Enantioselective keto ester

The reduction of different y-chloroacetoacetates 58 and 59 (Figure 21.18) has been studied quite often and in more detail, and its stereochemical course (to 5ueld products 60 and 61, respectively) can be altered by changing the size of the ester moiety [17, 248, 255, 256]. The addition of a nonpolar resin to the reaction mixture also increased yields and selectivity [257], Recently, enantioselective keto ester reductions in water have been accomplished either by baker s yeast or by ruthenium-catalyzed reactions interestingly enough, the highest ee values have been obtained using S. cerevisiae [258]. In addition, a metabolic in vivo study has been performed. These data revealed that under aerobic conditions the reduction occurs preferentially in the mitochondrial matrix, while under anaerobic conditions the bioreduction occurs in the cytosol [259]. 

The chiral BOX-copper(II) complexes are effective catalysts for enantioselective cycloaddition reactions of a,/ -unsaturated acyl phosphonates [48] and a,/ -unsaturated keto esters [38b, 49]. 

Our development of the catalytic enantioselective inverse electron-demand cycloaddition reaction [49], which was followed by related papers by Evans et al. [38, 48], focused in the initial phase on the reaction of mainly / , y-unsaturated a-keto esters 53 with ethyl vinyl ether 46a and 2,3-dihydrofuran 50a (Scheme 4.34). 

Baker s yeast has been widely used for the reduction of ketones. The substrate specificity and enantioselectivity of the carbonyl reductase from baker s yeast, which is known to catalyze the reduction of P-keto ester to L-hydroxyester (L2-enzyme) [15], was investigated, and the enzyme was found to reduce chloro-, acetoxy ketones with high enantioselectivity (Figure 8.32) [24aj. 

Although sulfur is unHkely to chelate the metal in this case, it is worth mentioning the axially chiral diphosphine Hgands, based on hz-thienyl systems which increase the electronic density at phosphorus such as 159 (used in Ru-catalyzed reduction of /1-keto esters with 99% ee) [llla],BITIANP 160,andTMBTP 161 (in a Pd-catalyzed Heck reaction, the regio- and enantioselectivity are high with 160 but low with 161) [mb]. 

The principles of the SE were applied for two enantioselective hydrogenation reactions (i) hydrogenation of P-keto esters over Ni-tartrate and (ii) hydrogenation of a-keto esters over cinchona-Pt/Al203 catalysts. In this respect the tartaric acid - P-keto ester system gave a negative result. Neither the substrate nor the modifier have bulky substituents required for SE. 

CDj a The simplified reaction scheme for the enantioselective hydrogenation of a-keto esters over cinchona-Pt/Al203 catalyst can be written as follows ... 

Catalytic asymmetric hydrogenation is a relatively developed process compared to other asymmetric processes practised today. Efforts in this direction have already been made. The first report in this respect is the use of Pd on natural silk for hydrogenating oximes and oxazolones with optical yields of about 36%. Izumi and Sachtler have shown that a Ni catalyst modified with (i ,.R)-tartaric acid can be used for the hydrogenation of methylacetoacetate to methyl-3-hydroxybutyrate. The group of Orito in Japan (1979) and Blaser and co-workers at Ciba-Geigy (1988) have reported the use of a cinchona alkaloid modified Pt/AlaO.i catalyst for the enantioselective hydrogenation of a-keto-esters such as methylpyruvate and ethylpyruvate to optically active (/f)-methylacetate and (7 )-ethylacetate. 

More recently, these authors have reported the synthesis of a new thiophene-based analogue of (I ,i )-Me-DuPHOS called UlluPHOS. The facial recognition and enantioselection associated with ruthenium complexes of UlluPHOS and Me-DuPHOS were shown to be similarly high in various hydrogenations of p-keto esters (Scheme 8.32). The most important difference between these two ligands was found by comparing the reaction rates. Indeed, the authors have observed that the use of UlluPHOS considerably increased the activity of the complexes. 

Another approach in the use of chiral S/P ligands for the hydrosilylation reaction of ketones was proposed more recently by Evans et Thus, in 2003, these workers studied the application of new chiral thioether-phosphinite ligands to enantioselective rhodium-catalysed ketone hydrosilylation processes. For a wide variety of ketones, such as acyclic aryl alkyl and dialkyl ketones as well as cyclic aryl alkyl ketones and also cyclic keto esters, the reaction gave high levels of enantioselectivity of up to 99% ee (Scheme 10.44). 

Table 24.3, Enantioselective hydrogenation of P-keto esters using Ru(II)-complexes.

Enantioselectivities in the range of 97.7-99.9%, with the majority in the range of 98.4-99.1%, are obtained in the asymmetric hydrogenation of aryl alkyl ketones with ruthenium catalyst 109.641 The same systems can hydrogenate /3-keto esters (95.2-98.6% ee) and a,/i-unsa(urated acids (96.2% in a single example).642... 

In the early 1990s, Burk introduced a new series of efficient chiral bisphospholane ligands BPE and DuPhos.55,55a-55c The invention of these ligands has expanded the scope of substrates in Rh-catalyzed enantioselective hydrogenation. For example, with Rh-DuPhos or Rh-BPE as catalysts, extremely high efficiencies have been observed in the asymmetric hydrogenation of a-(acylamino)acrylic acids, enamides, enol acetates, /3-keto esters, unsaturated carboxylic acids, and itaconic acids. 

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