C-hexaphenyl-substituted trianglamine as a chiral solvating agent for carboxylic acids.

Chiral hexaazamacrocycles with a trianglamine structure and C(3)-symmetry, containing six ring substituents and twelve stereocenters have been tested as chiral solvating agents (CSAs) for α-substituted carboxylic acids. Excellent results have been obtained with a hexaphenyl-substituted macrocycle. The optimal ratio between the macrocycle and racemic acid, allowing for baseline separation of the enantiomers' signals in the (1)H NMR spectrum, was dependent on the type of acid, in particular on its degree of acidity. The analyte and the CSA could be separated and recovered by a simple acid-base extraction and reused without purification. The conformations of the free and protonated hexaamino macrocycles were inferred by CD spectroscopic studies and DFT calculations.

Pyrrole macrocyclic ligands for Cu-catalyzed asymmetric Henry reactions.

New chiral perazamacrocycles containing four pyrrole rings have been synthesized by the [2+2] condensation of (R,R)-diaminocyclohexane and 5,5'-(alkane-2,2-diyl)bis(1H-pyrrole-2-carbaldehydes). These macrocycles, differing for the alkyl/aryl meso-substituents, were used as ligands in the copper-catalyzed Henry reactions of aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes with nitroalkanes. In the optimized experimental conditions, the condensations of nitromethane and aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes in the presence of catalytic amounts of copper diacetate and methyl-substituted macrocyclic ligand (2:1 ratio) in ethanol at room temperature provided products often with high enantiomeric excesses (up to 95% ee). The positive influence of the macrocyclic structure on the efficiency/enantioselectivity of the catalytic system was demonstrated by comparison with the outcomes of Henry reactions performed using analogous macrocyclic ligands (trianglamines) and open-chain ligands derived from (R,R)-diaminocyclohexane.

Asymmetric synthesis of 3,4-diaminocyclohexanol and endo-7-azabicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-2-amine.

Hydroboration of (1R,2R)-bis[(S)-1-phenylethylamino]cyclohex-4-ene and its derivatives with several borane reagents gave diastereomeric mixtures of the 3,4-diaminocyclohexanol derivatives. Cyclization of the prevalent diastereomer with the R configuration of the newly formed stereocenter under Mitsunobu conditions, followed by reductive removal of the N-substituents, gave the optically pure endo-7-azabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane-2-amine.

Stereoselective synthesis of ring C-hexasubstituted trianglamines.

The addition of organolithium reagents to the trianglimine derived from (R,R)-1,2-diaminocyclohexane and terephthalaldehyde gave the corresponding trianglamine with complete stereocontrol and the R configuration of all six newly formed stereocenters. The structure of the hexaphenyl-substituted macrocycle was determined by X-ray crystallographic study. The new trianglamines were tested as ligands in enantioselective catalytic reactions.

Catalytic hydrogenation of meso-octamethylporphyrinogen (calix[4]pyrrole).

Hydrogenation of meso-octamethylporphyrinogen (calix[4]pyrrole) with a number of heterogeneous catalysts under different experimental conditions has been investigated. GC-MS analyses of the reaction mixtures showed the formation of one to four products in low to moderate yields: three of them were diastereoisomers of the product derived from half-hydrogenation of the substrate, and displayed alternating pyrrolidine and pyrrole rings, while the fourth was the all-cis saturated product. An acidic medium was necessary to achieve hydrogenation. However, the use of too strongly acidic solvents or additives was detrimental to the stability of the substrate and/or the catalyst.

Asymmetric synthesis of 8-aminoindolizidine from chiral 2-pyrroleimines.

1-Allyl-2-pyrroleimines obtained from (S)-valinol and (S)-phenylglycinol underwent highly diastereoselective addition of allylmagnesium chloride, used in excess amounts, to give the corresponding secondary amines with concomitant allyl to (Z)-1-propenyl isomerization of the 1-pyrrole substituent. Transformation of the 2-amino alcohol moiety to an oxazolidinone, or its cleavage and subsequent N-protection, followed by ring-closing metathesis of the two alkene groups gave the unsaturated bicyclic compound. Full hydrogenation of the alkene function and the aromatic rings afforded the indolizidine derivative as a mixture of two or three diastereomers with a ratio which was dependent on the nature of both the N-substituent and the catalyst. The two prevalent diastereomers were isolated, and their configuration was determined by X-ray crystallographic analysis.

Asymmetric synthesis of delta-substituted alpha,beta-unsaturated delta-lactams by ring closing metathesis of enantiomerically pure N-acryloyl-homoallylic amines.

Optically pure secondary homoallylic amines, obtained by highly diastereoselective addition of allylmetal reagents to imines derived from chiral amines, were N-dealkylated, and the primary amines were converted to N-acryloyl amides. Then, ring closing metathesis gave delta-substituted delta-lactams in good overall yields.

Asymmetric route to pyridines bearing a highly functionalized 2-alkyl substituent by aziridine ring-opening reactions.

The aziridine prepared from the 2-pyridineimine derived from (S)-valinol underwent ring-opening by attack of nitrogen, sulfur, and oxygen nucleophiles. Complete or prevalent regioselectivity was obtained using cerium trichloride heptahydrate as a catalyst. In some cases, the N-substituent could be removed by an oxidative protocol.

Asymmetric synthesis of 2-(2-pyridyl)aziridines from 2-pyridineimines bearing stereogenic N-alkyl substituents and regioselective opening of the aziridine ring.

The addition of chloromethyllithium to the imine derived from 2-pyridinecarboxaldehyde and (S)-valinol, protected as its O-trimethylsilyl ether, gave the 1,2-disubstituted aziridine with good yield and diastereoselectivity. The analogous reaction performed on the imine derived from (S)-valine methyl ester gave the product containing the aziridine ring and the alpha-chloro ketone group coming from the attack of chloromethyllithium to the ester function. Other stereogenic alkyl substituents at nitrogen gave less satisfactory results. Moreover, the aziridination protocol did not work on other aromatic imines which were not capable of bidentate chelation, e.g., 3- and 4-pyridineimine and benzaldimine. Preliminary studies showed the possibility to carry out regio- and stereospecific opening reactions of 2-(2-pyridyl)aziridines by attack of internally generated or external nucleophiles.

Asymmetric Synthesis of 1,2-Diamino-4,5-dimethylcyclohexanes by Zirconium-Catalyzed and -Promoted Reductive Cyclization Reactions.

The asymmetric synthesis of 1,2-diamino-4,5-dimethylcyclohexanes was achieved by the zirconium-catalyzed and -promoted reductive cyclization of N,N'-di[(S)-1-phenylethyl]-4(R),5(R)-diamino-1,7-octadiene. The reaction of the diene with 5 equiv of butylmagnesium chloride and 0.1 mol % of bis(cyclopentadienyl)zirconium dichloride in diethyl ether at 0-20 degrees C gave mainly the 1(R),2(R)-diamino-4(S),5(S)-dimethylcyclohexane derivative having C(2) symmetry, but the reaction with 4 equiv of dibutylzirconocene in tetrahydrofuran at -78 to -50 degrees C gave prevalently the diastereomer with the 4(R),5(S) configuration. By reductive cleavage of the auxiliary, followed by sulfonylation reaction, 1(R),2(R)-di(4-toluenesulfonyl)amino)-4(S),5(S)-dimethylcyclohexane was prepared.