α-Aminoallylation of aldehydes in aqueous ammonia

Brønsted Acid-Catalyzed General Petasis Allylation and Isoprenylation of Unactivated Ketones

Brønsted acid-catalyzed general Petasis allylation and isoprenylation of unactivated ketones were developed by using o-hydroxyaniline and the corresponding pinacolyl boronic esters. This robust methodology provided access to a broad variety of quaternary homoallylic amines and dienyl amines in high yields, proved to be applicable to a gram-scale synthesis, and allowed the synthesis of a potentially bioactive quaternary homoallylic aminodiol.

1,2-Amino alcohol-dependent Petasis allylboration for racemic and chiral homoallylamines

Asymmetric Petasis allylboration among an aldehyde, 1,2-amino alcohol and pinacolallylboronate has been established at room temperature without any catalysts.

Kinetic Resolution of Secondary Allyl Boronates and Their Application in the Synthesis of Homoallylic Amines

Highly enantioenriched, chromatographically-stable secondary allyl boronates featuring a 1,1,2,2-tetraethyl-1,2-ethanediol fragment (Epin) were obtained by kinetic resolution of their racemic mixtures. The Epin group at boron considerably improved stability of allyl boronates allowing them to be readily isolated by chromatography on silica. The resolved reagents were applied in stereoselective synthesis of homoallylic amines with an internal double bond employing unprotected imines formed in situ from aldehydes and ammonia. The reactions proceeded with an excellent transfer of chirality.

Adducts of Triallylborane with Ammonia and Aliphatic Amines as Stoichiometric Allylating Agents for Aminoallylation Reaction of Carbonyl Compounds

Triallylborane-amines adducts are effective stoichiometric allylating agents in the aminoallylation reaction of carbonyl compounds in methanol. Moreover, copper-catalyzed diastereoselective allylation of Ellman's imine was achieved with triallylborane-methylamine adduct.

Direct Access to N-Unprotected α- and/or β-Tetrasubstituted Amino Acid Esters via Direct Catalytic Mannich-Type Reactions Using N-Unprotected Trifluoromethyl Ketimines

Direct catalytic C-C bond-forming addition to N-unprotected ketimines is an efficient and straightforward method of synthesizing N-unprotected tetrasubstituted amines that eliminates prior protection/deprotection steps and allows facile transformation of the products. Despite its advantages, however, N-unprotected ketimines have difficulties in C-C bond-forming reactions, and only a limited number of reactions and substrates are reported compared with their N-protected counterparts. Herein we report that N-unprotected trifluoromethyl ketimines are effective for C-C bond-forming reactions using Mannich-type reactions as a model case. We demonstrate that Lewis acid catalysis was effective for promoting reactions with various N-unprotected trifluoromethyl ketimines, and thiourea organocatalysis was effective for promoting highly enantioselective reactions with various carbonyl nucleophiles, providing direct access to various N-unprotected α- and/or β-tetrasubstituted amino acid esters. Furthermore, direct construction of vicinal tetrasubstituted chiral carbon stereocenters was achieved for the first time in a highly enantio- and diastereoselective manner. These results demonstrate the potential of N-unprotected ketimines as substrates applicable to many other addition reactions.

Solvent-Free Acetalization of Glycerol with n-Octanal using Combined Brønsted Acid-Surfactant Catalyst

Glycerol, derived from biodiesel production, is a renewable feedstock for the production of value-added chemicals. Herein, we report an investigation of the acetalization of glycerol with n-octanal by homogeneous acid catalysis in the absence of a solvent, using p-dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, and sulfuric acid, respectively, as catalysts. p-Dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid, a surfactant-type Brønsted acid, proved to be an excellent catalyst capable of efficiently promoting the reaction under solvent-free conditions, and the yields of glycerol acetals reached 99% under the optimal conditions. The distribution of five- and six-membered cyclic acetal regioisomers varied depending on the reaction time and temperature. Moreover, the amphiphilic properties of the products, with different ratios of five- to six-membered cyclic acetals, have been evaluated by surface tension measurements.

Direct access to N-unprotected tetrasubstituted propargylamines via direct catalytic alkynylation of N-unprotected trifluoromethyl ketimines

Direct catalytic alkynylation of N-unprotected trifluoromethyl ketimines allowed an unprecedented direct access to N-unprotected α-tetrasubstituted primary amines without additional deprotection steps.

The new world of organic reactions in water

Different reactivities and selectivities are observed in water compared with those in organic solvents. In this article, such three examples are described. While ammonia was known not to react in metal-catalyzed allylic amination, palladium-catalyzed allylic amination using aqueous ammonia proceeded to afford primary amines in high yields. Second, allylboronates reacted with aldehydes in aqueous media to afford α-addition adducts exclusively in high yields with high diastereo- and enantioselectivities using Zn(OH)2with ligands as catalysts. Finally, it was found that catalytic use of In(0) was effective for the reactions of allylboronates with ketones in water.

Bismuth-catalyzed addition of silyl nucleophiles to carbonyl compounds and imines

Bismuth triflate was found to be an efficient catalyst both in the Mannich-type reaction of silyl enolates and in the Sakurai reaction of allyltrimethylsilane with N-alkoxycarbonylamino sulfones. The reactions proceeded smoothly with a low catalyst loading of Bi(OTf)(3)·4H(2)O (0.5-5.0 mol%) to afford the corresponding protected β-amino carbonyl compounds and homoallylic amines in very good yields (up to 96%). The latter compounds could also be obtained via a bismuth-mediated three-component reaction. We have also developed an efficient vinylogous Mukaiyama aldol reaction of 2-(trimethylsilyloxy)furan with various aromatic aldehydes mediated by bismuth triflate in a low catalyst loading (1 mol%). The reaction proceeds rapidly and affords the corresponding 5-[hydroxy(aryl)methyl]furan-2(5H)-ones in high yields with good to very good diastereoselectivities (diastereoisomeric ratios>98:2). Such selectivities, although previously reported with other Lewis acids, could be achieved with a much lower catalyst loading. 5-[Hydroxy(alkyl)methyl]furan-2(5H)-ones derived from ketones could also be obtained with good diastereoselectivities. The vinylogous Mukaiyama aldol reaction has also been extended to 2,2-dimethyl-6-methylene-4-(trimethyl-silyloxy)-1,3-diox-4-ene using 1 mol% of Bi(OTf)(3)·4H(2)O.

Hydride as a leaving group in the reaction of pinacolborane with halides under ambient Grignard and Barbier conditions. One-pot synthesis of alkyl, aryl, heteroaryl, vinyl, and allyl pinacolboronic esters

Grignard reagents (aliphatic, aromatic, heteroaromatic, vinyl, or allylic) react with 1 equiv of 4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-1,3,2-dioxaborolane (pinacolborane, PinBH) at ambient temperature in tetrahydrofuran (THF) to afford the corresponding pinacolboronates. The initially formed dialkoxy alkylborohydride intermediate quickly eliminates hydridomagnesium bromide (HMgBr) and affords the product boronic ester in very good yield. Hydridomagnesium bromide (HMgBr) in turn disproportionates to a 1:1 mixture of magnesium hydride (MgH(2)) and magnesium bromide (MgBr(2)) on addition of pentane to the reaction mixture. DFT calculations (Gaussian09) at the B3LYP/6-31G(d) level of theory show that disproportionation of HMgBr to MgH(2) and MgBr(2) is viable in the coordinating ethereal solvents. This reaction also can be carried out under Barbier conditions, where the neat PinBH is added to the flask prior to the in situ formation of Grignard reagent from the corresponding organic halide and magnesium metal. Pinacolboronic ester synthesis under Barbier conditions does not give Wurtz coupling side products from reactive halides, such as benzylic and allylic halides. The reaction between PinBH and various Grignard reagents is an efficient, mild, and general method for the synthesis of pinacolboronates.

Palladium-catalyzed allylic amination using aqueous ammonia for the synthesis of primary amines

Palladium-catalyzed allylic amination using aqueous ammonia for the preparation of primary amines has been realized. It is noteworthy that the use of aqueous ammonia is essential and that ammonia gas did not react at all. The first catalytic asymmetric synthesis using aqueous ammonia as a nitrogen source has also been demonstrated.

[Development of efficient methods for synthesis of nitrogen-containing compounds using carbamates, acylhydrazines, and ammonia]

For the efficient synthesis of divergent nitrogen-containing compounds of pharmaceutical and agricultural importance, the development of efficient, complementary, and new synthetic methodologies is essential. One of the key subjects is how to introduce nitrogen atoms in to organic molecules. This review summaries our recent efforts on this issue, focusing on the use of carbamates, acylhydrazines, and ammonia as nitrogen sources.

The first catalytic Sakurai reaction of N-alkoxycarbonylamino sulfones with allyltrimethylsilane

We report the first catalytic Sakurai reaction of N-alkoxycarbonylamino sulfones with allylsilanes. The allylation reaction of N-alkoxycarbonylamino phenylsulfones with allyltrimethylsilane proceeded smoothly with low catalyst loading of bismuth triflate (2.0 mol%) to afford the corresponding protected homoallylic amines in moderate to very good yields (up to 96%).

Diastereoselective allylation and crotylation of N-unsubstituted imines derived from ketones

A wide variety of tertiary carbinamines are synthesized in high yields via diastereoselective allylation and crotylation of in situ generated N-unsubstituted ketimines.