Carbonyl compound enantioselective addition

Alcohols can be obtained from many other classes of compounds such as alkyl halides, amines, al-kenes, epoxides and carbonyl compounds. The addition of nucleophiles to carbonyl compounds is a versatile and convenient methc for the the preparation of alcohols. Regioselective oxirane ring opening of epoxides by nucleophiles is another important route for the synthesis of alcohols. However, stereospe-cific oxirane ring formation is prerequisite to the use of epoxides in organic synthesis. The chemistry of epoxides has been extensively studied in this decade and the development of the diastereoselective oxidations of alkenic alcohols makes epoxy alcohols with definite configurations readily available. Recently developed asymmetric epoxidation of prochiral allylic alcohols allows the enantioselective synthesis of 2,3-epoxy alcohols. 

The first reports on enantioselective addition reactions of achiral organometallic reagents, modified by aprotic chiral additives, described the addition of Grignard reagents to prostereogenic carbonyl compounds in the presence of ( + )-(/ ,/J)-2,3-dimethoxybutane (l)4 5, (-)-tetrahydro-2-methylfuran (2)6, (-)-l-[(tetrahydro-2-furanyl)methyl]pyrrolidine (3)7 or (-)-sparteine (4)8. The enantioselectivity, however, was poor (0-22% ee). 

Reagent-controlled enantioselective addition to achiral carbonyl compounds ... 

The complexation of achiral metal enolates by chiral additives, e.g., solvents or complexing agents could, in principle, lead to reagent-induced stereoselectivity. In an early investigation, the Reformatsky reaction of ethyl bromoacetate was performed in the presence of the bidentate ligand (—)-sparteine20. The enantioselectivity of this reaction varies over a wide range and depends on the carbonyl Compound, as shown with bcnzaldehyde and acetophenone. 

High enantioselectivities may be reached using the kinetic controlled Michael addition of achiral tin enolates, prepared in situ, to a,/i-unsaturated carbonyl compounds catalyzed by a chiral amine. The presence of trimethylsilyl trifluoromethanesulfonate as an activator is required in these reactions236. Some typical results, using stoichiometric amounts of chiral amine and various enolates are given below. In the case of the l-(melhylthio)-l-[(trimethylsilyl)thio]ethene it is proposed that metal exchange between the tin(II) trifluoromethanesulfonate and the ketene acetal occurs prior to the 1,4-addition237,395. 

The enantioselective 1,4-addition addition of organometaUic reagents to a,p-unsaturated carbonyl compounds, the so-called Michael reaction, provides a powerful method for the synthesis of optically active compounds by carbon-carbon bond formation [129]. Therefore, symmetrical and unsymmetrical MiniPHOS phosphines were used for in situ preparation of copper-catalysts, and employed in an optimization study on Cu(I)-catalyzed Michael reactions of di-ethylzinc to a, -unsaturated ketones (Scheme 31) [29,30]. In most cases, complete conversion and good enantioselectivity were obtained and no 1,2-addition product was detected, showing complete regioselectivity. Of interest, the enantioselectivity observed using Cu(I) directly in place of Cu(II) allowed enhanced enantioselectivity, implying that the chiral environment of the Cu(I) complex produced by in situ reduction of Cu(II) may be less selective than the one with preformed Cu(I). 

The majority of catalytic enantioselective allylation reactions involve the chiral Lewis-acid-catalysed additions of allylsilanes or allylstannanes to carbonyl compounds. Monothiobinaphthol has been used by Woodward et al. as a chiral promoter in the enantioselective catalytic allylation of aryl ketones with impure Sn(allyl)4, prepared from allyl chloride, air-oxidised magnesium and SnCl4. Therefore, the allylation of arylketones in these conditions was achieved very efficiently, since the corresponding allylic alcohols were formed in... 

Organolithium compounds are highly reactive and have been used in a variety of organic transformations. A major problem in the development of catalytic asymmetric conjugate additions of organolithium reagents to a,/3-unsaturated carbonyl compounds is that the high reactivity of RLi may cause both low chemoselectivity (1,2- vs. 1,4-addition) and low enantioselectivity. 

Chapter 2 provided a general introduction to the a-alkylation of carbonyl compounds, as well as the enantioselective nucleophilic addition on carbonyl compounds. Chiral auxiliary aided a-alkylation of a carbonyl group can provide high enantioselectivity for most substrates, and the hydrazone method can provide routes to a large variety of a-substituted carbonyl compounds. While a-alkylation of carbonyl compounds involves the reaction of an enolate, the well known aldol reaction also involves enolates. 

Shibasaki s lanthanide-alkaline metal-BINOL system, discussed in Chapters 2 and 3, can also effect the asymmetric conjugate addition reaction. As shown in Scheme 8-35, enantioselective conjugate addition of thiols to a,/ -unsaturated carbonyl compounds proceeds smoothly, leading to the corresponding products with high yield and high ee.76... 

The enantioselective addition of a nucleophile to a carbonyl group is one of the most versatile methods for C C bond formation, and this reaction is discussed in Chapter 2. Trifluoromethylation of aldehyde or achiral ketone via addition of fluorinated reagents is another means of access to fluorinated compounds. Trifluoromethyl trimethylsilane [(CF SiCFs] has been used by Pra-kash et al.87 as an efficient reagent for the trifluoromethylation of carbonyl compounds. Reaction of aldehydes or ketones with trifluoromethyltrime-thylsilane can be facilitated by tetrabutyl ammonium fluoride (TBAF). In 1994, Iseki et al.88 found that chiral quaternary ammonium fluoride 117a or 117b facilitated the above reaction in an asymmetric manner (Scheme 8-42). 

Some chiral quaternary ammonium salts are also effective in Michael addition reactions. The Merck catalysts 7 (R=4-CF3, X=Br) and 9 (R=4-CF3, X=Br, 10,11-dihydro) were used tor the Michael additions of 59,61, and 64 to vinyl ketones to give the adducts 60,62, and 65 (isolated as 66), respectively,148,491 with excellent enantioselectivity, as shown in Scheme 19. The Michael addition of the O Donnell imine 23 to the a,(3-unsaturated carbonyl compounds also efficiently proceeded by use of the N-anthracenyl-methyl catalyst 12 (R=allyl, X=Br), giving the Michael adducts 67 (Scheme 20).1251... 

Li s group reported the first asymmetrically catalyzed addition of 1-siloxy-substi-tuted 3-iodoallenes 71 to carbonyl compounds employing N-heptafluoropropyloxaza-borolidine 73 as a chiral catalyst (Scheme 8.20) [67]. The resulting /i-iodo Baylis-Hillman-type adducts 74 are available in good yield and with enantioselectivities up to 98% ee. 

Chiral phosphoric acids mediate the enantioselective formation of C-C, C-H, C-0, C-N, and C-P bonds. A variety of 1,2-additions and cycloadditions to imines have been reported. Furthermore, the concept of the electrophilic activation of imines by means of phosphates has been extended to other compounds, though only a few examples are known. The scope of phosphoric acid catalysis is broad, but limited to reactive substrates. In contrast, chiral A-triflyl phosphoramides are more acidic and were designed to activate less reactive substrates. Asymmetric formations of C-C, C-H, C-0, as well as C-N bonds have been established. a,P-Unsaturated carbonyl compounds undergo 1,4-additions or cycloadditions in the presence of A-triflyl phosphoramides. Moreover, isolated examples of other substrates can be electrophil-ically activated for a nucleophilic attack. Chiral dicarboxylic acids have also found utility as specific acid catalysts of selected asymmetric transformations. 

Figure 5. Chiral allylic boranes used as chiral auxiliary reagents in enantioselective additions to carbonyl compounds. (Only one isomer is shown for simplicity. For reagents 12 and 64-66, (—)-Ipc is shown.).

A formal asymmetric nucleophilic addition to carbonyl compounds is achieved by Trost and his co-workers in the allylic alkylation of acylals of alkenals. An excellent enantioselectivity is observed in this alkylation. The starting acylals are easily prepared by the Lewis-acid catalyzed addition of acid anhydrides to aldehydes, by use of Trost s ligand 118 (Scheme 13), where various carbon-centered nucleophiles are available (Scheme l4),101,101a-10lc Asymmetric synthesis of some natural products is achieved according to this procedure. 

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