Chiral compounds cyclophanes

The Cahn-Ingold-Prelog system is unambiguous and easily applicable in most cases. Whether to call an enantiomer (R) or (S) does not depend on correlations, but the configuration must be known before the system can be applied, and this does depend on correlations. The Cahn-Ingold-Prelog system has also been extended to chiral compounds that do not contain chiral atoms.A series of new rules have been proposed to address the few cases where the rules can be ambiguous, as in cyclophanes and other systems. ... 

On the basis of this definition (Fig. 1) the following classes of chiral compounds will be treated in this article cyclophanes, bridged anulenes and [8]anulenes, and ( )-cyclooctene and related structures. As mentioned above, metallocenes will be excluded. 

Introduction of the tricarbonylchromium group into cyclophane chemistry has great potential for the preparation of planar- (or helical-)chiral compounds. Besides structure/chiroptics relationships, carrying out stereoselective reactions is of major importance. Recently, inclusion of ferrocenes and benzene-Cr(CO)3 into the cavity of a cyclodextrine was achieved and this makes the connection to supramolecular chemistry [183]. 

Although the chirality of cyclophanes was recognized more than 50 years ago by Liittringhaus and Gralheer in ansa compounds [14], chiral cyclophanes have been applied as auxiliaries and ligands in asymmetric synthesis only recently. Some examples of this exciting use of cyclophanes will be given. 

In a tour de force in 1956, Cahn, Ingold and Prelog introduced the terms chirality axis (descriptors aR/aS) and chirality plane (descriptors pRjpS) in order to deal with compounds such as allenes, biaryls and cyclophanes. Rules for assigning the chirality sense were devised ad hoc. In 1966 the helieity concept was introduced and it was recognized that its use allows the corresponding models to be treated in an alternative way. The specific proposals, as illustrated in Table 1, however, were only published in 19821. 

As usual in stereochemical research, four main approaches have been applied to the problem of assigning chiralities to optically active cyclophanes. They are listed in order of their reliabilities i) anomalous X-ray diffraction (Bijvoet method), ii) chemical correlations with compounds of known chiralities (preferably established by the Bijvoet method), iii) kinetic resolutions and/or asymmetric syntheses, iv) interpretation of chiroptical properties (mainly circular dichroism) on the basis of (sector) rules including theoretical methods. 

The spherically shaped cryptophanes are of much interest in particular for their ability to bind derivatives of methane, achieving for instance chiral discrimination of CHFClBr they allow the study of recognition between neutral receptors and substrates, namely the effect of molecular shape and volume complementarity on selectivity [4.39]. The efficient protection of included molecules by the carcerands [4.40] makes possible the generation of highly reactive species such as cyclobutadiene [4.41a] or orthoquinones [4.41b] inside the cavity. Numerous container molecules [A.38] capable of including a variety of guests have been described. A few representative examples of these various types of compounds are shown in structures 59 (cyclophane) 60 (cubic azacyclophane [4.34]), 61a, 61b ([4]- and [6]-calixa-renes), 62 (cavitand), 63 (cryptophane), 64 (carcerand). 

Apart from the role of cyclophanes as a model system for studying the electronic interaction between the aromatic moieties, chiral [2.2]paracyclophanes have also been utilized as planar chiral ligands in asymmetric catalysis. Recent advances and applications in this area have been reviewed [5, 6]. The synthesis of heterocyclic compounds based on [2.2]paracyclophane architecture, where the long-distance electronic communication and the planar chirality play significant roles in their application, has also been reported recently [7]. Although the preparation and application of chiral cyclophanes in asymmetric synthesis has attracted much attention for a long time, their chiroptical properties, especially the CD spectra, have rarely been paid attention or even completely ignored. 

Wilcox, C S, Cowart, M D, New approaches to synthetic receptors. Studies on the synthesis and properties of macrocyclic C-glycosyl compounds as chiral, water-soluhle cyclophanes, Carbohydr. Res., 171, 141-159, 1987. 

C.S. Wilcox and his research team designed and synthesized chiral water-soluble cyclophanes based on carbohydrate precursors. These compounds are also dubbed as glycophanes and they are potentially valuable enzyme models. The key macrocyclization step utilized the Glaser coupling and the reaction was carried out in a thermal flow reactor at 80 °C in 67% yield. 

Topics which have formed the subjects of reviews this year include photoinduced organic synthesis, photoisomerisations involving super-cyclophanes, regioselec-tive and stereoselective [2+2] photocycloadditions, position- and stereoselective photocyclisation, the photochemistry of indoles, five-membered heterocyclic compounds of the indigo group, pyrazoles and isothiazoles, and heterocyclic N-oxides, photochromic reactions of naphthopyran derivatives, photodegradation reactions of photochromic spirooxazines and 2H-chromenes, ° and chiral photo-chromic compounds. ... 

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