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The enantioselective Mannich reaction of 2H-azirines with alkynyl ketones is achieved under Zn-ProPhenol catalysis, delivering various aziridines with vicinal tetrasubstituted stereocenters in high...

Enantioselective incorporation of trifluoromethyl (-CF3) and trifuoromethylthio (-SCF3) groups in small molecules is of high interest to modulate the potency and pharmacological properties of drug candidates. Herein, we report a Zn-ProPhenol catalyzed diastereo- and enantioselective Mannich addition of α-trifluoromethyl- and α-trifuoromethylthio-substituted ketones. This transformation uses cyclic and acyclic ketones and generates quaternary trifluoromethyl and tetrasubstituted trifuoromethylthio stereogenic centers in excellent yields and selectivities.

Herein we present a Zn-ProPhenol-catalyzed double Mannich reaction between ynones and imines that generates 1,3-diamines in excellent yield as well as diastereo- and enantioselectivity (>99.5% ee). With 2.2 equiv of a single imine electrophile, we obtain pseudo-symmetrical diamines whereas, with two different imine partners, we obtain unsymmetrically substituted 1,3-diamines with three contiguous stereocenters. In addition, we showcase the utility of these double Mannich adducts by transforming the 1,3-diamine motif into a variety of interesting products.

The synthesis of the pentacylic core of (+)-citrinadin A is described. Our strategy harnesses the power of palladium-catalyzed trimethylenemethane chemistry (Pd-TMM) to form the key spirooxindole motif in a catalytic, asymmetric fashion. Upon the conversion of this spirooxindole to a vinyl epoxide electrophile, the piperidine ring is directly added via a diastereoselective metalation followed by an SN2' addition. The final ring of the pentacyclic core is then formed through an intramolecular SN2 displacement of the resulting activated alcohol.

A palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative asymmetric allylic alkylation (Pd-DAAA) of benzo-fused and non-benzo-fused δ-valerolactams is disclosed. This methodology gives access to chiral lactams bearing C3-quaternary stereocenters, which are central to many natural products and biologically active compounds. The reaction proceeds via palladium-catalyzed ionization of an allyl ester, followed by carbon dioxide extrusion and recombination of the electrophilic Pd-π-allyl complex with the in situ generated lactam enolate. This final step converts racemic allylic ester starting materials into enantiomerically enriched substituted lactams with high yield and enantiomeric excess.

A vanadium-catalyzed coupling of allenylic alcohols with electrophilic halide sources to form α-halo-α',β'-unsaturated ketones is described. The process proceeds through a metal enolate formed from the 1,3-transposition of an allenol that is initiated by a cheap and earth-abundant vanadium oxo catalyst. Fluorine, chlorine, and bromine electrophiles can be utilized, and the resulting products can give rise to the introduction of nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and iodine nucleophiles α to the ketone through substitution chemistry.

The palladium-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition using in situ generated sulfone-TMM species to construct various chiral cyclopentyl sulfones in a highly regio-, diastereo- (dr >15:1), and enantiosele...

A highly regio-, diastereo-, and enantioselective trimethylenemethane (TMM) cycloaddition reaction for the rapid assembly of 2-acyl-methylenecyclopentane in an atom-economic fashion is described. This intermolecular protocol allows for facile and divergent access to an array of structurally attractive cyclic adducts. The choice of a robust chiral diamidophosphite ligand, developed by our group, proved to be crucial for the success of this transformation.

A new ruthenium-based catalytic system for branched-selective asymmetric allylic alkylation is disclosed and applied to the synthesis of chiral isatin derivatives. The catalyst, which is generated in situ from commercially available CpRu(MeCN)3PF6 and a BINOL-derived phosphoramidite, is both highly active (TON up to 180) and insensitive to air and moisture. Additionally, the N-alkylated isatins accessible using this methodology are versatile building blocks that are readily transformed into chiral analogs of achiral drug molecules.

The use of β-nitroenamines as a new class of acceptors in the enantioselective Pd-catalyzed trimethylenemethane cycloaddition afforded differentiated 1,2-dinitrogen bearing cyclopentanes with three contiguous stereocenters. The utility of these acceptors was demonstrated with the efficient construction of the core of jogyamycin and aminocyclopentitols. Further elaboration of the cycloadducts provided a concise synthetic approach toward joygamycin.

Herein, a ruthenium-catalyzed cycloisomerization that transforms 1,6-haloenynes into 5-membered carbo- and heterocycles that bear exocyclic, stereodefined, tetrasubstituted vinyl halides is reported. The reaction is insensitive to air and water, tolerates a variety of functional groups, and proceeds with good to excellent stereoselectivity and yield.

Densely substituted chiral pyrrolidones are synthesized via phosphine-catalyzed cycloisomerization of enantioenriched β-amino ynones, which are prepared in a single step using a highly enantioselective Zn-ProPhenol-catalyzed Mannich reaction. The exocyclic alkenes in the cyclization products provide versatile handles for further transformations and typically form with good E/ Z selectivity. This cycloisomerization method can be performed in streamlined fashion, without purification of the intermediate Mannich adduct, and extends to anthranilic acid based scaffolds in addition to ProPhenol-derived Mannich adducts.

Nonreducing, pH-neutral conditions for the selective cleavage of the 2,2,2-trichloroethoxycarbonyl (Troc) protecting group are reported. Using trimethyltin hydroxide in 1,2-dichloroethane, Troc-protected alcohols, thiols, and amines can be selectively unmasked in the presence of various functionalities that are incompatible with the reducing conditions traditionally used to remove the Troc group. This mild deprotection protocol tolerates a variety of other hydrolytically sensitive and acid/base-sensitive moieties as well.

The development and application of a new generation of non-C2-symmetric ProPhenol ligands is reported herein. Rational design of the ProPhenol ligand paved the way to the first catalytic and asymmetric vinylation of N-Boc imines via hydrozirconation giving rise to valuable allylic amines in excellent yields and enantioselectivities. The utility of this method was demonstrated by developing the shortest reported asymmetric synthesis of the selective serotonine reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) (-)-dapoxetine.

The phosphine-catalyzed synthesis of 1,2-dihydropyridines via an alkyne isomerization/electrocyclization sequence is described. Propargylidenecarbamate substrates were prepared following a one-pot procedure between a terminal alkyne, a benzonitrile, and a chloroformate in the presence of trimethylaluminum. This methodology gives access to a diverse set of 2,6-disubstituted 1,2-dihydropyridines in high yield. The products can be easily converted into substituted piperidines or pyridines, and this methodology was applied to the synthesis of indolizidines.

A vanadium catalyzed 1,3-rearrarngement of allenols to form transient vanadium enolates that selectively couple with electrophilic nitrogen sources is reported even in the presence of competing simple protonation and Alder-ene pathways. The hydrazine products can be cyclized in a 6-endo-trig fashion which, upon reductive cleavage of the N-N bond, yield 1,4-diamines. Additionally, cleavage of the N-N bond before cyclization can be achieved to form β-hydroxy amines, a common structural motif of biologically active compounds.

An unprecedented coordinatively unsaturated chiral indenylruthenium complex 12 was designed and synthesized to provide additional coordination sites for Ru-catalyzed asymmetric transformations. In an attempt to catalyze an asymmetric enyne cycloisomerization reaction of 1,6-enyne, significant amounts of hydroxycyclization were observed. Up to 84:16 er of the hydroxycyclization product was obtained in 2-MeTHF. This chiral indenylruthenium catalyst could also perform an asymmetric redox isomerization/C–H insertion reaction in up to 90:10 er.

An efficient synthesis of the C13–C29 fragment of amphidinolide N is described. The synthesis relies on a new strategy involving Pd-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation to generate diastereoselectively the cis- or trans-THF unit simply by varying the enantiomer of the ligand. The C19 hydroxyl-bearing stereocenter was introduced using a chelation-controlled allylation which led exclusively to a single diastereoisomer.

An atom-economical procedure for the direct synthesis of cycloalkanes from propargyl alcohols is reported. This high-yielding one-pot process involves a sequence consisting of a Ru-catalyzed redox isomerization of ynols into enones or an enal followed by an intramolecular Michael addition of a variety of carbon nucleophiles. Furthermore, an asymmetric variant of this protocol realized by the aid of a chiral nonracemic diamine catalyst, which provides the cyclization products in up to 97% ee, is presented.

A catalytic enantioselective formal total synthesis of aspergillide B is reported. This linchpin synthesis was enabled by the development of new conditions for Zn-ProPhenol catalyzed asymmetric alkyne addition. This reaction was used in conjunction with ruthenium-catalyzed trans-hydrosilylation to affect the rapid construction of a late-stage synthetic intermediate of aspergillide B to complete a formal synthesis of aspergillide B in a highly efficient manner.

Nitroalkenes readily undergo palladium-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition with trimethylenemethane to generate nitrocyclopentanes in excellent yield and enantioselectivity. Furthermore, the products thus formed are highly versatile synthetic intermediates and provide convenient access to both cyclopentylamines and cyclopentenones.

A concise, enantioselective synthesis of the potent aldose reductase inhibitor ranirestat (1) is reported. The synthesis was accomplished employing inexpensive, commercially available starting materials. A palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation (Pd-AAA) of malonate 4 was utilized as a key transformation to construct the tetrasubstituted chiral center in the target.

An atom-economical method for the convenient synthesis of tetrahydropyrans and tetrahydrofurans is reported. Enones and enals derived from the [IndRu(PPh(3))(2)Cl]-catalyzed redox isomerization of primary and secondary propargyl alcohols undergo a subsequent intramolecular conjugate addition to provide cyclic ethers in excellent yields.

A transition metal-mediated, atom-economical approach toward the crucial A and D rings of miyakolide is described. A Pd-catalyzed alkyne-alkyne coupling/6- endo- dig cyclization is employed to assemble the A ring fragment. The key D ring pyran is constructed utilizing an Ru-catalyzed alkene-alkyne coupling followed by a Pd-catalyzed allylic alkylation to establish the all-cis stereochemistry.

Morita-Baylis-Hillman diene adducts are used as substrates in the palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation reaction with oxygen and carbon nucleophiles in good regio- and enantioselectivity.

A catalytic enantioselective total synthesis of adociacetylene B (2) in five steps is reported. The efficiency of this synthesis was enabled by an asymmetric zinc alkynylation catalyzed by the proline-derived ligand (1).

[reaction; see text] The asymmetric synthesis of the oxindole alkaloid horsfiline is described. A palladium-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation (AAA) is used to set the spiro(pyrrolidine-oxindole) stereogenic center.

[reaction: see text]. A variety of N-substituted allenes have been synthesized by the copper-catalyzed coupling reaction between allenyl halides and amides, carbamates, and ureas. The reactions proceed in good to excellent yield using 7 mol % copper thiophenecarboxylate and 15 mol % of a diamine catalyst.

A concise total synthesis of (+)-pseudodistomin D was developed. The absolute stereochemistry was established through a dynamic kinetic asymmetric cycloaddition of an isocyanate to a vinyl aziridine. The piperidine core was constructed through a silver(I)-catalyzed hydroamination of an alkyne and subsequent diastereo- and regioselective reduction. [reaction: see text]

The ruthenium-catalyzed cycloisomerization of diynes containing one silyl alkyne and one propargyl alcohol yields 2-silyl-[6H]-pyrans instead of the expected unsaturated acylsilanes except when additional conjugation of a aromatic ring is present at the delta-position. Under certain conditions, a facile ruthenium-catalyzed isomerization of the product takes place as well. This regioselectivity of the cyclization can be controlled by the choice of solvent system. DFT calculations confirm the expected greater stability of the silyl-pyrans relative to the acylsilanes.

Boronolide was synthesized stereoselectively from hydroxyacetylfuran 5 and valeraldehyde 6 using a novel dizinc aldol catalyst. Ring closing metathesis provides the lactone ring. The synthesis requires 12 steps and proceeds in 26% overall yield. [reaction: see text]

A protocol for the asymmetric trimethylenemethane (TMM) [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of alkynyl-substituted TMM donors and unsaturated N-acyl pyrroles employing a chiral bisdiamidophosphite ligand has been developed. This process generates alkynyl-substituted cyclopentanes in high yields and diastereo- and enantioselectivities. These chiral precursors are employed for the atom economic assembly of fused polycyclic hydrocarbons with hydroindene, hydroazulene, and hydrocyclopentanaphthalene scaffolds by consecutive cycloaddition reactions.

[reaction: see text] The enantioselective aldol reaction using a novel binuclear zinc catalyst of acetone with several aldehydes gave products in good yields (62-89%) with a high level of enantioselectivity (ee = 76-92%).

The trans-selective hydrosilylation of ynones (1) yields beta-silylated enones (2) that undergo a benzylic 1,4-rearrangement/cyclization reaction in the presence of base, yielding 2,5-dihydro-1,2-oxasiloles (3).

[formula: see text] A synthesis of gamma-amino acids and their cyclic derivatives, 3-pyrrolinones, from alpha-amino acids employs a ruthenium-catalyzed Alder ene reaction as a key step in the sequence. Cyclopentadienylruthenium (1,4-cyclooctadiene) chloride catalyzes the addition of gamma-amido-alpha,beta-alkynoate esters with monosubstituted alkenes. The major product arises from C-C bond formation at the alpha-carbon of the alkynoate. The reaction exhibits high chemoselectivity. The ruthenium-catalyzed addition occurs in preference to a Diels-Alder reaction. The two new double bonds are created with complete geometrical control. The initial gamma-amido-alpha,beta-unsaturated ester can be cyclized to the pyrrolinones with a tin catalyst.

[reaction: see text] The cationic ruthenium complex [CpRu(NCCH3)3]PF6 promotes the coupling of monosubstituted allene carboxylic acids and simple alpha,beta-unsaturated olefins to form five- and six-membered lactones. The mild reaction conditions allow for the presence of various functional groups.

[reaction: see text]. A novel and versatile strategy for the synthesis of highly functionalized substituted 3-sulfolenes based on [CpRu(CH3CN)3]PF6-catalyzed hydrative cyclization has been developed. A marked ketone directing effect in ruthenium-catalyzed cyclization was observed for the first time. This provides complementary chemoselectivity for the synthesis of 3-sulfolenes and other cyclic enones. The utility of this method has been demonstrated by SO2 extrusion of 3-sulfolenes to afford 1,3-dienes and the subsequent inter- and intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction.

β,β-Disubstituted nitroalkenes readily undergo palladium-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition with trimethylenemethane to generate nitrocyclopentanes in excellent yield and enantioselectivity. The reaction provides access to heavily substituted cyclopentanes containing up to three contiguous stereocenters, and the products may be converted to both cyclopentylamines and cyclopentenones. A rare dependence of the sense of chirality of the cycloadducts was observed to be exclusively dependent on the structure of the palladium-bound trimethylenemethane intermediate.

The development of a highly stereospecific process for the C–O to C–N exchange with retention of configuration is described. This transformation enables access to optically enriched β-amido-α-diazoesters. These products are transformed to β-amino acids not readily accessible using known methods.

[reaction: see text]. Ru-catalyzed cycloisomerization of cyclopropylenynes proceeds with good to high diastereoselectivities to form hexahydroazulenes.

A highly diastereo- and enantioselective formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition of α,β-unsaturated esters and 3-hydroxyoxindoles catalyzed by a dinuclear zinc-ProPhenol complex is reported. The stereoselective Michael additions of 3-hydroxyoxindoles and the subsequent transesterifications afford spirocyclic δ-lactones.

Pyrroles can serve as competent nucleophiles with meso electrophiles in the Pd-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation. The products from this transformation were obtained as a single regio- and diastereomer in high yield and enantiopurity. A nitropyrrole-containing nucleoside analogue was synthesized in seven steps to demonstrate the synthetic utility of this transformation.

[reaction: see text] An efficient macrolactonization protocol devoid of any base was developed derived from the use of vinyl esters in transesterification. Subjecting a hydroxy acid and ethoxyacetylene to 2 mol % [RuCl(2)(p-cymene)](2) in toluene followed by addition of camphorsulfonic acid or inverse addition provided macrolactones in good yields.

[reaction: see text] Syntheses of variously modified ligands for the dinuclear zinc catalysts for the asymmetric aldol and nitroaldol (Henry) reactions are reported. Catalytic enantioselective nitroaldol reactions promoted by these modified ligands led to efficient syntheses of the beta-receptor agonists (-)-denopamine and (-)-arbutamine.

Enabled by the broad scope of the Pd-catalyzed asymmetric alkylation of meso- and d,l-divinylethylene carbonate, several chiral diene ligands were prepared in two steps from commercial materials. Subsequently, these ligands were evaluated in the Rh-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition of boronic acids to enones.

Rhodium-catalyzed oxidative cyclization of allylic hydroxylamine-derived sulfamate esters furnishes a novel family of bicyclic aziridines that serve as functional precursors to substituted diamines. Investigations with the N4-Troc form of these heterocycles have led to manifold improvements in reaction performance and scope and have revealed unique differences in the stability and reactivity of such compounds dictated by the choice of N4-protecting group.

Acetoxy Meldrum's acid can serve as a versatile acyl anion equivalent in the Pd-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation. The reaction of this nucleophile with various meso and racemic electrophiles afforded alkylated products in high yields and enantiopurities. These enantioenriched products are versatile intermediates that can be further functionalized using nitrogen- and oxygen-centered nucleophiles, affording versatile scaffolds for the synthesis of nucleoside analogues. These scaffolds were used to complete formal syntheses of the anti-HIV drugs carbovir, abacavir, and the antibiotic aristeromycin.

An enantioselective propargylation of aldehydes using an allenylzinc reagent generated in situ via a zinc−iodine exchange reaction is described. The enantioselectivity is controlled by addition of a catalytic amount of readily accessible and highly tunable amino alcohol ligand L13. A wide range of aldehydes can be propargylated to afford valuable and versatile homopropargyl alcohols in good to excellent yields with high levels of enantiopurity.

[reaction: see text]. The ability to employ a bromo alcohol as a nucleophile in a palladium-catalyzed dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation leads to an efficient synthesis of a selective PKC inhibitor under clinical development.

The direct and chemoselective synthesis of β-heteroarylated ketones from secondary propargyl alcohols through tandem Ru/In catalysis is reported. Both electron-rich and neutral heteroarenes, such as furans and indoles, efficiently undergo the redox isomerization/conjugate addition (RICA) sequence to provide the corresponding adducts in yields of up to 97%.