Asymmetric biaryl synthesis

This synthetic plan, which initially involved an efficient asymmetric biaryl synthesis, suffered from two weaknesses, namely in the manipulation of configurationally fragile intermediates and in the epimerization at the biaryl axis during the decarboxylation step. These... 

Of the various possible asymmetric cross-coupling reactions, (1) asymmetric alkylation with secondary alkylmetals, (2) asymmetric biaryl synthesis, and (3) asymmetric allylation with allylic electrophiles have been most extensively studied with chiral Ni and Pd complexes [166]. The initial study in this area was reported as early as 1974 by Kumada and his co-workers, but only a meager range of 8-15% ee was reported [167]. By the end of the 1970s, however, the cross-coupling reaction had been sufficiently developed so that its application to the asymmetric synthesis was already practically attractive, as indicated by an asymmetric total sythesis of (R)-(—)-a-curcumene in five steps in 66% ee and 34% overall yield shown in Scheme 1-47 [168]. 

Recently, the use of a chiral catalysts in the asymmetric biaryl synthesis has received some attention. Unsymmetrical chiral binaphthyls can be obtained in high enantiomeric excess by SnAt reactions of naphthylimines such as 39 with lithium bromide free 1-naphthyllithium catalysed by a chiral ether ligand 40 (ref. 29). Another example is the Ni(0) catalysed cross coupling of naphthyl Grignard reagents and naphthyl bromides in the presence of a chiral ferrocene ligand (ref. 30). 

The lactone concept is not restricted to the simple model biaryl synthesis presented here. It has been successfully expanded to a broad series of structurally diverse biaryl substrates (e.g., lactones with additional stereocenters and functional groups, configurationally stable lactones, seven-membered lactones, and again configurationally unstable biaryl hydroxy aldehydes ), to different activation modes in the ring-opening step (e.g., use of metallated nucleophiles, carbonyl activation by Lewis acids, (Ti -complexation, etc.), and for various strategies of stereoselection (e.g., external vs. internal asymmetric induction). ... 

The Ullmann reaction (Figure 13.4) represents another synthesis of substituted biphenyls. In this process an aryl iodide or—as in the present case—an aryl iodide/aryl chloride mixture is heated with Cu powder. It is presumed that under standard conditions the aryl iodide reacts in situ with Cu to form the aryl copper compound. Usually, the latter couples with the remaining aryl iodide and a symmetric biphenyl is formed. In a few instances it is also possible to generate asymmetric biaryls via a crossed Ullmann reaction. In these cases one employs a mixture of an aryl iodide and another aryl halide (not an iodide ) the other aryl halide must exhibit a higher propensity than the aryl iodide to couple to the arylcopper intermediate. It is presumed that the mechanism of the Ullmann reaction parallels the mechanism of the Cadiot-Chodkiewicz coupling, which we will discuss in Section 13.4. 

The first asymmetric intermolecular synthesis of 0-methylancistrocladine (2) involved the use of a Meyers biaryl coupling, successfully utilised in the earlier synthesis of dehydroancistrocladine (66), to construct the biaryl linkage atropisomer-selectively (ref. 60,61). It was envisaged that 2 could arise from the acetamide 102 which in turn could be derived from biaryl 103 (Scheme 14). A coupling between the Grignard reagent 104 and chiral oxazoline 105 could then provide 103 stereospecifically. This approach required the synthesis of chiral oxazoline 105 which is outlined in Scheme 15 and begins with the nitrile 71 available in three steps from 1,5-diacetoxynaphthalene (see Scheme 8). 

In non-enzymatic asym. synthesis, centre stage goes to homochiral reagents with C2-symmetry . Chiral stein (1,2-diamino-1,2-di-phenylethane) derivatives, for example, are prominent in a variety of standard transformations, although the dimethoxy-analog evidently is superior for asym. 1,4-addition to a,P-unsatd. azome-thines" . Equally valuable are axially asymmetric biaryl and binaphthyl derivs. which (like stein derivs.) may coordinate a metal template for enhancement of enantioselectivity or incorporation of... 

An asymmetric total synthesis of eupomatilones has been reported with the two chiral centres constructed enantioselectively by the asymmetric [2,3]-Wittig rearrangement of highly oxygenated biaryl compounds, using a bis(oxazoline) chiral ligand... 

This early work clearly demonstrated the utility of the transition-metal-catalyzed [2 -f- 2 -I- 2] cycloaddition for the biaryl synthesis, but asymmetric variants of these reactions were not available. The development of new chiral Co-, Ir-, and Rh-based catalysts for [2 -f 2 - - 2] cycloaddition enabled the catalytic enantioselective synthesis of axially chiral biaryls. 

Meyers has also reported the use of chiral oxazolines in asymmetric copper-catalyzed Ullmann coupling reactions. For example, treatment of bromooxazoline 50 with activated copper powder in refluxing DMF afforded binaphthyl oxazoline 51 as a 93 7 mixture of atropisomers diastereomerically pure material was obtained in 57% yield after a single recrystallization. Reductive cleavage of the oxazoline groups as described above afforded diol 52 in 88% yield. This methodology has also been applied to the synthesis of biaryl derivatives. 

Chan has discovered a completely atropdiasteroselective synthesis of a biaryl diphosphine by asymmetric intramolecular Ullmann coupling or Fe(m)-promoted oxidative coupling. A chiral atropisomeric biaryl bisphosphine ligand 2 was synthesized through this central-to-axial chirality transfer.38 Recently, a xylyl-biaryl bisphosphine ligand, Xyl-TetraPHEMP, was introduced by Moran, and is found to be effective for the Ru-catalyzed hydrogenation of aryl ketone.39... 

The first catalytic 1,4-addition of diethylzinc to 2-cyclopentenone with over 90% ee was described by Pfaltz and Escher, who used phosphite 54 with biaryl groups at the 3,3 -positions of the BINOL backbone.46 Chan and co-workers achieved high enantioselectivity in the same reaction (up to 94% ee) by using chiral copper diphosphite catalyst (R,R,R)-41 48,48a 48d Hoveyda and co-workers used ligand 46 to realize excellent enantiocontrol (97% ee) in the 1,4-additions of 2-cyclopentenones,52 which may be used in the practical asymmetric synthesis of some substituted cyclopentanes (including prostaglandins). 

Axial Chirality. For a system with four groups arranged out of the plane in pairs about an axis, the system is asymmetric when the groups on each side of the axis are different. Such a system is referred to as an axial chiral system. This structure can be considered a variant of central chirality. Some axial chiral molecules are allenes, alkylidene cyclohexanes, spiranes, and biaryls (along with their respective isomorphs). For example, compound 7a (binaphthol), which belongs to the class of biaryl-type axial chiral compounds, is extensively used in asymmetric synthesis. Examples of axial chiral compounds are given in Figure 1-5. 

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