of alpha-amidopropiophenones resulted in the syn-alcohols (syn:anti = 96:4 to >99:1) in >98% ee.     

Highly enantioselective water-compatible organocatalyst for Michael reaction of ketones to nitroolefins

A chiral diamine was found to catalyze enantioselective addition of ketones to nitroolefins in aqueous/saline/organic media. The products were obtained with excellent diastereoselectivities (syn/anti = 99:1) and enantioselectivities up to 99%. The reaction could be facilitated using a mild acid. [reaction: see text]     

Asymmetric Henry reaction catalyzed by C2-symmetric tridentate bis(oxazoline) and bis(thiazoline) complexes: metal-controlled reversal of enantioselectivity

[reaction: see text] C(2)-symmetric tridentate bis(oxazoline) and bis(thiazoline) ligands with a diphenylamine backbone have been investigated in the catalytic asymmetric Henry reaction of alpha-keto esters with different Lewis acids. Their Cu(OTf)(2) complexes furnished S enantiomers, while Et(2)Zn complexes afforded R enantiomers, both of them with higher enantioselectivities (up to 85% ee). Reversal of enantioselectivity in asymmetric Henry reactions was achieved with the same chiral ligand by changing the Lewis acid center from Cu(II) to Zn(II). The results show that the NH group in C(2)-symmetric tridentate chiral ligands plays a very important role in controlling both the yields and enantiofacial selectivity of the Henry products.     

Asymmetric domino Michael–Henry reaction of 1,2-diones with nitroolefins catalyzed by a chiral bisoxazolidine–Ni(acac)2 complex

The asymmetric domino Michael–Henry reaction of 1,2-cyclohexadione with nitroolefins catalyzed by chiral ligand bisoxazolidine 1 and Ni(acac)₂ has been developed. This process provided highly functionalized chiral bicycle[3,2,1] octane derivatives with the generation of four new stereogenic centers in high yields (76–99%), and with excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99%) and good diastereoselectivities (up to 9:1) under mild reaction conditions. The procedure presented is simple and makes this method suitable for practical use.     

A new type of L-Tertiary leucine-derived ligand: Synthesis and application in Cu(II)-catalyzed asymmetric Henry reactions

A new series of Schiff bases derived from amino acids were developed as chiral ligands for Cu(II)-catalyzed asymmetric Henry reactions. The optimum ligand 7d exhibited outstanding catalytic efficiency in the Cu(II)-catalyzed asymmetric Henry additions of four nitroalkanes to different kinds of aldehydes to produce 76 desired adducts in high yields (up to 96%) with excellent enantioselectivities, up to 99% enantiomeric excess (ee).     

A new synthetic route for axially chiral secondary amines with binaphthyl backbone and their applications in asymmetric Michael reaction of aldehydes to nitroalkenes

A new synthetic route for binaphthyl-based secondary amines has been developed. The key features of this route include the selective direct esterification of the binaphthyl structure at the 3- or 3,3'-position and the methylation by a Negishi cross-coupling reaction. Based on the new approach, a series of 3-monosubstituted and 3,3'-disubstituted chiral secondary amines with a binaphthyl backbone were synthesized and screened in the Michael reaction of aldehydes to various nitroalkenes. 3-Monosubstituted secondary amine 7c was proved to be the best catalyst, affording high yields (up to 95%), good to excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99%) and diastereoselectivities (syn/anti up to 99:1) under the optimized conditions.     

Direct, catalytic enantioselective nitroaldol (Henry) reaction of trifluoromethyl ketones: an asymmetric entry to alpha-trifluoromethyl-substituted quaternary carbons

Herein we describe the first direct, catalytic enantioselective nitroaldol (Henry) reaction of simple alpha-trifluoromethyl ketones with nitromethane using a chiral monometallic lanthanum(III) triflate salt complex, namely [(Delta,S,S,S)-Binolam]3.La(OTf)3, as enantioselective catalyst. The resulting alpha-trifluoromethyl tertiary nitroaldols were obtained in moderate to high yields (up to 93%) and enantioselectivities (up to 98% ee). These adducts are versatile chiral building blocks and may be reduced (NiCl2/NaBH4) to their beta-amino-alpha-trifluoromethyl tertiary alcohols without loss of enantiomeric purity.     

New 2-azanorbornyl derivatives: chiral (N,N)-donating ligands for asymmetric catalysis

New chiral 2-azanorbornane derivatives were prepared and used as (N,N)-donating ligands in a copper-catalyzed Henry reaction yielding up to 62% ee.     

Pd-catalyzed asymmetric allylic amination of Morita-Baylis-Hillman adduct derivatives using chiral diaminophosphine oxides: DIAPHOXs

[reaction: see text] Asymmetric allylic amination of allylic carbonates prepared from racemic Morita-Baylis-Hillman adducts proceeded in the presence of Pd catalyst, chiral diaminophosphine oxide (DIAPHOX), and BSA, affording the corresponding chiral aza-Morita-Baylis-Hillman adduct derivatives in excellent yield with up to 99% ee. The cyclic reaction products could be converted into various synthetically useful compounds such as chiral cyclic beta-amino acids.     

A library of chiral imidazoline-aminophenol ligands: discovery of an efficient reaction sphere

A library of imidazoline-aminophenol ligands was synthesized on solid supports. After immobilization of chiral chloromethylimidazolines 1 and 2 onto the polystyrylsulfonyl chloride, nucleophilic substitution with (R)- or (S)-phenylethylamine (3 and 4) provided four combinations of polymer-supported imidazoline-amine ligands. Further reductive alkylation using salicylaldehydes 7-10 provided a series of imidazoline-aminophenol ligands (L9-L24). Analysis by solid-phase catalysis/circular dichroism high-throughput screening of a copper-catalyzed Henry reaction revealed that ligand L25, comprising a (S,S)-diphenylethylenediamine-derived imidazoline, (S)-phenylethylamine, and dibromophenol, was highly efficient, thus providing the adduct of nitromethane and benzaldehyde in 95 % ee. The combination of stereogenic centers was crucial in promoting the highly stereoselective reactions. The unique reaction sphere of L25 was also examined in a Friedel-Crafts alkylation of indole and nitroalkene to give the adduct in up to 83 % ee.     

Toward the development of a structurally novel class of chiral auxiliaries: diastereoselective aldol reactions of a (1R,2S)-ephedrine-based 3,4,5,6-tetrahydro-2H-1,3,4-oxadiazin-2-one

[reaction: see text] Asymmetric aldol addition reactions have been conducted with (1R,2S)-ephedrine-derived 3,4,5,6-tetrahydro-2H-1,3,4-oxadiazin-2-one (2). Diastereoselectivities range from 75:25 to 99:1 for the formation of the crude non-Evans syn adducts 8a-h. The facial selectivity of the enolate is directed by the stereogenic N(4)-methyl substituent. Aldol adduct 8a is readily cleaved by acid hydrolysis to afford (2S,3S)-3-hydroxy-2-methyl-3-phenylpropionic acid (9) in >95% ee.