Ramon Rios

Organocatalytic Domino Reactions

Since the rediscovery of proline in 2000 as catalyst in aldol reaction by List, Barbas and Lerner and, soon after, the development of iminium catalysis by D. W. C. MacMillan, the emergence of organocatalysis as an important tool in organic synthesis is outstanding. During the last years, several research groups have worked in the development of new and powerful methodologies that allow us to build difficult molecules with high yields and enantioselectivities in a metal-free environment. Moreover, the possibility to join two or more organocatalytic reactions in one process has become one challenging goal for chemists, probably due to the costly protecting groups and time-consuming purification procedures after each synthetic step that are one of the common issues in organic synthesis. To circumvent these problems, tandem, domino, cascade or multicomponent organocatalytic reactions have been utilized for the efficient diastereo- and enantioselective construction of complex molecules from simple precursors in simple processes. For example, different tandem organocatalytic reactions such as cyclopropanation, aziridination, Michael-aldol, Michael-?-alkylation, etc. have been developed since 2006 with excellent yields and stereoselectivities. Herein, we describe the last trends and examples of organocatalytic domino reactions. This review aims to cover and discuss the current development of this fast growing field.

Enantioselective Organocatalytic Synthesis of Fluorinated Molecules

The enantioselective synthesis of fluorinated molecules has drawn much attention within the chemical community due to its unique stereoelectronic properties. The main aim of this review is to cover the most important organocatalytic enantioselective methodologies to obtain them. The review is divided into three parts: first, the direct introduction of a fluorine atom studied in the early 2000s. Second, the later use of Michael reactions to introduce fluorine-containing synthons. Finally, the simultaneously-developed trifluoromethylation reactions, giving the catalysts, mechanisms and reagents that have been used.

One‐Pot Organocatalytic Domino Michael/α‐Alkylation Reactions: Direct Catalytic Enantioselective Cyclopropanation and Cyclopentanation Reactions

The development of one-pot organocatalytic domino Michael/alpha-alkylation reactions between bromomalonates or bromoacetoacetate esters and alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes is presented. The chiral-amine-catalyzed reactions with bromomalonates as substrates give access to the corresponding 2-formylcyclopropane derivatives in high yields with excellent diastereoselectivity and up to 99 % ee. The catalytic domino Michael/alpha-alkylation reactions between 4-bromo-acetoacetate and enals provide a route for the synthesis of functionalized cyclopentanones in good to high yields with 93-99 % ee. The products from the organocatalytic reactions were also reduced with high diastereoselectivity to the corresponding cyclopropanols and cyclopentanols, respectively. Moreover, one-pot combinations of amine and heterocyclic carbene catalysis (AHCC) enabled the highly enantioselective synthesis of beta-malonate esters (91-97 % ee) from the reaction between bromomalonates and enals. The tandem catalysis included the catalytic domino reaction followed by catalytic in situ chemoselective ring-opening of the 2-formylcyclopropane intermediates.

Organocatalytic Asymmetric 5-Hydroxyisoxazolidine Synthesis: A Highly Enantioselective Route to β-Amino Acids

The highly chemo- and enantioselective organocatalytic tandem reaction between N-protected hydroxyl amines and alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes is presented; the reaction provides access to 5-hydroxyisoxazolidines and beta-amino acids in high yields and with 90-99% ee.

Highly Enantio‐ and Diastereoselective Organocatalytic Desymmetrization of Prochiral Cyclohexanones by Simple Direct Aldol Reaction Catalyzed by Proline

Panacea for aldol desymmetrizations: We describe an easy entry for the desymmetrization of 4-substituted-cyclohexanones catalyzed by proline, using as cocatalysts different hydrogen-bonding donors (see scheme), which dramatically improves the catalytic efficiency of proline in desymmetrization reactions.

Enantioselective Organocatalytic Addition of Oxazolones to 1,1-Bis(phenylsulfonyl)ethylene: A Convenient Asymmetric Synthesis of Quaternary α-Amino Acids

A new, easy, and highly enantioselective method for the synthesis of quaternary alpha-alkyl-alpha-amino acids based on organocatalysis is reported. The addition of oxazolones to 1,1-bis(phenylsulfonyl)ethylene is efficiently catalyzed by simple chiral bases or thioureas. The reaction affords alpha,alpha-disubstituted alpha-amino acid derivatives with complete C4 regioselectivity and with excellent yields and enantioselectivities. This methodology is complementary to previously reported enantioselective approaches to quaternary alpha-amino acids and allows the synthesis of alpha-phenyl-alpha-alkyl-alpha-amino acids and alpha-tert-butyl-alpha-alkyl-alpha-amino acids. It has distinct advantages in terms of operational simplicity, enviromentally friendly conditions, and suitability for large-scale reactions.

Organocatalytic enantioselective methodologies using Morita–Baylis–Hillman carbonates and acetates

Lately, the use of Morita–Baylis–Hillman carbonates and acetates in organocatalysis has grown exponentially. Since the pioneering work of Kim and coworkers until the last cycloadditions reported by Barbas, a plethora of new methodologies have been developed. The use of these compounds opens a new gate for the synthesis of C–C or C-heteroatom bonds in an enantioselective fashion and under mild conditions giving access to highly functionalized structures. In this review, we aim to cover these exciting reactions, paying special attention on the nature of the MBH adduct.

Formal Highly Enantioselective Organocatalytic Addition of Fluoromethyl Anion to α,β-Unsaturated Aldehydes

Symmetric fluoromethylation made easy: a highly enantioselective fluoromethyl addition to ?,?-unsaturated aldehydes is described (see scheme). The synthesis of chiral fluorinated blocks, including ?-fluoro-?-aminoalcohol derivatives is disclosed.

Enantioselective Organocatalytic Addition of Azlactones to Maleimides: A Highly Stereocontrolled Entry to 2,2‐Disubstituted‐2H‐oxazol‐5‐ones

The first highly diastereo- and enantioselective organocatalytic synthesis of 2,2-disubstituted-2H-oxazol-5-ones is described. The addition of oxazolones to maleimides is promoted by bifunctional thiourea catalysts, which afford the corresponding 2,2-disubstituted-2H-oxazol-5-ones with total regio- and stereocontrol.

Substrate‐Dependent Nonlinear Effects in Proline–Thiourea‐Catalyzed Aldol Reactions: Unraveling the Role of the Thiourea Co‐Catalyst

The study of nonlinear effects in the proline–thiourea-catalyzed aldol reaction between acetone and aromatic aldehydes, together with NMR and ESI-MS experiments, shows that the main role of the thiourea co-catalyst is that of promoting both the formation of a soluble Seebachs oxazolidinone intermediate and its conversion into the iminium carboxylate isomer.