Rebecca L. Nicholson

Asymmetric synthesis of vicinal amino alcohols: xestoaminol C, sphinganine and sphingosine

The highly diastereoselective anti-aminohydroxylation of alpha,beta-unsaturated esters, via conjugate addition of lithium (S)-N-benzyl-N-(alpha-methylbenzyl)amide and subsequent in situ enolate oxidation with (+)-(camphorsulfonyl)oxaziridine, has been used as the key step in the asymmetric synthesis of N,O-diacetyl xestoaminol C (41% yield over 8 steps), N,O,O-triacetyl sphinganine (30% yield over 8 steps) and N,O,O-triacetyl sphingosine (30% yield over 7 steps).

Highly (E)-selective Wadsworth-Emmons reactions promoted by methylmagnesium bromide.

An experimentally simple protocol for the very highly (E)-selective Wadsworth-Emmons reaction [(E):(Z) selectivities in excess of 180:1 in some cases] of a range of straight-chain and branched aliphatic, substituted aromatic, and base-sensitive aldehydes via reaction with an alkyl diethylphosphonoacetate and MeMgBr is reported.

SuperQuat N-acyl-5,5-dimethyloxazolidin-2-ones for the asymmetric synthesis of α-alkyl and β-alkyl aldehydes

The proclivity of α-branched N-2′-benzyl-3′-phenylpropionyl derivatives of (S)-4-benzyl-5,5-dimethyl-, (S)-4-phenyl-5,5-dimethyl-, (S)-4-isopropyl-5,5-dimethyl-, (S)-4-benzyl- and (S)-4-benzyl-5,5-diphenyl-oxazolidin-2-ones to generate directly 2-benzyl-3-phenylpropionaldehyde upon hydride reduction with DIBAL is investigated. The (S)-4-benzyl-5,5-dimethyl-derivative proved optimal for inhibition of endocyclic nucleophilic attack, giving 2-benzyl-3-phenylpropionaldehyde in good yield upon reduction. Application of this methodology for the asymmetric synthesis of chiral aldehydes via diastereoselective enolate alkylation of a range of (S)-N-acyl-4-benzyl-5,5-dimethyloxazolidin-2-ones to afford an array of α-substituted-N-acyl-5,5-dimethyloxazolidin-2-ones (85–94% de) and subsequent reduction with DIBAL afforded directly non-racemic α-substituted aldehydes without loss of stereochemical integrity (87–94% ee). The extension of this protocol for the asymmetric synthesis of β-substituted aldehydes is demonstrated, via the diastereoselective conjugate addition of a range of organocuprates to (S)-N-acyl-4-phenyl-5,5-dimethyloxazolidin-2-ones which proceeds with high diastereoselectivity (generally >95% de). Reduction of the conjugate addition products with DIBAL gives non-racemic β-substituted aldehydes in high yields and in high ee (generally >95% ee). This methodology is exemplified by the asymmetric synthesis of (R)-3-isopropenylhept-6-enal, which has previously been used in the synthesis of (3Z,6R)-3-methyl-6-isopropenyl-3,9-decadien-1-yl acetate, a component of the sex pheromones of the California red scale.

Asymmetric synthesis of anti-(2S,3S)- and syn-(2R,3S)-diaminobutanoic acid

Conjugate addition of homochiral lithium N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylamide to tert-butyl (E)-cinnamate or tert-butyl (E)-crotonate and in situ amination with trisyl azide results in the exclusive formation of the corresponding 2-diazo-3-amino esters in > 95% de. Amination of the lithium (E)-enolates of tert-butyl (3S,alphaR)-3-N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylamino-3-phenylpropanoate or tert-butyl (3S,alphaS)-3-N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylaminobutanoate with trisyl azide gives the (2R,3R,alphaR)- and (2S,3S,alphaS )-anti-2-azido-3-amino esters in good yields and in 85% de and > 95% de respectively. Alternatively, tert-butyl anti-(2S,3S,alphaS)-2-hydroxy-3-N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylaminobutanoate may be converted selectively to tert-butyl anti-(2S,3S,alphaS)-2-azido-3-N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylaminobutanoate by aziridinium ion formation and regioselective opening with azide. Deprotection of tert-butyl (2S,3S,alphaS)-2-azido-3-aminobutanoate via Staudinger reduction, hydrogenolysis and ester hydrolysis furnishes anti-(2S,3S)-diaminobutanoic acid in 98%, de and 98% ee. The asymmetric synthesis of the diastereomeric syn-(2R,3S)-diaminobutanoic acid (98% de and 98% ee) was accomplished via functional group manipulation of tert-butyl anti-(2S,3S,alphaS)-2-hydroxy-3-N-benzyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylaminobutanoate in a protocol involving azide inversion of tert-butyl (2S,3S)-2-mesyloxy-3-N-Boc-butanoate and subsequent deprotection.

Asymmetric synthesis of (4R,5R)-cytoxazone and (4R,5S)-epi-cytoxazone

(4R,5R)-Cytoxazone has been prepared in four steps and in 61% overall yield and >98% ee. Conjugate addition of lithium (R)-N-benzyl-N-[small alpha]-methylbenzylamide to tert-butyl (E)-3-(p-methoxyphenyl)prop-2-enoate and subsequent in situ diastereoselective enolate oxidation with (+)-(camphorsulfonyl)oxaziridine gave tert-butyl (2R,3R,[small alpha]R)-2-hydroxy-3-(p-methoxyphenyl)-3-(N-benzyl-N-[small alpha]-methylbenzylamino)propanoate in >98% de. Subsequent N-benzyl deprotection to the primary [small beta]-amino ester via hydrogenolysis, oxazolidinone formation with C(2)-retention by treatment with diphosgene and chemoselective ester reduction furnishes (4R,5R)-cytoxazone. The synthesis of the C(5)-epimer, (4R,5S)-epi-cytoxazone in 44% overall yield, has also been completed via a protocol involving N-Boc protection of the primary [small beta]-amino ester, utilization of the N-Boc group to facilitate simultaneous C(2)-inversion and oxazolidinone formation, and subsequent reduction.

SuperQuat, (S)-4-benzyl-5,5-dimethyl-oxazolidin-2-one for the asymmetric synthesis of α-substituted-aldehydes

Abstract Reduction of α-substituted-(S)-N-acyl-4-benzyl-5,5-dimethyl-oxazolidin-2-ones with DIBAL-H in CH2Cl2 affords α-substituted aldehydes with no loss of stereochemical integrity at their α-centre.

Double diastereoselective SuperQuat glycolate aldol reactions: Application to the asymmetric synthesis of polyfunctionalised lactones

Polyfunctionalised lactones with up to five contiguous stereocentres may be prepared with high stereocontrol by a double diastereoselective aldol protocol with protected homochiral alpha,beta-dihydroxy- or alpha,beta-gamma-trihydroxyaldehydes and a chiral glycolate oxazolidinone, followed by subsequent O-desilylation and lactonisation.

N-acyl-5,5-dimethyl-oxazolidin-2-ones as latent aldehyde equivalents

Abstract N -acyl-5,5-dimethyl-oxazolidin-2-ones can function as versatile latent aldehyde equivalents - reductive cleavage with DIBAL-H affords aldehydes in good yield, while tandem DIBAL-H/Wittig methodology affords α,β-unsaturated esters.

Conformational control in the SuperQuat chiral auxiliary 5,5-dimethyl-4-iso-propyloxazolidin-2-one induces the iso-propyl group to mimic a tert-butyl group

1 H NMR nOe spectroscopic studies reveal that conformational control in the enolates of N-acyl-5,5-dimethyl-4-iso-propyloxazolidin-2-ones ensures that the stereodirecting effect of its 4-iso-propyl-5,5-dimethyl functional group affords superior levels of facial selectivity normally associated with enolates derived from N-acyl-4-tert-butyloxazolidin-2-ones.

Double diastereoselective [3,3]-sigmatropic aza-Claisen rearrangements.

Asymmetric [3,3]-sigmatropic aza-Claisen rearrangement of the (Z)-N-allyl-N,O-silylketene aminal of (3S,4E,alphaR)-1-benzyloxy-3-(N-propionyl-N-alpha-methylbenzylamino)hex-4-ene furnishes (2S,3R,4E,alphaR)-N-alpha-methylbenzyl-2,3-dimethyl-7-benzyloxyhept-4-enamide in > 92% d.e.; rearrangement of the diastereomeric (3R,4E,alphaR)-(Z)-N,O-silylketene aminal proceeds with low diastereoselectivity.