Cinchona-based thioureas

In addition to chiral PTCs, cinchona-based thioureas have also been proved to serve as catalysts for nitro-Mannich reactions. In 2006, Ricci and coworkers first reported that the quinine-based thiourea 40 (20mol%) can catalyze the aza-Henry reaction between nitromethane and the N-protected imines 93 derived from aromatic aldehydes [40]. N-Boc-, N-Cbz-, and N-Fmoc protected imines gave the best results in terms of the chemical yields and enantioselectivities (up to 94% ee at —40°C) (Scheme 8.30). 

In 2008, Jorgensen and coworkers reported that oxazolones 140 could also smoothly undergo addition to nitroalkenes 124 in the presence of bifunctional cinchona-based thiourea organocatalysts such as 81a and 81a. The reaction with 4-phenyloxazolones (140, R1 = ph) took place at C4 affording the adducts 141 with moderate to good ee values (up to 83% ee). On the other hand, 4-alkyloxazolones (R = Me, i-Bu) were added to the C2-position of 140, furnishing 142 with a moderate to high enantioselectivity (up to 92% ee) (Scheme 9.48). The adducts 141 can be used... 

The use of naphthols 145 as the carbon nucleophilic readion component in Friedel-Crafts type Michael addition readions was also reported in 2007 by Chen and coworkers [43], In this system, the pronucleophile is activated by the quinuclidine unit of bifundional cinchona-based thiourea catalysts such as 81a. A range of aryl-and alkyl-substituted nitroalkene derivatives 124 were applicable to this system. The corresponding adducts 146 were obtained with 85-95% ee at low temperature... 

As described above, cinchona-based (thio)ureas have proven to be highly efficient H-bond donor catalysts. In 2008, Rawal and coworkers developed a highly promising new family of cinchona-based H-bond donor catalysts such as 157 by replacing the thiourea moiety of cinchona-based thiourea catalysts with the squaramide unit [47]. The squaramide moiety of 157 is able to form two H-bonds to a reactant due to the more accessible reaction site and fixed syn-orientation of the NH-protons. Using only 0.5 mol% of the cinchonine-derived squaramide catalyst 157, various Michael donors 158 and nitroalkenes 130 were smoothly converted to the desired adducts 159 in excellent yield and ee values (up to 99% ee) (Scheme 9.54). 

In 2006, Chen and coworkers reported that cinchona-based thioureas (79a or 81b) serve as catalysts for the Michael addition of a-phenyl cyanoacetate (94) to phenyl vinyl sulfone (177) at room temperature, affording the addition product 178. Nearly quantitative yields were obtained. However, the obtained ee values were only moderate (43-54% ee) (Scheme 9.62) [55]. 

Another member of the ep -cinchona-based thiourea organocatalyst family, depicted in Scheme 1.19, was applied by Vakulya et al. to the asymmetric Michael addition of nitroalkanes to chalcones, giving excellent yields and enantioselectivities of up to 98% ee. The extension of this methodology was further explored to encompass a,p-unsaturated A-acylpyrroles, as a chalcone mimic. The corresponding Michael products were obtained in high yields and enantioselectivities of up to 94% ee, as shown in Scheme 1.19. This simple novel approach allowed a concise stereoselective synthesis of (i )-rolipram to be accomplished. 

Scheme 1.19 Michael additions of nitroalkanes to a,p-unsaturated Af-acylpyrroles catalysed by epi-cinchona-based thiourea.

Disubstituted flavanones and chromanones are produced with good enantioselectivity from chalcones activated by an a-fert-butyl ester function through an intramolecular Michael addition catalysed by a chiral thiourea derivative. In situ decarboxylation enhances the ee and yields remain high <07JA3830>. A comprehensive study of the asymmetric cyclisation of 2 -hydroxychalcones to flavanones has refuted the ability of camphorsulfonic acid to achieve enantioselectivity but has shown that cinchona-based catalysts can be effective <07EJO5886>. 

H-pyrane] derivatives in the presence of isatins, malononitrile, and acetylacetone/ethyl 3-oxobutanoate [103]. Yan and coworkers showed in 2012 that chiral tertiary amine-thiourea (158) derived from quinine can catalyze a three-component reaction between isatins 118, malononitrile (119), and a-phenyl-isocyanoacetate (217) (Scheme 2.75) [104]. The process affords dihydropyrryl-spirooxindoles 218 and involves an initial Knoevenagel condensation of 118 and 119 followed by the nucleophilic anion attack of 217 (see the key transition state intermediate on Scheme 2.75). Final intramolecular cyclo-addition affords the expected compounds where H bond interactions are supposed to direct the attack of isocyanate anion and, consequently, contfol the enantioselectivity. One year later, Xu s group used a bifunctional cinchona-based squaramide to catalyze multicomponent cascade reaction to synthesize spiro[pyrrolidin-3,2 -oxindoles] via 1,3-proton shift and [3h-2]... 

In 2013, Zhao et al. described a highly diastereo- and enantioselective synthesis of trisubstituted cyclohexanols based on a one-pot sequential tandem Henry-Michael reaction catalysed by a combination of a chiral cinchona alkaloid thiourea and 1,1,3,3-tetramethyl guanidine. This process occurred between nitromethane and 7-oxo-hept-5-en-l-als, providing the corresponding tandem chiral products as almost single diastereomers... 

By using the cinchona-alkaloid-thiourea-based bifunctional organocatalyst 55, Asano and Matsubara developed an organocatalytic formal [3 -t- 2] cycloaddition reaction, leading to optically active 1,3-dioxolanes 54 (Scheme 2.15). The reaction... 

This gives chapter an overview of natural cinchona alkaloids and synthetic derivatives together with examples of their use in asymmetric organocatalysis. In recent years, the emphasis has been on the development of cinchona-based bifunctional catalysts, in particular species with a thiourea moiety. The search for new cinchona-based organocatalysts continues and new derivatives are relentlessly being prepared and applied for specific enantioselective reactions. The design of these new... 

Zhang HL, Syed S, Barbas CFI. Highly enantio- and diaster-eoselective Mannich reactions of glycine Schiff bases with in situ generated A-Boc-imines catalyzed by a cinchona alkaloid thiourea. Org. Lett. 2010 12(4) 708-711. 

Cinchona alkaloid thiourea catalyst 17 (Figure 37.2) was later employed by Gong et al. to induce the enantio- and diastereoselective 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides generated from Schiff bases and nitroalkenes [31]. This process provided straightforward access to chiral highly substituted pyrrolidines with good yields, moderate enantioselectivities (<63% ee), and excellent diastereoselectivities... 

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