Convenient General Asymmetric Synthesis of Roche Ester Derivatives through Catalytic Asymmetric Hydrogenation: Steric and Electronic Effects of Ligands

Stereocontrolled Total Synthesis of (-)-Stemaphylline

Homologation of readily available α-boryl pyrrolidines with metal carbenoids is especially challenging even when good leaving groups (Cl- ) are employed. By performing a solvent switch from Et2 O to CHCl3 , efficient 1,2-metalate rearrangement of the intermediate boronate occurs with both halide and ester leaving groups. The methodology was used in the total synthesis of the Stemona alkaloid (-)-stemaphylline in just 11 steps (longest linear sequence), with high stereocontrol (>20:1 d.r.) and 11 % overall yield. The synthesis also features a late-stage lithiation-borylation reaction with a tertiary amine containing carbenoid.

Efficient Synthesis of Differentiated syn-1,2-Diol Derivatives by Asymmetric Transfer Hydrogenation-Dynamic Kinetic Resolution of α-Alkoxy-Substituted β-Ketoesters

Asymmetric transfer hydrogenation was applied to a wide range of racemic aryl α-alkoxy-β-ketoesters in the presence of well-defined, commercially available, chiral catalyst Ru(II) -(N-p-toluenesulfonyl-1,2-diphenylethylenediamine) and a 5:2 mixture of formic acid and triethylamine as the hydrogen source. Under these conditions, dynamic kinetic resolution was efficiently promoted to provide the corresponding syn α-alkoxy-β-hydroxyesters derived from substituted aromatic and heteroaromatic aldehydes with a high level of diastereoselectivity (diastereomeric ratio (d.r.)>99:1) and an almost perfect enantioselectivity (enantiomeric excess (ee)>99 %). Additionally, after extensive screening of the reaction conditions, the use of Ru(II) - and Rh(III) -tethered precatalysts extended this process to more-challenging substrates that bore alkenyl-, alkynyl-, and alkyl substituents to provide the corresponding syn α-alkoxy-β-hydroxyesters with excellent enantiocontrol (up to 99 % ee) and good to perfect diastereocontrol (d.r.>99:1). Lastly, the synthetic utility of the present protocol was demonstrated by application to the asymmetric synthesis of chiral ester ethyl (2S)-2-ethoxy-3-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-propanoate, which is an important pharmacophore in a number of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α/γ dual agonist advanced drug candidates used for the treatment of type-II diabetes.

Preparation of tetrasubstituted olefins using mono or double aerobic direct C-H functionalization strategies: importance of steric effects

A novel protocol for the synthesis of tetrasubstituted olefins through a biomimetic approach has been explored. Both mono- and diarylations were performed under ambient oxygen pressure, giving a range of highly hindered tetrasubstituted alkenes. For diarylation of disubstituted substrates, it was demonstrated that the second arylation is the rate-limiting step of the overall transformation.

Homo-Roche ester derivatives by asymmetric hydrogenation and organocatalysis

Asymmetric hydrogenation routes to homologues of The Roche ester tend to be restricted to hydrogenations of itaconic acid derivatives, that is, substrates that contain a relatively unhindered, 1,1-disubstituted alkene. This is because in hydrogenations mediated by RhP2 complexes, the typical catalysts, it is difficult to obtain high conversions using the alternative substrate for the same product, the isomeric trisubstituted alkenes (D in the text). However, chemoselective modification of the identical functional groups in itaconic acid derivatives are difficult; hence, it would be favorable to use the trisubstituted alkene. Trisubstituted alkene substrates can be hydrogenated with high conversions using chiral analogs of Crabtree's catalyst of the type IrN(carbene). This paper demonstrates that such reactions are scalable (tens of grams) and can be manipulated to give optically pure homo-Roche ester chirons. Organocatalytic fluorination, chlorination, and amination of the homo-Roche building blocks was performed to demonstrate that they could easily be transformed into functionalized materials with two chiral centers and α,ω-groups that provide extensive scope for modifications. A synthesis of (S,S)- and (R,S)-γ-hydroxyvaline was performed to illustrate one application of the amination product.

Iridium catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of cyclic imines of benzodiazepinones and benzodiazepines

Highly enantioselective Ir-catalyzed hydrogenation of seven-membered cyclic imines of benzodiazepinones and benzodiazepines was achieved with up to 96% ee. This method provides a direct access to synthesize a range of chiral cyclic amines existing in numerous important natural products and clinical drugs.

Asymmetric bioreduction of activated alkenes to industrially relevant optically active compounds

Ene-reductases from the ‘Old Yellow Enzyme’ family of flavoproteins catalyze the asymmetric reduction of various α,β-unsaturated compounds at the expense of a nicotinamide cofactor. They have been applied to the synthesis of valuable enantiopure products, including chiral building blocks with broad industrial applications, terpenoids, amino acid derivatives and fragrances. The combination of these highly stereoselective biocatalysts with a cofactor recycling system has allowed the development of cost-effective methods for the generation of optically active molecules, which is strengthened by the availability of stereo-complementary enzyme homologues.

(R)-3,5-diCF3-SYNPHOS and (R)-p-CF3-SYNPHOS, electron-poor diphosphines for efficient room temperature Rh-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition of arylboronic acids

Two new atropisomeric electron-poor chiral diphosphine ligand analogues of SYNPHOS were prepared, and their electronic properties are described. These two ligands afforded high performance for the Rh-catalyzed asymmetric 1,4-addition of arylboronic acids to α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds at room temperature.