Jonathan W. Burton

Synthesis and Application of Chiral Phosphorus Ligands Derived from TADDOL for the Asymmetric Conjugate Addition of Diethyl Zinc to Enones

Asymmetric conjugate addition of diethylzinc to cyclohexen-2-one, chalcone, and benzalacetone has been found to occur with 0.5% copper(II) triflate and 1% chiral phosphite. Cyclic phosphites derived from TADDOL gave excellent to moderate enantiomeric excesses. The nature of the exocyclic substituent of the dioxaphospholane ring is important, but the chiral induction is imposed by the TADDOL framework. Syntheses of all the TADDOL ligands are described.

Anomeric spirohydantoins of mannofuranose : approaches to novel anomeric amino acids by an oxidative ring contraction

Bromine-induced oxidative ring contraction of an α-amino-δ-lactone gave a mixture of α-aminotetrahydrofurancarboxylic esters which may allow the preparation of stable amino acid derivatives at the anomeric position of mannofuranose. The synthesis of N-phenylhydantoins at the anomeric position of mannofuranose is reported.

Heterogeneously Catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrogenation of C═C Bonds Directed by Surface-Tethered Chiral Modifiers

Asymmetric hydrogenation of C=C bonds is of the highest importance in organic synthesis, and such reactions are currently carried out with organometallic homogeneous catalysts. Achieving heterogeneous metal-catalyzed hydrogenation, a highly desirable goal, necessitates forcing the crucial enantiodifferentiating step to take place at the metal surface. By synthesis and application of six chiral sulfide ligands that anchor robustly to Pd nanoparticles and resist displacement, we have for the first time accomplished heterogeneous enantioselective catalytic hydrogenation of isophorone. High resolution XPS data established that ligand adsorption from solution occurred exclusively on the Pd nanoparticles and not on the carbon support. All ligands contained a pyrrolidine nitrogen to enable their interaction with the isophorone substrate while the sulfide functionality provided the required interaction with the Pd surface. Enantioselective turnover numbers of up to approximately 100 product molecules per ligand molecule were found with a very large variation in asymmetric induction between ligands: observed enantiomeric excesses increased with increasing size of the alkyl group in the sulfide. This likely reflects varying degrees of ligand dispersion on the surface: bulky substituent groups hinder close approach of ligand molecules to each other, inhibiting close-packed island formation, favoring dispersion as separate molecules, and leading to effective asymmetric induction. Conversely, small substituents favor island formation leading to very low asymmetric induction. Enantioselective reaction most likely involves initial formation of an enamine or iminium species, confirmed by use of an analogous tertiary amine, which leads to racemic product. Ligand rigidity and resistance to self-assembled monolayer formation are important attributes that should be designed into improved chiral modifiers.

Evidence for heterogeneous Sonogashira coupling of phenylacetylene and iodobenzene catalyzed by well defined rhodium nanoparticles

Sonogashira coupling of phenylacetylene with iodobenzene has been studied in the presence of metallic Rh nanoparticle catalysts and found to occur via a surface-mediated heterogeneous route. Homogeneous catalytic processes due to Rh species that may leach into solution were barely detectable within the sensitivity of our experiments. Moreover, larger (8 nm) nanoparticles were found to be much better catalysts than very small ones (2 nm), which is consistent with the hypothesis that steric limitations adversely affect the efficiency of the latter.

Manganese(III) acetate mediated oxidative radical cyclizations. Toward vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenters.

Manganese(III) acetate mediated oxidative radical cyclizations have been used to synthesize a range of densely functionalized and sterically congested cyclopentane-lactones. A number of the resulting lactones contain vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenters adjacent to a tertiary benzylic stereocenter and are formed with high levels of stereocontrol.

Total Synthesis of 7,11-Cyclobotryococca-5,12,26-triene Using an Oxidative Radical Cyclization as a Key Step

An efficient total synthesis of the novel botryococcene-related hydrocarbon 7,11-cyclobotryococca-5,12,26-triene is reported that uses, as a key step, an oxidative radical cyclization of a 4-pentenyl malonate for the synthesis of a [3.3.0]-bicyclic gamma-lactone.

Spirodiketopiperazines of mannofuranose: carbopeptoid α-amino acid esters at the anomeric position of mannofuranose

Abstract Epimeric mannofuranose anomeric aminoesters are prepared from readily available azidolactones and can act as building blocks for the incorporation of mannofuranose units into peptide chains [carbopeptoids]; alternative acylating conditions allow either rapid acylation of the more stable but kinetically hindered amine or reaction with the less hindered but less stable amine to allow control of the anomeric configuration of the products. This is exemplified by coupling of the aminoesters with glycine derivatives to give dipeptide equivalents, and subsequent cyclization to spiro diketopiperazines. Anomers with the nitrogen function cis to the 2,3-diol are more stable than those with nitrogen trans ; mannofuranose derivatives are more stable than the mannopyranose isomers.

Clarification of the Stereochemical Course of Nucleophilic Substitution of Arylsulfonate-Based Nucleophile Assisting Leaving Groups

Secondary alcohols modified as tosylates, PEG-sulfonates, or quisylates undergo inversion of configuration at the reacting center when treated with lithium halide in acetone at reflux, where the PEG-sulfonates and quisylates are substantially more reactive. In sterically hindered cases, elimination is a competing process. In contrast, when treated with TiCl(4), simple secondary sulfonates give chloride products with partial inversion of configuration. Any observed retention of configuration in a given alkyl sulfonate substrate under these conditions is likely due to neighboring group participation or diastereoselective attack on a carbocation (or ion pair) rather than an S(N)i mechanism.

Synthesis of medium-ring lactones via tandem methylenation/Claisen rearrangement of cyclic carbonates

The conversion of vinyl-substituted 6- and 7-membered cyclic carbonates into 8- and 9-membered medium-ring lactones has been achieved in good yield using dimethyltitanocene in toluene at reflux. The reaction proceeds by initial formation of a ketene acetal which undergoes subsequent in situ Claisen rearrangement to provide the corresponding lactones. The preparation of the cyclic carbonates is carried out under basic conditions and hence this methodology complements our existing selenium-based methodology for the synthesis of medium-ring lactones.

Synthesis of (+)-obtusenyne.

An enantioselective synthesis of the halogenated medium-ring ether natural product (+)-obtusenyne is reported which uses the ring expansion of a seven-membered ketene acetal by means of a Claisen rearrangement to construct the core nine-membered oxygen heterocycle. The trans substituents across the ether linkage were established by using a transition-metal-catalyzed intramolecular hydrosilation reaction of an exo-cyclic enol ether. In addition, a formal synthesis of ent-obtusenyne from 2-deoxy-D-ribose is reported. A number of interesting points regarding the chemistry of medium-ring oxygen heterocycles are highlighted.