High stereocontrol in aldol reaction with ketones: enantioselective synthesis of beta-hydroxy gamma-ketoesters by ester enolate aldol reactions with 2-acyl-2-alkyl-1,3-dithiane 1-oxides

The asymmetric aldol reaction of 1,2-diketones, masked as nonracemic 2-acyl dithiane oxides, with lithium enolates derived from several esters and lactones, proceeds with a high degree of stereocontrol at both carbonyl and enolate prochiral centers, the stereocontrol mainly determined by the configuration of the sulfoxide sulfur atom. The sense of induced stereochemistry observed for ester enolates is different from that seen for lactone enolates. Hydrolysis of the dithiane oxide units of the major diastereoisomerically pure aldol products affords enantiomerically pure tertiary alpha-substituted beta-hydroxy-gamma-ketoesters.     

An integrated approach to the mid-spin state (S = 3/2) in six-coordinate iron(III) chiroporphyrins

An intermediate-spin state very close to the mid-spin state (S = 3/2) can be stabilized in a ferric porphyrin by an integrated approach which combines the favorable effects of a weak axial field strength and of a small macrocycle hole. Axial ligand exchange by reaction of chloroiron(III)tetramethylchiroporphyrin [(TMCP)FeCl] with silver perchlorate in ethanol-chloroform leads to ethanol-ligated ferric chiroporphyrins. Two distinct crystalline products containing a bisethanol complex [[(TMCP)FeIII(EtOH)2]ClO4] and three variants of a mixed ethanol-water complex [[(TMCP)FeIII(EtOH)(H2O)]ClO4] have been structurally characterized in the solid state. The small hole of the ruffled chiroporphyrin and the weak axial oxygen ligation result in strongly tetragonally distorted complexes. The six-coordinate species exhibit long axial Fe-O bond distances (2.173(5)-2.272(4) A) and the shortest equatorial Fe-N(av) distances (1.950(5)-1.978(7) A) found as yet in a ferric porphyrin, reflecting a singly occupied dz2 orbital and a largely depopulated dx2-y2 orbital. An intriguing case of bond-stretch isomerism is seen for the axial Fe-O bonds in two crystallographically independent mixed ethanol-water species, and it is accounted for by their distinct intra- and intermolecular hydrogen-bond arrays. The M?ssbauer spectrum (delta = 0.35(1) mm s-1 and delta EQ = 3.79(1) mm s-1 at 77 K) indicates a strong tetragonal distortion around the ferric ion, in agreement with the structural data. The value of the magnetic moment (mu eff = 3.8 mu B in the range 50-300 K) strongly supports a mid-spin state (S = 3/2). The EPR spectrum at 80 K (g perpendicular approximately 4.0, g parallel approximately 2.00) is consistent with a nearly pure mid-spin state (4A2) with little rhombic distortion. The 1H NMR spectra in CDCl3-EtOH exhibit upfield-shifted resonances for the pyrrole protons (delta approximately -30 ppm) which are consistent with the depopulated iron dx2-y2 orbital. Solution equilibria with water and various alcohols, and the spin state of the corresponding species, are discussed on the basis of the NMR data. The bisethanol and ethanol-water species are potential models of unknown hemoprotein ligation states such as Tyr(OH)/Tyr(OH) or Tyr(OH)/H2O that could be obtained by site-directed mutagenesis.     

Hyperfine interactions in amorphous and crystalline Gd x Y50−x Ag50 alloys

A detailed¹⁵⁵Gd Mössbauer investigation has been performed on sputter deposited amorphous and crystalline alloys Gd_xY_50–xAg₅₀ (10 × 50) in the temperature range 1.4 K to 75 K with fields up to 10 T. Informations additional to the bulk magnetic measurements are thus obtained.     

Diels-alder reactions with 2-(Arylsulfinyl)-1,4-benzoquinones: effect of aryl substitution on reactivity, chemoselectivity, and pi-facial diastereoselectivity

Diels-Alder reactions of (SS)-2-(2'-methoxynaphthylsulfinyl)-1, 4-benzoquinone (1b), 2-(p-methoxyphenylsulfinyl)-1,4-benzoquinone (1c), and 2-(p-nitrophenylsulfinyl)-1,4-benzoquinone (1d) with cyclopentadiene are reported. These cycloadditions allowed the highly chemo- and stereoselective formation of both diastereoisomeric endo-adducts resulting from reaction on the unsubstituted double bond C(5)-C(6) of quinones working under thermal and Eu(fod)(3)- or BF(3).OEt(2)-catalyzed conditions. The synthesis of endo-adduct [4aS,5S,8R,8aR,SS]-9d resulting from cycloaddition on the substituted C(2)-C(3) double bond was achieved in a chemo- and diastereoselective way from quinone 1d in the presence of ZnBr(2). The reactivity and selectivity of the process proved to be dependent on the electron density of the arylsulfinyl group.