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N‐Sulfinyl Amines as a Nitrogen Source in the Asymmetric Intramolecular Aza‐Michael Reaction: Total Synthesis of (−)‐Pinidinol

N-Sulfinyl amines have been successfully employed as nitrogen nucleophiles for the asymmetric intramolecular aza-Michael reaction. The synthetic strategy involves a cross-metathesis reaction followed by the Michael-type cyclization, either in a base-catalyzed two-step procedure or in a tandem fashion. The developed methodology allows access to chiral substituted pyrrolidines and piperidines bearing one or two stereocenters and it has been applied to the synthesis of the piperidine alkaloid (-)-pinidinol.

Tandem Nucleophilic Addition−Intramolecular Aza-Michael Reaction: Facile Synthesis of Chiral Fluorinated Isoindolines

A highly stereoselective synthesis of fluorinated 1,3-disubstituted isoindolines is described. To this end, a tandem reaction consisting of a diastereoselective addition of fluorinated nucleophiles to Ellmans N-(tert-butanesulfinyl)imines followed by an intramolecular aza-Michael reaction has been developed. This strategy allows for the construction of isoindolines bearing several degrees of fluorination (mono-, di-, or trifluoromethyl as well as heavier fluorinated groups). In the majority of all cases, the products are formed as single isomers.

Gold-Catalyzed Intramolecular Hydroamination of o-Alkynylbenzyl Carbamates: A Route to Chiral Fluorinated Isoindoline and Isoquinoline Derivatives

Enantiomerically pure fluorinated isoindoline and dihydroisoquinoline scaffolds have been prepared through a diastereoselective addition of fluorinated nucleophiles to Ellmans N-(tert-butanesulfinyl)imines followed by a sequence of Sonogashira cross-coupling/gold(I)-catalyzed cycloisomerization of the corresponding carbamate. A more favored 5-exo-dig mechanism was observed mainly due to an electronic effect of the fluorinated group.

Intramolecular Michael Reaction of tert-Butylsulfinyl Ketimines: Asymmetric Synthesis of 3-Substituted Indanones

Aromatic tert-butylsulfinyl ketimines bearing a suitable Michael acceptor at the ortho position readily undergo an intramolecular conjugate addition achieving indanone derivatives in good yields and complete diastereoselectivity.

Asymmetric allylation/Pauson-Khand reaction: a simple entry to polycyclic amines. Application to the synthesis of aminosteroid analogues.

Asymmetric allylation of o-iodoarylsulfinylimines has been achieved in high diastereoselectivities. The thus-obtained o-iodoarylhomoallylic sulfinamides participate in a subsequent Sonogashira coupling followed by a diastereoselective intramolecular Pauson-Khand reaction. In this way, tricyclic amines showing a unique benzo-fused indenyl backbone were obtained. The methodology has been applied to the synthesis of amino steroid analogues.

Asymmetric allylation/ring closing metathesis: one-pot synthesis of benzo-fused cyclic homoallylic amines. Application to the formal synthesis of Sertraline derivatives.

A one-pot asymmetric allylation/ring closing metathesis (RCM) sequence for the synthesis of cyclic homoallylic amines has been developed. A library of six- and seven-membered benzo-fused products has been synthesized in good yields and complete diastereoselectivity. The new methodology has been applied to the formal syntheses of the antidepressant Sertraline and the epimeric Norsertraline. The methodology is amenable for the synthesis of analogs.

Asymmetric Synthesis of Monofluorinated 1-Amino-1,2-dihydronaphthalene and 1,3-Amino Alcohol Derivatives

Enantioenriched 1-amino-4-fluoro-1,2-dihydronaphthalene derivatives are accessed via two complementary synthetic strategies. The careful optimization of the reaction conditions required for the elimination step in one route has allowed both the identification of an anchimerically assisted reaction pathway and, more importantly, access to a divergent reaction pathway toward fluorinated 1,3-amino alcohols from a common intermediate just by adjusting the number of equivalents of base used.

Asymmetric Synthesis of Fluorinated Isoindolinones through Palladium‐Catalyzed Carbonylative Amination of Enantioenriched Benzylic Carbamates

The asymmetric synthesis of fluorinated isoindolinones has been achieved by a palladium-catalyzed aminocarbonylation reaction of the corresponding α-fluoroalkyl o-iodobenzylamines. A base-mediated anti β-hydride elimination process was suggested to explain the partial erosion of the optical purity observed in some cases. This mechanistic rationale enabled the minimization of this partial racemization by fine-tuning the pKa of the base.

Recent Developments in the Chiral Brønsted Acid-catalyzed Allylboration Reaction with Polyfunctionalized Substrates.

Asymmetric allylboration has played a central role in organic synthesis ever since the pioneering work by Hoffman and Brown, having found applications in the total synthesis of many natural products. A new dawn for this 40 year-old reaction occurred with the beginning of the new century when the first catalytic asymmetric methods came into play. In less than one decade, several methodologies, able to achieve the desired homoallylic alcohols with ee ranges in the high 90s, were developed. Among them, in the present account, we will disclose our contribution to the development of the chiral binolphosphoric-derived Brønsted acid-catalyzed allylboration of aldehydes originally reported by Antilla in 2010. Our contribution to this field lies in its application to polyfunctionalized systems, both on the aldehyde and the allylboronate in question, which enables the rapid construction of molecular diversity and complexity. Parts of the work described herein have been carried out in collaboration with the groups of Profs. Akiyama and Houk.

8-Iodonaphthalene-1-carbaldehyde: A Versatile Building Block for Diversity-Oriented Synthesis.

The scarcely studied 8-halonaphthalene-1-carbaldehyde structure has been converted into the corresponding Ellmans imine and subjected to several transformations, thus achieving an assorted library of polycyclic carbo- and heterocycles. The potential of this scaffold for Diversity-Oriented Synthesis has been shown. Most of these skeletons are unprecedented and, therefore, cover unexplored regions of the chemical space.