2,2′-Biphenyldiol-bridged bis(free base porphyrin): synthesis and chiroptical probing of asymmetric amino alcohols

A new type of bis(free base porphyrin) 1, in which two porphyrin units are attached to the 5,5′-positions of the 2,2′-biphenyldiol group, has been synthesized. It exhibits exciton-coupled bisignate circular dichroism (CD) spectra upon interaction with chiral amino alcohols. The chiral information from the stereogenic center of amino alcohols is introduced as a twist of the porphyrin units in 1 via hydrogen bonding interactions, detectable by the signal in the CD spectrum. Based on these findings, it is proposed that 1 should serve as a reporter unit of chiral sensor systems.     

Diastereoselective synthesis of aziridine esters via amino selanyl esters

A synthesis of aziridine esters based on the cyclisation of amino selanyl esters induced by the selanyl group activation was developed with either the Meerwein salt or NBS. Two asymmetric approaches are proposed: the diastereoselective reductions of α-selanyl β-iminoesters derived from α-oxoesters, which lead to cis chiral aziridine esters 6 and 6′; and the diastereoselective conjugate additions of a chiral amide to α,β-unsaturated esters providing trans chiral aziridine esters 6 and 6″.     

Synthesis of an inherently chiral O,O′-bridged thiacalix[4]crowncarboxylic acid and its application to a chiral solvating agent

Treatment of readily available O,O′-1,1,3,3-tetraisopropyldisiloxane-1,3-diyl-bridged p-tert-butylthiacalix[4]arene (1) with tri(ethylene glycol) di-p-tosylate and subsequent desilylation gave O,O′-bridged thiacalix[4]crown 3 in an excellent yield. Mono-O-alkylation of 3 with ethyl bromoacetate, followed by optical resolution by chiral HPLC, and subsequent hydrolysis of the ester moiety gave inherently chiral O,O′-bridged thiacalix[4]crowncarboxylic acid (+)-6, which clearly discriminated enantiomeric primary amines, as well as amino esters, by ¹H NMR spectroscopy.     

Asymmetric addition of phenylacetylene to aldehydes catalyzed by soluble optically active polybinaphthols ligand

A chiral polymer ligand was synthesized by the polymerization of (S)-5,5′-dibromo-6,6′-dibutyl-2,2′-binaphthol (S-M-1) with (S)-2,2′-bishexyloxy-1,1′-binaphthyl-6,6′-boronic acid (S-M-2) via Pd-catalyzed Suzuki reaction. The application of the chiral polymer ligand to the asymmetric addition of phenylethynyl zinc to various aldehydes has been studied. The results show that the soluble chiral polybinaphthols ligand in combination with Et₂Zn and Ti(OⁱPr)₄ can exhibit excellent enantioselectivity for phenylacetylene addition to both aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes. The catalytically active center of the repeating unit S-1 used as a catalyst produced the opposite configuration of the propargylic alcohols to that of S-1, on the contrary, the chiral polymer gave the same configuration as the optically active binaphthol moiety of the polybinaphthols ligand. Moreover, the chiral polymer ligand can be easily recovered and reused without loss of catalytic activity as well as enantioselectivity.     

Effects of ring substituents on enantioselective recognition of amino alcohols and acids in uryl-based binol receptors

The uryl-based binol aldehyde, (S)-2-hydroxy-2′-(3-phenyluryl-benzyl)-1,1′-binaphthyl-3-carboxaldehyde (1), binds 1,2-amino alcohols and amino acids stereoselectively by reversible formation of imine bond. Hydrogen bond (between uryl group and alcohol -OH moiety) plays an important role in the stereoselectivity of amino alcohols. Hence, any substituents on phenyl group in 1 are expected to affect H-bond ability of uryl group. To study the effects of ring substituents on the stereoselective recognition of amino alcohols, (substituted phenyl)uryl-based chiral binol receptors have been prepared. The receptors with electron-donating X substituents have been synthesized from (S)-2-methoxymethoxy-2′-hydroxy-1,1′-binaphthyl-3-carboxaldehyde and X-phenyluryl-benzyl bromide. The receptors with electron-withdrawing Y substituents, however, required a different synthetic strategy including transformation of an aldehyde to alcohol. The incorporation of the electron withdrawing groups slightly accelerated the stereoselective recognition property of the receptor. Though the acceleration is not so remarkable, this work demonstrates the versatile derivatization of 1 in achieving higher stereoselective recognition of 1,2-amino alcohols and stereoconversion of l-amino acids to d-amino acids.     

Novel chiral C1-1′,2′,3′,4′-tetrahydro-1,1′-bisisoquinolines: synthesis, resolution, and applications in catalytic enantioselective reactions

A straightforward synthesis of a structurally constrained C₁-1′,2′,3′,4′-tetrahydro-1,1′-bisisoquinoline 1 is described. Resolution of this compound has been achieved successfully. The preparation of chiral N-alkyl, urea, and thiourea derivatives as potential new chiral ligands, based on the parent compound 1, is reported. Chiral compound 1 induced very good selectivity and yield in the addition of either Et₂Zn (85% ee, 96% yield) or nitromethane (85% ee, 60% yield) to benzaldehyde.     

Enantioselective recognition of amines with an atropisomeric 1,8-bisphenolnaphthalene

1,8-Bis[5′(2′-hydroxy-4′-methylbiphenyl)]naphthalene, 2, was prepared from 1,8-dibromonaphthalene and 4-methoxy-2-methylphenylboronic acid in four steps with 51% overall yield. The axially chiral anti-isomer of 2 is stable to racemization at room temperature and the free energy of activation for the conversion of the anti-isomer to the syn-form was determined as 110.0 kJ/mol at 77.1 °C. At submillimolar concentration, enantiopure 2 can be used as circular dichroism sensor to detect a wide range of chiral amines.     

Synthesis of benzannulated spiroacetals using chiral gold–phosphine complexes and chiral anions

The development of an asymmetric gold-catalysed dihydroalkoxylation strategy for the synthesis of the 3′H-spiro[chroman-2,1′-isobenzofuran] spiroacetal ring system 5 is described. Spiroacetal was generated in up to 87:13 enantiomeric ratio using chiral gold–phosphine complexes and chiral silver phosphate Ag(S)-TRIP.     

A general synthetic route to chiral dihydroxy-9,9′-spirobifluorenes

C₂-Symmetric 9,9′-spirobifluorenes with 2,2′-, 3,3′-, and 4,4′-dihydroxyls were conveniently prepared from 1,2-dibromobenzene. The palladium-catalyzed coupling reaction of 1,2-dibromobenzene with methoxyphenylmagnesium bromide or methoxyphenylboronic acid provided methoxy substituted 2-bromobiphenyls. Lithium-bromine exchange with n-butyllithium, followed by reaction with dimethyl carbonate afforded di[2-(methoxyphenyl)phenyl]ketones as the key intermediates. A continuous ring-closure induced by a strong Lewis acid and demethylation gave dihydroxy-9,9′-spirobifluorenes. The racemic dihydroxy products were resolved by inclusion crystallization using chiral resolving reagents or separated by chiral HPLC.     

Chiral molecular polygons based on the Pt-alkynyl linkage: Self-assembly, characterization, and functionalization

Treatment of 2,2′-diacetoxy-1,1′-binaphthyl-6,6′-bis(ethyne), L-H₂, with one equiv of trans-Pt(PEt₃)₂Cl₂ led to a mixture of different sizes of chiral metallocycles [trans-(PEt₃)₂Pt(L)]_n (n = 3-8, 1-6). Each of the chiral molecular polygons 1-6 was purified by silica-gel column chromatography and characterized by ¹H, ¹³C{¹H}, and ³¹P{¹H} NMR spectroscopy, MS, IR, UV-Vis, and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopies, size exclusion chromatography, and microanalysis. Chiral molecular square 2 was also characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The acetyl groups of 2 were readily deprotected under mild conditions to generate 2a which possesses exposed chiral dihydroxy functional groups. The dihydroxy groups were functionalized with n-octadecyl chains or Fréchet-type dendrons to generate dendritic molecules built on a chiral molecular square core. This work shows the potential of generating interesting functional supramolecular systems based on Pt-alkynyl chiral molecular polygons.     

Resolution-free route to chiral 2,2-bis(pyridin-2-yl)-1,1-binaphthyl ligand: photochemical CpCo(CO)2-mediated cycloaddition of enantiopure 2,2-dicyano-1,1-binaphthyl with diynes

A resolution-free route to chiral 2,2^′-bis(pyridin-2-yl)-1,1^′-binaphthyl ligands 2 was developed for the first time based on the photochemical CpCo(CO)₂-mediated cycloaddition reaction of enantiopure 2,2^′-dicyano-1,1^′-binaphthyl 3 with 1,6-heptadiyne, 1,7-octadiyne, 1,8-nonadiyne, and 2,8-decadiyne.     

Efficient bimetallic titanium catalyst for carbonyl-ene reaction

A new family of achiral 3,3′,5,5′-tetrasubstituted-2,2′,6,6′-tetrahydroxy biphenyl ligand 4 was developed. The axial chirality of the ligand could be induced by the chelation of 2,2′,6,6′-tetrahydroxy groups with (R)-BINOL-Ti(OⁱPr)₂ to form an axially chiral bimetallic titanium catalyst 9. Compared with (R)-BINOL-Ti(OⁱPr)₂ catalyst, this novel catalyst 9 exhibited excellent activity and enantioselectivity for the carbonyl-ene reaction of methylstyrene and ethyl glyoxylate. 3,3′,5,5′-Tetrasubstituted groups showed a remarkable effect on both enantioselectivity and yield. With 9d prepared from 3,3′,5,5′-tetramethyl-2,2′,6,6′-tetrahydroxy biphenyl 4d as the catalyst, the best result, up to 97.6% ee and 99% yield, was obtained. Additionally, the bimetallic catalyst 9 also showed better catalytic capability than the corresponding monometallic catalyst.     

Synthesis of 9,9′-biphenanthryl-10,10′-bis(oxazoline)s and their preliminary evaluations in the Friedel-Crafts alkylations of indoles with nitroalkenes

Chiral 9,9′-biphenanthryl-10,10′-bis(oxazoline)s 6a-d were firstly prepared. These new chiral compounds were evaluated as ligands for the Friedel-Crafts alkylations of indoles with nitroalkenes, excellent yields and modest to good enantioselectivities were achieved.     

Analysis of the stereodynamics of 2,2′-disubstituted biphenyls by dynamic chromatography

In contrast to 2,2′-diisopropylbiphenyl, 2-phenyl-2′-isopropylbiphenyl, 1, and 2-cyclohexyl-2′-phenylbiphenyl, 2, undergo racemization at room temperature. Chiral HPLC analysis on Chiralcel OD show formation of a temperature-dependent plateau between the well-resolved peaks due to simultaneous enantioseparation and on-column enantioconversion. The rotational energy barrier of these axially chiral compounds has been determined as 91.3 (1) and 91.4 kJ/mol (2) by computer simulation of experimentally obtained HPLC elution profiles.     

Enantioselective arylation of aldehydes catalyzed by a soluble optically active polybinaphthols ligand

A soluble chiral polymer ligand was synthesized by the polymerization of (R)-6,6′-dibutyl-3,3′-diformyl-2,2′-binaphthol (R-M-1) with 2,5-diaminopyridine (M-2) via a nucleophilic addition-elimination reaction. While arylboronic acids were used as the source of the transferable aryl group, the chiral polybinaphthols ligand in combination with Et₂Zn without Ti(OⁱPr)₄ exhibited higher enantioselectivity in asymmetric addition to aromatic aldehydes than alphatic aldehydes. When aromatic aldehydes with electron-withdrawing groups were chosen as substrates, the resulting diarylmethanols were produced in higher ee values than those with electron-donating groups as substrates. 2-Naphthaldehyde used as a substrate afforded product in 95% ee, which could be ascribed to the steric effect influence on this asymmetric arylation reaction. Moreover, the chiral polymer was easily recovered and reused, but exhibited a decrease of enantioselectivity in the third recycle.     

The highly regiospecific synthesis and crystal structure determination of 1,1′-2,5′ substituted ring-locked ferrocenes

1,1′-Ferrocene biscarboxaldehyde (1) has been prepared and the aldehyde groups were subsequently protected with acetal groups to produce 1,1′-bisacetalferrocene (2). A ring-locked ferrocene was synthesised by further derivatisation of the cyclopentadiene rings at the 2,2′ positions with phosphine substituents to produce 2,2′-bis-(acetal)-1,1′-diphenylphosphinoferrocene (3), which was subsequently coordinated to either a nickel chloride (5) or nickel bromide (6) metal centre. The ring-locked ferrocene complexes produced 2,5′-bis-(acetal)-1,1′-diphenylphosphinoferrocene substitution patterns. The acetal protecting groups of 2,2′-bis-(acetal)-1,1′-diphenylphosphinoferrocene were removed to produce 1,1′-bis-carboxaldehyde-2,2′-diphenylphosphinoferrocene (4). The Cp rings of 1,1′-bisacetalferrocene were also further derivatised at the 2,2′ positions with a silane to produce the ring-locked 1,1′-siloxane-2,5′-bisacetalferrocenophane (7). The acetal protecting groups were removed from this to produce 1,1′-siloxane-2,5′-ferrocenophanecarboxaldehyde (8). For both the phosphine and siloxane electrophiles, the substitution on the Cp rings gives chiral products (obtained as racemic mixtures). Due to the highly regioselective nature of the reaction and diastereoselectivity in the products only C₂-symmetric compounds were observed without the presence of meso diastereoisomers. Subsequent ring-locking forced the Cp rings to rotate, leading to 1,1′-ring-locked ferrocenes with 2,5′-arrangement of the acetal groups (i.e. on opposite faces of the ferrocene unit).     

Asymmetric aziridine synthesis by aza-Darzens reaction of N-diphenylphosphinylimines with chiral enolates. Part 1: Formation of cis-aziridines

The aza-Darzens (‘ADZ’) reactions of N-diphenylphosphinyl (‘N-Dpp’) imines with chiral enolates derived from oxazolidinones and camphorsultam have been studied. Whilst oxazolidinone enolates reacted poorly in terms of aziridination, the use of the chiral enolate derived from both antipodes of N-bromoacetyl 2,10-camphorsultam, 2R-(5) and 2S-(5), with N-diphenylphosphinyl aryl and tert-butylimines proceeded in generally good yield to give, respectively, (2′R,3′R)- or (2′S,3′S)-cis-N-diphenylphosphinyl aziridinoyl sultams of high de.     

Enantiomorphic Microvortex‐Enabled Supramolecular Sensing of Racemic Amino Acids by Using Achiral Building Blocks

Chiral analysis of bioactive molecules is of increasing significance in chemical and life sciences. However, the quantitative detection of a racemic mixture of enantiomers is a challenging task, which relies on complicated and time‐consuming multiple steps of chiral derivatization, chiral separation, and spectroscopic measurement. Herein, we show that, without the use of chiral molecules or pretreatment steps, the co‐assembly of amino acids with achiral TPPS₄ monomers controlled by enantiomorphic microvortices allows quantitative detection of racemic or enantiomeric amino acids, through analysis of the sign and magnitude of supramolecular chirality in different outlets of a microfluidic platform. A model demonstrates that chiral microvortices can induce an initial chiral bias by bending the sheet structure, resulting in supramolecular self‐assembly of TPPS₄ and amino acids of compatible chirality by the self‐sorting. This sensing system may find versatile applications in chiral sensing.     

Enantiomorphic Microvortex-Enabled Supramolecular Sensing of Racemic Amino Acids by Using Achiral Building Blocks

Chiral analysis of bioactive molecules is of increasing significance in chemical and life sciences. However, the quantitative detection of a racemic mixture of enantiomers is a challenging task, which relies on complicated and time-consuming multiple steps of chiral derivatization, chiral separation, and spectroscopic measurement. Herein, we show that, without the use of chiral molecules or pretreatment steps, the co-assembly of amino acids with achiral TPPS₄ monomers controlled by enantiomorphic microvortices allows quantitative detection of racemic or enantiomeric amino acids, through analysis of the sign and magnitude of supramolecular chirality in different outlets of a microfluidic platform. A model demonstrates that chiral microvortices can induce an initial chiral bias by bending the sheet structure, resulting in supramolecular self-assembly of TPPS₄ and amino acids of compatible chirality by the self-sorting. This sensing system may find versatile applications in chiral sensing.     

2,2′-Bis(diarylstibano)-1,1′-binaphthyls (BINASbs); a useful chiral ligand for palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation, and the structure of a BINASbPdCl2 complex

The first attempt to use enantiopure antimony ligands 1-4 as a chiral auxiliary was successfully accomplished in a palladium-catalyzed asymmetric alkylation of 1,3-diphenylprop-2-ene-1-yl acetate with dimethyl malonate. Under the optimized conditions, the allylation product can be obtained with up to 96% ee in 84% chemical yield by use of enantiopure C₂-symmetric 2,2′-bis[di(p-tolyl)stibano]-1,1′-binaphthyl [BINASb(p-Tol)] 4a as a chiral ligand with O-bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide (BSA) and potassium acetate. The structure of the intermediary BINASb-PdCl₂ complex was elucidated by single crystal X-ray analysis, implying that the BINASb should work as a bidentate chiral ligand in the reaction.