Asymmetric Synthesis of Bicyclic Diol Derivatives through Metal and Enzyme Catalysis: Application to the Formal Synthesis of Sertraline

Enzyme‐ and ruthenium‐catalyzed dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation (DYKAT) of bicyclic diols to their diacetates was highly enantio‐ and diastereoselective to give the corresponding diacetates in high yield with high enantioselectivity (99.9 % ee). The enantiomerically pure diols are accessible by simple hydrolysis (NaOH, MeOH), but an alternative enzyme‐catalyzed ester cleavage was also used to give the trans‐diol (R,R)‐ 1 b in extremely high diastereomeric purity (trans/cis=99.9:0.1, >99.9 % ee). It was demonstrated that the diols can be selectively oxidized to the ketoalcohols in a ruthenium‐catalyzed Oppenauer‐type reaction. A formal enantioselective synthesis of sertraline from a simple racemic cis/trans diol 1 b was demonstrated.