Catalytic asymmetric 1,4-additions of beta-keto esters to nitroalkenes promoted by a bifunctional homobimetallic Co2-Schiff base complex

A Practical and Robust Zwitterionic Cooperative Lewis Acid/Acetate/Benzimidazolium Catalyst for Direct 1,4-Additions

A catalyst type is disclosed allowing for exceptional efficiency in direct 1,4-additions. The catalyst is a zwitterionic entity, in which acetate binds to Cu^II , which is formally negatively charged and serving as counterion for benzimidazolium. All 3 functionalities are involved in the catalytic activation. For maleimides productivity was increased by a factor >300 compared to literature (TONs up to 6700). High stereoselectivity and productivity was attained for a broad range of other Michael acceptors as well. The polyfunctional catalyst is accessible in only 4 steps from N-Ph-benzimidazole with an overall yield of 96 % and robust during catalysis. This allowed to reuse the same catalyst multiple times with nearly constant efficiency. Mechanistic studies, in particular by DFT, give a detailed picture how the catalyst operates. The benzimidazolium unit stabilizes the coordinated enolate nucleophile and prevents that acetate/acetic acid dissociate from the catalyst.

Asymmetric catalytic construction of fully substituted carbon stereocenters using acyclic α-branched β-ketocarbonyls: the “Methyl Rule” widely exists

This review illustrates the recent advances in catalytic asymmetric α-functionalization of acyclic β-ketocarbonyls. A thorough survey of all these reactions indicates the existance of a general principle which is called the “Methyl Rule”.

Asymmetric Catalysis Using Chiral Salen-Metal Complexes: Recent Advances

Chiral salen-metal complexes are among the most versatile asymmetric catalysts and have found utility in fields ranging from materials chemistry to organic synthesis. These complexes are capable of inducing chirality in products formed from a wide variety of chemical processes, often with close to perfect stereoinduction. Salen ligands are tunable for steric as well as electronic properties, and their ability to coordinate a large number of metals gives the derived chiral salen-metal complex very broad utility in asymmetric catalysis. This review primarily summarizes developments in chiral salen-metal catalysis over the last two decades with particular emphasis on those applications of importance in asymmetric synthesis.

Transformative 3d-4f coordination cluster carriers

The aim of this perspective is to summarise the use of the reported 3d-4f Coordination Clusters (CCs) in catalytic reactions and to demonstrate the potential of this emerging field. The pioneering work of Shibasaki, Matsunaga and others, demonstrated the use of 3d-4f in situ systems to catalyse asymmetric organic transformations. Our recent studies show that well characterised 3d-4f CCs catalyse numerous organic transformations and useful mechanistic aspects of their catalysis can be obtained. Furthermore, we have shown that by manipulation of the metal ion coordination environment; the nature of the 3d and lanthanide ions and the organic periphery of the ligand can all improve the efficacy of a 3d-4f CC catalyst. All in situ formed and well characterized 3d-4f CCs involved in catalysis are discussed.

Recent Advances in Metal-Catalyzed Asymmetric 1,4-Conjugate Addition (ACA) of Nonorganometallic Nucleophiles

The metal-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition (ACA) reaction has emerged as a general and powerful approach for the construction of optically active compounds and is among the most significant and useful reactions in synthetic organic chemistry. In recent years, great progress has been made in this area with the use of various chiral metal complexes based on different chiral ligands. This review provides comprehensive and critical information on the enantioselective 1,4-conjugate addition of nonorganometallic (soft) nucleophiles and their importance in synthetic applications. The literature is covered from the last 10 years, and a number of examples from before 2007 are included as background information. The review is divided into multiple parts according to the type of nucleophile involved in the reaction (such as C-, B-, O-, N-, S-, P-, and Si-centered nucleophiles) and metal catalyst systems used.

A homodinuclear cobalt complex for the catalytic asymmetric Michael reaction of β-ketoesters to nitroolefins

A homodinuclear Co₂/aminophenol sulfonamide complex has been developed for the asymmetric Michael reaction.

Cobalt(ii)/(imidazoline–oxazoline)-catalyzed enantioselective Michael addition of 2-acetyl azaarenes to β-CF3-β-disubstituted nitroalkenes

Cobalt(ii)/(imidazoline–oxazoline)-catalyzed enantioselective Michael addition of 2-acetyl azaarenes to β-CF₃-β-disubstituted nitroalkenes is reported, providing chiral compounds with an all-carbon quaternary stereocenter in high yields and excellent enantioselectivities.

4,6-Di-tert-butyl-2,3-di-hydroxy-benzalde-hyde

The title compound, C₁₅H₂₂O₃, crystallizes with two independent mol­ecules in the asymmetric unit. In each mol­ecule, one hy­droxy group (at position 2) is involved in an intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond, and another one (at position 3) exhibits bifurcated hydrogen-bonding being involved in intra- and inter­molecular O—H⋯O inter­actions. In the crystal, O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link alternating independent mol­ecules into chains running along [010].

Polymetallic complexes linked to a single-frame ligand: cooperative effects in catalysis

In an eco-friendly development, catalysis represents the key approach for converting raw materials into valuable products, particularly convenient for multi-step transformations. Mimicking Nature seems the smartest way to design poly-functional assemblies leading to the design of "synergic" catalysts. This perspective focuses on the advances in the conception of polymetallic catalysts bonded to a single ligand frame.