Phase-transfer catalysis aldol reactions

Asymmetric Phase Transfer Catalysis Aldol Reactions... 

Whilst simple alkylations of enolates and Michael additions have been successfully catalyzed by phase-transfer catalysts, aldol-type processes have proved more problematic. This difficulty is due largely o the reversible nature of the aldol reaction, resulting in the formation of a thermodynamically more stable aldol product rather than the kinetically favored product. However, by trapping the initial aldol product as soon as it is formed, asymmetric aldol-type reactions can be carried out under phase-transfer catalysis. This is the basis of the Darzens condensation (Scheme 8.2), in which the phase-transfer catalyst first induces the deprotonation of an a-halo... 

Michael-aldol reaction as an alternative to the Morita-Baylis-Hillman reaction 14 recent results in conjugate addition of nitroalkanes to electron-poor alkenes 15 asymmetric cyclopropanation of chiral (l-phosphoryl)vinyl sulfoxides 16 synthetic methodology using tertiary phosphines as nucleophilic catalysts in combination with allenoates or 2-alkynoates 17 recent advances in the transition metal-catalysed asymmetric hydrosilylation of ketones, imines, and electrophilic C=C bonds 18 Michael additions catalysed by transition metals and lanthanide species 19 recent progress in asymmetric organocatalysis, including the aldol reaction, Mannich reaction, Michael addition, cycloadditions, allylation, epoxidation, and phase-transfer catalysis 20 and nucleophilic phosphine organocatalysis.21... 

The Darzens reaction (tandem aldol-intramolecular cyclization sequence reaction) is a powerful complementary approach to epoxidation (see Chapter 5) that can be used for the synthesis of a,P-epoxy carbonyl and a,p-epoxysulfonyl compounds (Scheme 8.32). Currently, all catalytic asymmetric variants of the Darzens reactions are based on chiral phase-transfer catalysis using quaternary ammonium salts as catalysts. 

Some other very important events in the historic development of asymmetric organocatalysis appeared between 1980 and the late 1990s, such as the development of the enantioselective alkylation of enolates using cinchona-alkaloid-based quaternary ammonium salts under phase-transfer conditions or the use of chiral Bronsted acids by Inoue or Jacobsen for the asymmetric hydro-cyanation of aldehydes and imines respectively. These initial reports acted as the launching point for a very rich chemistry that was extensively developed in the following years, such as the enantioselective catalysis by H-bonding activation or the asymmetric phase-transfer catalysis. The same would apply to the development of enantioselective versions of the Morita-Baylis-Hillman reaction,to the use of polyamino acids for the epoxidation of enones, also known as the Julia epoxidation or to the chemistry by Denmark in the phosphor-amide-catalyzed aldol reaction. ... 

Isovaline, one of the amino acids present in meteorites in enantioenriched form, catalyses the synthesis of tetroses with ee s up to 11% (44). This modest enantioselectivity is additionally hampered by the modest ee s of isovaline present in the meteorite. But as diseussed above, phase behaviour can provide for enantioenrichment in the solution phase and experiments showed that it ean indeed be coupled to chirahty transfer by catalysis in a single system. Enantiomerically pure L-serine for example eatalyses an aldol reaction wito 46% ee if it is used with only 1% ee and the reaction performed in equilibrium with a... 

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