Highly enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of diethylzinc to cyclic enones with spirocyclic phosphoramidite ligands

A series of spirocyclic phosphoramidite ligands 6-9 with different substituents on the amine moiety were synthesized from the chiral spirocyclic diol (R)-5. These monodentate ligands have been applied in copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of diethylzinc to cyclic enones. Excellent enantioselectivities (up to 99% ee) can be achieved by the use of ligand (R,S,S)-9 bearing stereochemically matched structure derived from the C₂-symmetric (S,S)-bis(α-methylbenzyl)amine.     

A new pyrrolidine-derived atropisomeric amino alcohol as a highly efficient chiral ligand for the asymmetric addition of diethylzinc to aldehydes

A highly efficient pyrrolidine-derived atropisomeric amino alcohol, (S_a)-1-[2-diphenylhydroxymethyl-6-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-2-(1-pyrrolido)methyl-1H-pyrrole, has been synthesized as a chiral ligand for the enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to some prochiral aldehydes to afford (S)-alcohols. The conversion rates were close to quantitative with good to excellent enantiomeric excesses (up to 95% ee).     

Asymmetric synthesis of chiral tertiary borylated phosphonates by copper-catalyzed conjugate borylation

Enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate borylation of α,β-unsaturated phosphonates with bis(pinacolato)diboron affords chiral tertiary organoboronate esters with a vicinal phosphonate group in good yields and enantiomeric excess. Linear aliphatic, aromatic, and heteroaromatic substituents at the β-position can be accommodated, and oxidation of the borylated organophosphonate products leads to β-hydroxyphosphonates.     

Facile synthesis of chiral 2-formyl-1,1′-binaphthyl via lipase-catalyzed acylation and hydrolysis of 1,1′-binaphthyl oximes

Lipase-catalyzed acylation of 2-hydroxyiminomethyl-1,1′-binaphthyl [(±)-1] and hydrolysis of 2-acetoxyiminomethyl-1,1′-binaphthyl [(±)-2] yielded optically active oximes 1 and 2 with high enantiomeric excess. Successful synthesis of the optically active aldehyde 4 from chiral O-acetyl oxime 2 occurred without a decrease of enantiomeric excess.     

Chiral dinuclear phthalazine bridged bisoxazoline ligands: synthesis and application in enantioselective Cu-catalyzed conjugate addition of ZnEt2 to enones

A new class of chiral dinuclear ligands with phthalazine bridged bisoxazoline scaffold was designed and prepared in convenient synthetic routes. ¹H NMR analysis showed that this class of ligands could coordinate with two metal ions, either same or different. These ligands afforded good to excellent yields and enantioselectivities in Cu-catalyzed conjugate addition of ZnEt₂ to enones.     

Enantioselective conjugate addition of diethylzinc to acyclic enones using a copper phosphino-phenol complex as catalyst

Newly designed phosphino-phenol 1c was found to be an efficient chiral auxiliary for copper-mediated asymmetric conjugate addition of diethylzinc to acyclic enones. High enantioselectivity up to >99% ee was achieved in the reaction of acyclic α,β-enones.     

Highly enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of diethylzinc to enones using chiral spiro phosphoramidites as ligands

Novel monodentate chiral spiro phosphoramidite ligands have been readily synthesized in good yields from enantiomerically pure 1,1'-spirobiindane-7,7'-diol. The new ligands were highly efficient in the copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of Et(2)Zn to enones with up to 98% enantiomeric excess.     

Asymmetric conjugate addition of thiols to (E)-3-crotonoyloxazolidin-2-one by iron or cobalt/pybox catalyst

The enantioselective conjugate addition of thiols to (E)-3-crotonoyloxazolidin-2-one was effectively catalyzed by the Fe(BF₄)₂·6H₂O/(S,S)-ip-pybox catalyst, and the addition product was obtained with up to a 95% ee. Furthermore, the Co(ClO₄)₂·6H₂O/(S,S)-ip-pybox catalyst also catalyzed the same reaction with a high enantioselectivity.     

Copper catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition-bromination of α,β-unsaturated ketones: a highly efficient one-pot reaction for the synthesis of chiral α-bromo-β-alkylketones

An efficient one-pot reaction for the synthesis of chiral α-bromo-β-alkyl ketones was developed. The final products were obtained with excellent enantiomeric excess and good isolated yields. The synthetic potential was illustrated by the radical cyclization of the α-brominated ketone.     

Vasicine as tridentate ligand for enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to aldehydes

The first report of natural l-vasicine as tridentate chiral ligand for the enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to a variety of aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes is described. The ligand generates R-isomer of the secondary alcohols upto 98% ee. The quinazoline structure possibly imparts rigidity to the ligand and hence, consistently high enantioselectivity. The importance of the quinazoline ring was also supported by the reaction with other related ligands, partially lacking the structural features, thus resulting in poor enantioselectivity.     

Design and synthesis of new chiral pyridine–phosphite ligands for the copper-catalyzed enantioselective conjugate addition of diethylzinc to acyclic enones

A series of new chiral pyridine–phosphite ligands have been prepared from (R)-pyridyl alcohols and BINOL-derived chlorophosphite, and successfully employed in the copper-catalyzed enantioselective conjugate addition of diethylzinc to acyclic enones. Using the simple and inexpensive CuBr₂ as a precursor, the enantioselective additions to various substituted acyclic enones afforded products in high yields and good enantioselectivities (up to 92% ee).     

Formation of highly substituted chiral cyclohexanone derivatives using a tandem conjugate addition/cyclisation

A tandem conjugate addition/cyclisation approach, that allows the synthesis of chiral highly substituted cyclohexanones and cyclohexenones, which is applicable to natural product syntheses has been developed.     

Design and synthesis of new bidentate alkoxy-NHC ligands for enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition

A new family of chiral alkoxy-N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands has been designed for the enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of dialkylzincs to enones. These new bidentate NHC ligands were synthesized in high overall yields using a five-step procedure starting from commercially available β-aminoalcohols. Influence of the temperature, base, solvent and copper source were studied in order to optimize the stereoselectivity of the addition. High reactivity and excellent enantioselectivity were obtained at ambient temperature with a range of cyclic enones and dialkylzinc. Addition to acyclic enones has also been studied.     

Design and synthesis of new bidentate phosphoramidite ligands for enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of diethylzinc to enones

Several thioaryl- and phosphino-phosphoramidite ligands have been synthesized from commercially available β-aminoalcohols. This new family of bidentate ligands are highly active in the enantioselective copper-catalyzed conjugate addition of diethylzinc to both cyclic and acyclic enones showing moderate to good enantiomeric excesses of up to 81%.     

A new class of chiral pyrrolidine ligands for homogeneous catalytic enantioselective cyclopropanation of styrene

A new class of chiral pyrrolidine ligands have been successfully synthesized and their chiral induction abilities have been examined in the homogeneous catalytic enantioselective cyclo-propanation of styrene. 15-30% enantiomeric excess ( ee) has been achieved.     

Asymmetric addition of diethylzinc to aromatic aldehydes by chiral ferrocene-based catalysts

A series of chiral C₁- and C₂-symmetric ferrocenyl Schiff bases (1a-c), ferrocenyl aminoalcohols (2a), ferrocenylphosphinamides (2b-c), 1,1′-ferrocenyl-diol (3), and 1,1′-ferrocenyl-disulfonamide (4) were prepared and employed as base catalysts or as ligand for titanium(IV) complexes in the asymmetric addition of diethylzinc to aromatic aldehydes. High enantioselectivity up to almost 100% ee was achieved for the alkylation of benzaldehyde and p-methoxybenzaldehyde with 1 or 3. In contrast, however, the β-aminoalcohol (2a) and phosphinamides (2b and c) that are ubiquitous classes of base catalysts for this reaction proved inefficient in our hands, regardless of the types of substrates or reaction conditions. Comparative studies show that there exist various reaction parameters governing not only chemical yields but also optical yields. These include steric and electronic environment of the substrate, the solvent, the reaction temperature, and the nature of the ferrocene moieties.     

Novel chiral hydrogen bond donor catalysts based on a 4,5-diaminoxanthene scaffold: application to enantioselective conjugate addition of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds to nitroalkenes

Novel chiral hydrogen bond donor catalysts based on a 4,5-diamino-9,9′-dimethylxanthene skeleton were designed and synthesized. Among the phenylurea-amide hybrid molecules prepared from various natural/unnatural chiral amino acids, the phenylalanine-derived catalyst, and the proline-derived catalyst were successfully applied to enantioselective conjugate addition of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds to nitroalkenes. Using 2-acetylcyclopentanone and 2-methoxycarbonylcyclopentanone as prochiral nucleophiles, asymmetric conjugate addition to β-aryl nitroalkenes proceeded with good diastereoselectivity to provide the corresponding products bearing an all-carbon quaternary stereocenter in excellent yield with up to 95% ee.     

Axially chiral tridentate isoquinoline derived ligands for diethylzinc addition to aldehydes

The synthesis and resolution of new tridentate isoquinoline-derived ligands has been developed. The key steps in the synthetic sequence include successive, chemo-selective Suzuki-Miyaura cross-couplings of 1,3-dichloroisoquinoline with suitable arylboronic acids. The new ligands prepared in this manner were resolved either via molecular complexation with N-benzylcinchonidinium chloride as with 1-[3-(2-hydroxyphenyl)isoquinolin-1-yl]naphthalen-2-ol or via chromatographic separation of its epimeric camphorsulfonates as for 1,3-bis-(2-hydroxynaphthalen-1-yl)isoquinoline. 4-tert-Butyl-2-chloro-6-[1-(2-hydroxymethylnaphthalen-1-yl)isoquinolin-3-yl]phenol was resolved by chiral semi-preparative HPLC. The application of these ligands in the diethylzinc addition to aldehydes was investigated. In certain cases, the desired secondary alcohols were obtained in high yield with excellent enantiomeric excess (ee?>?99%) at low catalyst loading (1?mol%).     

Phosphinoyl-aziridines as a new class of chiral catalysts for enantioselective Michael addition

A series of new optically pure phosphine oxides containing chiral aziridine subunit were synthesized in good yields and applied as organocatalysts in asymmetric Michael reaction of various aliphatic aldehydes with β-nitrostyrene. The corresponding organocatalysts were synthesized starting from optically pure aziridines in a few simple efficient steps. The appropriate Michael adducts were obtained in most cases in very high chemical yield (up to 97%), excellent enantioselectivity (up to 98% of ee) and diastereoselectivity (up to 95:5 of dr).     

Copper catalyzed tandem asymmetric conjugate addition-cyclization reaction in the presence of chiral phosphoramidite ligands

Copper-catalyzed intramolecular conjugate addition-cyclization in the presence of chiral phosphoramidite ligands was described. Cyclic products with multiple chiral centers were obtained with up to 93:7 diastereomeric ratio and 94% ee.