Synthesis of ribo-hexopyranoside- and altrose-based azacrown ethers and their application in an asymmetric Michael addition.

The synthesis of four new ribo-hexopyranoside-based chiral lariat ethers of monoaza-15-crown-5 type and two altropyranoside-based crown ethers were elaborated. Our syntheses utilized the regioselective ring opening of the oxiran moiety of the 2,3-anhydro sugars by nucleophilic reagents to afford the key intermediates. The reaction of methyl-2,3-anhydro-4,6-O-benzylidene-α-D-mannopyranoside with ethanolamine is especially of interest to afford a 3-substituted altropyranoside. One of the ribo-hexopyranoside-based lariat ethers with a 4-methoxyphenyl substituent induced an enantioselectivity of 80% when used as catalyst in the Michael addition of diethyl acetamidomalonate to trans-ß-nitrostyrene under phase transfer catalytic conditions.

Phosphine-phosphite ligands: chelate ring size vs. activity and enantioselectivity relationships in asymmetric hydrogenation.

A series of new phosphine-phosphite ligands P(C)(n)OP (n = 1-4) have been synthesized and used for rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation of prochiral olefins in order to study the effect of the chelate ring size. Excellent ees (up to 97.5%) were obtained in the hydrogenation of dimethyl itaconate and an increase of activity and enantioselectivity was observed in the hydrogenation of (Z)-α-acetamidocinnamic acid methyl ester with the increasing length of the backbone of the ligands.

Synthesis of atropisomeric 1-phenylpyrrole-derived amino alcohols: new chiral ligands.

An efficient synthetic method has been developed for the preparation of a new family of atropisomeric amino alcohols with 1-phenylpyrrole backbone. The synthesis is based on the different reactivities of the two carboxylic groups in optically active 1-[2-carboxy-6-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid (1). The chemical structures of the key intermediates were confirmed by spectroscopic methods and single crystal X-ray diffraction measurements. The very first application of a new optically active amino alcohol as catalyst for the enantioselective addition of diethylzinc to benzaldehyde demonstrated the practical usefulness of atropisomeric compounds in which there are six-atom chains between the two functional groups.