Silyl enol ethers diastereoselective benzylation

The concept of a diastereoselective Friedel-Crafts alkylation of a-chiral benzyl alcohols was first examined by Bach and coworkers [62, 63]. The initial protocol required stoichiometric amounts of strong Brpnsted acids like HBF4 and was followed by a more valuable methodology in which catalytic amounts of AuC L were employed for the diastereoselective functionalization of chiral benzyl alcohols [64], Beside arenes, allyl silanes, 2,4-pentanediones and silyl enol ethers have been used as nucleophiles. Depending on the diastereodiscriminating group and on the catalyst (Brpnsted or Lewis acid), the authors observed either the syn or the anti diastereoisomer as the major product. 

Scheme 24 Bi(OTf)3-catalyzed diastereoselective benzylation of silyl enol ethers...

On the basis of this pioneering work, Rubenbauer and Bach developed a Bi(OTf)3-catalyzed highly diastereoselective benzylation of silyl enol ethers [65]. Various cyclic and acyclic silyl enol ethers were amenable to this protocol (Scheme 24). Various a-substituted benzyl acetates were tested with terf-butyl-substituted silyl enol ether 31a, and the use of only 1 mol% of Bi(OTf)3 was enough to obtain the desired benzylated ketones 32 in high yields and with excellent diastereoselectivities (up to 95 5). Whereas a-nitro- (30a), ot-cyano- (30b) and a-methylester-substituted (30d) benzyl acetates gave the anti diastereoisomer as the major product, the phosphonate-substituted benzyl acetate (30c) exclusively resulted in the syn isomer (Scheme 24). 

In N-acyliminium ion-mediated functionalization of 2- or 6-alkoxy-substituted piperidines, Sc(OTf)3 was found to be an excellent Lewis acid with a silyl enol ether nucleophile, and moderate diastereoselectivities were obtained (trans/cis = 26/74 and 78/22, respectively) [158]. Sc(OTf)3 was found to be a more efficient metal tri-flate in the nucleophilic substitution of N-benzyloxycarbonyl-2-methoxypiperidine and 3-substituted-2-acyloxy-N-benzyloxy-carbonylpiperidine with silylicon enolates [159]. 2-Acetoxy-3-benzyloxy-N-benzyloxycarbonylpiperidine afforded the 2-alkylat-ed adducts in high cis selectivity (cis/trans = 71/29), while 2,3-diacyloxy-N-benzyl-oxycarbonylpiperidines showed trans selectivity (trans/cis = 80/20-100/0). Febri-fugine, a potent malarial alkaloid, was successfully synthesized from 2,3-diacetoxy car bony Ipiperidine on the basis of these diastereoselective nucleophilic substitution reactions. 

Reductive acetylation/alkylation has also provided access to advanced bis-THP intermediates of the type 284 in several reported pursuits of leucascandrolide A (Scheme 74) [76, 117, 131]. These complex examples highlight the remarkable functional group tolerance of this reaction type. The elaborate a-acetoxy ethers 283 demonstrate that a number of protecting groups (benzyl, silyl derivatives, and esters) survive the reaction conditions. Unsaturated silyl enol ethers (i.e., 281 and 282) are effective nucleophiles and provide advanced intermediates like 284 in excellent yields and diastereoselectivities (80-90 %, dr > 25 1 for all cases). A similar strategy, coupled with ring-closing metathesis, was also used by Cossy and coworkers for this natural product (Scheme 60) [108]. 

Takano et al. used the Ireland-Claisen rearrangement of an allyl lactate in the total synthesis of calcitriol lactone (Scheme 4.76) [74]. The rearrangement proceeded with a 6.7 1 diastereoselectivity via O-silylation of the intermediate li-che-lated Z-enolate. Takano noted that the corresponding benzyl ether gave significantly lower de (70%) than the PMB ether. This is presumably due to the PMB ether s greater Lewis basicity and hence its greater propensity to coordinate a lithium cation. 

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