Aziridine-mediated asymmetric synthesis of quaternary β-amino acids using 2H-azirine 2-carboxylate esters

Carbamoyl Anion Addition to Azirines

The addition of carbamoyl anions to azirines affords synthetically useful 2-aziridinyl amide building blocks. The reaction scope was explored with respect to both formamide and azirine, and the addition was found to be highly diastereoselective. A one-pot conversion of a ketoxime to an aziridinyl amide was demonstrated. The method was employed to incorporate an aziridine residue into a dipeptide segment.

Synthesis of Quaternary Spirooxindole 2H-Azirines under Batch and Continuous Flow Condition and Metal Assisted Umpolung Reactivity for the Ring-Opening Reaction

An efficient and new approach for the synthesis of spirooxindole 2H-azirines via intramolecular oxidative cyclization of 3-(amino(phenyl)methylene)-indolin-2-one derivatives in the presence of I₂ and Cs₂ CO₃ under batch/continuous flow is described. This method is mild and facile to synthesize a variety of spirooxindole 2H-azirines derivatives in gram-scale. Furthermore, we have synthesized spiroaziridine derivatives from spirooxindole 2H-azirines derivatives via addition of Grignard reagent. In addition, we discloses an metal assisted attack of Grignard nucleophile at N-centre rather than C- of the spirooxindole 2H-azirines, which concurrently underwent ring opening of transient aziridines to afford N-substituted Z-3-(aminophenyl)indolin-2-one. A plausible mechanism for azirination and ring-opening reaction is also presented.

Highly Enantioselective Synthesis of Fused Tri- and Tetrasubstituted Aziridines: aza-Darzens Reaction of Cyclic Imines with α-Halogenated Ketones Catalyzed by Bifunctional Phosphonium Salt

The first enantioselective aza-Darzens reaction of cyclic imines with α-halogenated ketones was realized under mild reaction conditions by using amino-acid-derived bifunctional phosphonium salts as phase-transfer promoters. A variety of structurally dense tri- and tetrasubstituted aziridine derivatives, containing benzofused heterocycles as well as spiro-structures, were readily synthesized in high yields with excellent diastereo- and enantioselectivities (up to >20:1 d.r. and >99.9 % ee). The highly functionalized aziridine products could be easily transformed into different classes of biologically active compounds.

Facile Synthesis of Azetidine Nitrones and Diastereoselective Conversion into Densely Substituted Azetidines

An electrocyclization route to azetidine nitrones from N-alkenylnitrones was discovered that provides facile access to these unsaturated strained heterocycles. Reactivity studies showed that these compounds undergo a variety of reduction, cycloaddition, and nucleophilic addition reactions to form highly substituted azetidines with excellent diastereoselectivity. Taken together, these transformations provide a fundamentally different approach to azetidine synthesis than traditional cyclization by nucleophilic displacement and provide novel access to a variety of underexplored strained heterocyclic compounds.

Efficient Access to Chiral Trisubstituted Aziridines via Catalytic Enantioselective Aza-Darzens Reactions

Herein, we report a Zn-ProPhenol catalyzed aza-Darzens reaction using chlorinated aromatic ketones as nucleophilic partners for the efficient and enantioselective construction of complex trisubstituted aziridines. The α-chloro-β-aminoketone intermediates featuring a chlorinated tetrasubstituted stereocenter can be isolated in high yields and selectivities for further derivatization. Alternatively, they can be directly transformed to the corresponding aziridines in a one-pot fashion. Of note, the reaction can be run on gram-scale with low catalyst loading without impacting its efficiency. Moreover, this methodology was extended to α-bromoketones which are scarcely used in enantioselective catalysis because of their sensitivity and lack of accessibility.

Direct catalytic asymmetric Mannich-type reaction of α-sulfanyl lactones

Catalytic asymmetric Mannich-type reactions of α-sulfanyl lactones to aldimines were promoted by a chiral Ag complex/DBU binary catalyst. The reaction proceeded in a syn-selective manner in high enantioselectivity. Alkylative activation of the sulfide of the Mannich adduct allowed for the formation of trisubstituted aziridines.

An unprecedented ring-opening reaction of N-(aziridin-2-ylmethylene)hydrazines to facile synthesis of functionalized enamines catalysed by Lewis acid

An interesting Lewis acid-catalysed ring-opening reaction of N-(aziridin-2-ylmethylene)hydrazines has been described in this context. A variety of functionalized enamines could be obtained in good yields through a highly regioselective cleavage of a carbon-nitrogen single bond in the aziridines along with a 1,2-migration of the substituent.

Enantioselective chemoenzymatic synthesis of trans-aziridines

A straightforward, five-step procedure for the synthesis of enantiomerically pure 2,3-disubstituted trans-aziridines has been developed starting from commercially available aldehydes. Hydroxynitrile lyase-mediated cyanohydrin formation provided cyanohydrins in excellent enantioselectivities and good yields. Subsequent formation of diastereomerically pure anti-amino alcohols via a one-pot Grignard addition-reduction sequence, Cu(II)-catalyzed diazotransfer, and triphenylphosphine-mediated reductive cyclization provided the corresponding trans-aziridines in good yields and excellent diastereoselectivities.

Recent Progress on the Stereoselective Synthesis of Cyclic Quaternary alpha-Amino Acids

The most recent papers describing the stereoselective synthesis of cyclic quaternary alpha-amino acids are collected in this review. The diverse synthetic approaches are classified according to the size of the ring and taking into account the bond that is formed to complete the quaternary skeleton.

An Easy Stereoselective Access to β,γ-Aziridino α-Amino Ester Derivatives via Mannich Reaction of Benzophenone Imines of Glycine Esters with N-Sulfonyl α-Chloroaldimines

Mannich-type addition of benzophenone imine glycinates across newly synthesized N-(p-toluenesulfonyl) alpha-chloroaldimines afforded gamma-chloro-alpha,beta-diamino ester derivatives with moderate diastereoselectivity as separable mixtures of anti and syn diastereomers. The gamma-chloro-alpha,beta-diamino esters were efficiently cyclized under basic conditions to the corresponding beta,gamma-aziridino alpha-amino ester derivatives, representing a new class of conformationally constrained heterocyclic alpha,beta-diamino acid derivatives. The relative configuration of the aziridines was determined via X-ray diffraction analysis. Mechanisms and intermediate transition states to explain the stereochemical outcome of the Mannich reaction with different substrates or under different conditions are proposed. The synthetic importance of the beta,gamma-aziridino alpha-amino ester derivatives is demonstrated by their conversion into the corresponding Boc-protected derivatives and ring opening reactions to alpha,beta-diamino esters and a gamma-amino alpha,beta-unsaturated amino ester.

Asymmetric Synthesis of Aziridines by Reduction ofN-tert-Butanesulfinyl α-Chloro Imines

Reduction of (RS)-N-tert-butanesulfinyl alpha-halo imines afforded chiral aziridines in good to excellent yields. Upon reduction of (RS)-N-tert-butanesulfinyl alpha-halo imines with NaBH4 in THF, in the presence of 10 equiv of MeOH, (RS,S)-beta-halo sulfinamides were formed in excellent yield (up to 98%) with very good stereoselectivity (>98:2). Simple treatment of the latter (RS,S)-beta-halo-tert-butanesulfinamides with KOH afforded the corresponding (RS,S)-N-(tert-butylsulfinyl)aziridines in quantitative yields. On the contrary, its epimer, (RS,R)-N-(tert-butylsulfinyl)aziridine was synthesized by switchover of the reducing agent from NaBH4 to LiBHEt3. (RS,R)-N-(tert-Butylsulfinyl)aziridines were synthesized in good yields (up to 85%) and diastereoselectivity (up to 92:8) by reduction of (RS)-N-tert-butanesulfinyl alpha-halo imines with LiBHEt3 in dry THF and subsequent treatment with KOH. All chiral aziridines were obtained as a single diastereomer after recrystallization (overall yield up to 91%) or after flash chromatography.

Asymmetric synthesis of 2H-azirine 3-carboxylates

[reaction: see text] Dehydrochlorination of methyl 2-chloroaziridine 2-carboxylates generates the first examples of enantiopure 2-substituted 2H-azirine 3-carboxylates which undergo the aza Diels-Alder reaction with dienes to give bicyclic and tricyclic aziridines in good yields.

Synthesis of 2-chloro-2-imidoylaziridines via aza-Darzens-type reaction of 3,3-dichloro-1-azaallylic anions and N-(arylsulfonyl)imines

3,3-Dichloro-1-azaallylic anions, generated by deprotonation of alpha,alpha-dichloroketimines 10 with lithium diisopropylamide, reacted with N-sulfonylaldimines 7 to produce the Mannich-type products N-[2,2-dichloro-3-(N-alkylimino)-1,3-diarylpropyl]benzenesulfonamides 11. The latter stable compounds were hydrolyzed at the imino functionality to afford N-[2,2-dichloro-3-oxo-1,3-diarylpropyl]benzenesulfonamides 12 in excellent yields. N-[2,2-Dichloro-3-(N-alkylimino)-1,3-diarylpropyl]benzenesulfonamides 11 were cyclized to cis-3-aryl-2-chloro-2-imidoylaziridines 19 in 81-99% yield with high diastereoselectivity, representing a novel and readily available class of stable 2-chloroaziridines. Finally, a highly stereoselective entry to 2-(aminomethyl)-2-chloroaziridines 27 (70-98% yield; de > 95-99) was worked out from the reaction of cis-3-aryl-2-chloro-2-imidoylaziridines 19 and sodium cyanoborohydride in the presence of acetic acid. The latter 2-(aminomethyl)aziridines 27 represent stereochemically defined small azaheterocyclic rings which were scarcely reported in the literature.

Use of α-Chlorinated N-(tert-Butanesulfinyl)imines in the Synthesis of Chiral Aziridines

[reaction: see text] Reaction of chiral alpha-chloro tert-butanesulfinyl aldimines with Grignard reagents efficiently afforded beta-chloro N-sulfinamides in high diastereomeric excess. The latter compounds were cyclized toward the corresponding chiral aziridines in a high-yielding one-pot reaction or after separate treatment with base. The diastereoselectivity obtained in the newly synthesized beta-chloro sulfinamides is explained via the coordinating ability of the alpha-chloro atom with magnesium resulting in the opposite stereochemical outcome as generally observed for nonfunctionalized N-sulfinyl imines.

Stereoselective Addition of α-Sulfinyl Carbanions toN-p-tolylsulfinylketimines: Synthesis of Optically Pure 1,2,2‘-Trialkyl-2-aminoethanols

The reactions of lithium carbanions derived from both enantiomers of methyl (1) and ethyl p-tolyl sulfoxide (2) with (S)-N-arylsulfinylketimines 3 and 4 took place in a highly stereoselective manner and good isolated yields. The configuration of the carbon bonded to nitrogen relies exclusively on the N-sulfinylimine configuration. When ethyl p-tolyl sulfoxide (2) is use as nucleophile, two chiral centers are created simultaneously, where the configuration of the carbon bonded to the sulfur is mainly controlled by 2. The asymmetric induction increases with the temperature, being total at room temperature in the case of the matched pair of reactants. A non-oxidative Pummerer reaction on the obtained aminosulfoxides allows a straightforward synthesis of optically pure 1,2-ethanolamines with one or two chiral centers, including amino alcohols with a bulky quaternary carbon bonded to the amine group.

Facile synthesis of optically pure 1,2-diaryl (and 1-Alkyl-2-aryl) ethyl and propylamines

A concise high-yielding route to synthetically useful 1,2-diaryl (and 1-alkyl-2-aryl) ethyl and propylamines in high enantiomeric purity is described. The key step of this route is the completely stereoselective addition of lithium (R)-ortho-(p-toluenesulfinyl)benzylic carbanions to (S)-N-p-toluenesulfinylimines, which takes place in very high or quantitative yields. N-Desulfinylation and C-desulfinylation of the resulting adducts can be achieved with no loss of optical purity employing conventional methods (TFA and Raney-Ni, respectively).