Chiral epimerization

In the early work on the synthesis of prostaglandins, zinc borohydride was used for the reduction of the 15-ketone function and a 1 1 mixture of epimeric 15(S)- and 15(/ )-alcohols was generally obtained. Subsequent studies led to reaction conditions for highly selective reduction to the desired 15(S)-alcohol. Some of the results are summarized in the following table. The most practical method is E which utilizes borane as the stoichiometric reductant and a chiral, enzyme-like catalyst which is shown. 

The thermal reversal of the photochemical a-cleavage, i.e., the direct recombination of the resulting radical pair or diradical, can be recognized as such only when at least one of the a-atoms is chiral and is epimerized in the process. In fact, the frequently rather low quantum yields observed in the phototransformations of nonconjugated steroidal ketones may be largely due to the reversal of a-cleavage. 

Photolytic epimerizations of this type would represent a potentially useful method of direct inversion of chiral centers. However, competition by numerous other intramolecular processes vide infra) frequently renders its more general utilization less practical. 

Cleavage of the chiral auxiliary is effected in a three-step procedure commencing with quatemization of the nitrogen with methyl fluorosulfonate, methyl trlfluoromethanesulfonate, or trimethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate. Reduction of the corresponding iminium salt 19 with NaBH4 and acidic hydrolysis of the resulting product affords substituted aldehyde 5 without epimerization of either stereocenter. 

The simple and elegant tactic of cleaving the acetoxythioacetal function in 29 either with or without concomitant epimerization at C-2 effectively avoids the problematic (nonstereoselective) epoxi-dation of chiral Z allylic alcohols such as 12-Z (see Scheme 9). 

As described in Section 2.3.2, vinylaziridines are versatile intermediates for the stereoselective synthesis of (E)-alkene dipeptide isosteres. One of the simplest methods for the synthesis of alkene isosteres such as 242 and 243 via aziridine derivatives of type 240 and 241 (Scheme 2.59) involves the use of chiral anti- and syn-amino alcohols 238 and 239, synthesizable in turn from various chiral amino aldehydes 237. However, when a chiral N-protected amino aldehyde derived from a natural ot-amino acid is treated with an organometallic reagent such as vinylmag-nesium bromide, a mixture of anti- and syn-amino alcohols 238 and 239 is always obtained. Highly stereoselective syntheses of either anti- or syn-amino alcohols 238 or 239, and hence 2,3-trans- or 2,3-as-3-alkyl-2-vinylaziridines 240 or 241, from readily available amino aldehydes 237 had thus hitherto been difficult. Ibuka and coworkers overcame this difficulty by developing an extremely useful epimerization of vinylaziridines. Palladium(0)-catalyzed reactions of 2,3-trons-2-vinylaziri-dines 240 afforded the thermodynamically more stable 2,3-cis isomers 241 predominantly over 240 (241 240 >94 6) through 7i-allylpalladium intermediates, in accordance with ab initio calculations [29]. This epimerization allowed a highly stereoselective synthesis of (E) -alkene dipeptide isosteres 243 with the desired L,L-... 

Pentenomycin (33), a highly oxygenated cyclopentenoid with a quaternary chiral center (Scheme 6), was prepared by a similar reaction sequence [29]. The RCM precursor 31 was prepared in eight steps from D-mannose via iodo compound 29 and aldehyde 30 (1 1 diastereomeric mixture). RCM of 31 led to the epimeric cyclopentenols 32. 

Scheme 17 Temperature-induced epimerization of chiral cationic phosphate 62...

In the presence of chiral phosphine ligands, there is also rapid epimerization to the most stable diastereomeric -rr-allyl complex. The stereoselectivity arises in the reaction with the nucleophile.119... 

Possible racemisation of imines, derivatives of amino acids and R(—)-myrtenal, has been examined by Dufrasne et al.1 After 72 h, no significant effect on chiral purity was observed. For imines being derivatives of chiral primary amines and the a-substituted 8-keto-aldehydes, no evidence of epimerisation has been indicated by the NMR measurements.3 For a series of imines, being derivatives of amino acids or amino acid esters and (R)-BINOL reagents, Chin et al.5 have tested the possibility of epimerization under experiment conditions. It was shown that R S ratio has changed only slightly, and after 24 h, the difference was lower than 10%. 

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