Asymmetric Synthesis of Chiral Sulfoximines through the S‐Alkylation of Sulfinamides

Innovation in drug discovery critically depends on the development of new bioisosteric groups. Chiral sulfoximines, which contain a tetrasubstituted sulfur atom that bears one nitrogen, one oxygen, and two different carbon substituents, represent an emerging chiral bioisostere in medicinal chemistry. Chiral sulfoximines are conventionally prepared by a stereospecific nitrene transfer reaction to chiral sulfoxides; however, the number of readily available chiral sulfoxides remains limited. Herein, we report the asymmetric synthesis of a class of hitherto difficult‐to‐access chiral sulfoximines with two structurally similar alkyl chains. Our synthetic approach is based on the sulfur‐selective alkylation of easily accessible chiral sulfinamides with commercially available reagents under simple and safe conditions. This stereospecific S‐alkylation offers a general and scalable approach to the asymmetric synthesis of chiral sulfoximines, which represent important substructures in bioactive molecules.     

Template‐Assisted meta‐C−H Alkylation and Alkenylation of Arenes

To expand the scope of meta ‐functionalization, a pyrimidine‐based template effective for the formation of β‐aryl aldehydes and ketones, using allyl alcohols, by meta ‐C−H activation of benzylsulfonyl esters is described. In addition, α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes were generated by in situ olefination and deprotection of allyl benzyl ethers. These new functionalizations at the meta ‐position of an arene have also been successfully implemented in benzylphosphonate, phenethyl carbonyl, and phenethylsulfonyl ester scaffolds. Key to these successful new functionalizations is the creation of an electropositive palladium center by accepting the electron cloud from the metal to the energetically low‐lying π‐orbitals of pyrimidine ring, and it favors coordination of allyl alcohol to the metal center.