Guanidine catalysts addition

The chiral guanidine s role as a strong Brpnsted base for the reactions of protic substrates has been proposed. In 1999, Corey developed a C -symmetric chiral guanidine catalyst to promote the asymmetric Strecker reaction [117]. The addition of HCN to imines was promoted high yields and high enantioselectivities for both electron-withdrawing and electron-donating aromatic imines (Scheme 64). 

The group proposed that the hydrocyanate underwent a formal Brpnsted base interaction with the guanidine catalyst, thus activating the nucleophile for addition (Fig. 9). In contrast to the bifunctional catalysts, the guanidines are basic enough to activate the substrates without the need for secondary moieties. 

Ma and co-workers extended use of chiral guanidine catalysts to the addition of glycine derivatives to acrylates [121], Addition products were achieved in high yield with modest enantioselectivity (Scheme 67). The ferf-butyl glycinate benzophenone imines generally provided better enantiomeric ratios than the ethyl glycinate benzophenone imines. Based on this observation, the authors hypothesized that an imine-catalyst complex determines the stereochemical outcome of the product. 

Another structurally modified guanidine was reported by Ishikawa et al. as a chiral superbase for asymmetric silylation of secondary alcohols [122]. Soon after, Ishikawa discovered that the same catalyst promoted asymmetric Michael additions of glycine imines to acrylates [123]. The additions were promoted in good yield and great asymmetric induction under neat reaction conditions with guanidine catalyst 250 (Scheme 68). The authors deduced that the high conversion and selectivity were due to the relative configuration of the three chiral centers of the catalyst in... 

Terada and co-workers reported a novel guanidine catalyst with a chiral binaphthol backbone for the asymmetric addition of dicarbonyl compounds to nitro-olefins [126]. Substitution on the binaphthol backbone dramatically increased enantioselectivity. 

Terada expanded the phospha-Michael reaction to include diphenyl-phosphites [128]. A novel binaphthol-derived guanidine catalyst promoted the addition in high yields and enantioselectivities (Scheme 73). Functionalizing the external nitrogen with a diphenylmethine moeity enhanced selectivities for a large scope of nitro-olefm derivatives. 

The axially chiral guanidine catalyst (155) (0.4-5 mol%) has been developed to facilitate the highly enantioselective Michael addition of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds (g to a broad range of conjugated nitroalkenes (<98% ee).211... 

When the less hindered 2,4-tolylene diisocyanate is reacted with a phospholene oxide catalyst linear oligomeric carbodiimides are obtained which have been reacted with a variety of nucleophiles to give poly(ureas), poly(acyl ureas), poly(formamidines) and poly-(guanidines) by addition across the N=C=N group. Also, reaction of the oligomeric carbodiimides with acrylic or methacrylic acid affords linear polymers, which can be further polymerized by free-radical type processes. Also, reaction of the carbodiimide oligomers obtained from 2,4-TDI with adipic acid in DMF produces a polyureid. ... 

There are reports that extend the nature of the catalyst beyond an oxazaborolidine framework. One such example made use of a chiral guanidine catalyst.11 Proline-derived 25 was converted to guanidine 26 in good yield. This species was capable of reducing ketones 27 to alcohols 28 by the addition of BH3-SMe2. 

With these results in hand, the Corey labs were able to utilize a readily available chiral C2-symmetical bifunctional guanidine catalyst 59.34 They rationalized the origin of the enantioselectivity to a pre-transition state assembly of the catalyst 59, the imine 60, and cyanide. Additionally, DFT modeling studies using the B3LYP method gave rise to two competitive pathways for the catalytic cycle.34b Concomitant hydrolysis of the nitrile and deprotection of the amine converted 61 to amino acids 62. 

A C2-symmetrical pentacychc guanidinium salt like 16 (Figure 4.5) was used for the conjugate addition of pyrrolidine to y-crotonolactone, in which structural requirement such as the size of the cavities and substituents on tetrahydropyran rings of the guanidine catalysts is critical for asymmetric induction [23]. 

An axially chiral and highly hindered binaphthyl-derived guanidine catalyst 18a with an internal guanidine unit (Figure 4.6) facilitates the highly enantioselective 1,4-addition... 

In 2009, Feng and coworkers developed new guanidine catalysts with an amino amide skeleton [139]. Among the various catalysts tested, guanidine 49 was found to be the most active for the enantioselective Michael reaction of a (i-ketoester with nitroolefins (Scheme 10.46). The conjugate addition products were obtained in high yields and excellent diastereo- and enantioselectivities. The same researchers used bis-guanidine catalysts for the enantioselective inverse-electron-demand hetero-Diels-Alder reaction of chalcones with azlactones (Scheme 10.47) [140] and enantioselective Mannich-type reaction of a-isothiocyanato imide and sulfonyl imines (Scheme 10.48) [141]. 

The wide applicability of the PK reaction is apparent in the synthesis of pyrroles, for example, 45, en route to novel chiral guanidine bases, levuglandin-derived pyrrole 46, lipoxygenase inhibitor precursors such as 47, pyrrole-containing zirconium complexesand iV-aminopyrroles 48 from 1,4-dicarbonyl compounds and hydrazine derivatives. The latter study also utilized Yb(OTf)3 and acetic acid as pyrrole-forming catalysts, in addition to pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate (PPTS). 

Ishikawa and co-workers also reported a class of structurally modified guanidines for promotion of the asymmetric Michael reaction of ierf-butyl-diphenylimino-acetate to ethyl acrylate [124,125]. In addition to a polymer support design (Scheme 69), an optical resolution was developed to achieve chiral 1,2-substituted ethylene-l,2-di-amines, a new chiral framework for guanidine catalysis. The authors discovered that incorporating steric bulk and aryl substituents in the catalyst did improve stereoselec-tivitity, although the reactivity did suffer (Scheme 70, Table 4). 

In 2006, Tan and co-workers reported the first asymmetric guanidine catalyzed Diels-Alder addition of anthrone to maleimides (Scheme 75) [130], The authors observed very high yields and enantioselectivities using a derivative of Corey s C2-symmetric bicyclic gnanidine catalyst. The addition of anthrones to maleimide also worked well for snbstitnted anthrones. Interestingly, the anthors observed the oxidized prodnct when the anthrone was substituted at the meto-positions (Scheme 76). 

Thereafter, Terada applied related binaphthyl guanidine base catalyst 24 to the asymmetric 1,4 addition of diphenylphosphite to nitroalkenes (Scheme 5.45) [81]. 

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