Access to chiral 1-aminoindene derivatives by asymmetric Brønsted acid catalysis

Asymmetric organocatalysis is emerging as an elegant tool for accelerating chemical reactions and creating specific types of molecules. Chiral Brønsted acid catalysis is an important area of organocatalysis. Recently we described a chiral Brønsted acid (N-triflyl phosphoramide) catalyzed intramolecular iminium ion cyclization reaction of 2-alkenylbenzaldimines for the synthesis of chiral 1-aminoindenes and tetracyclic 1-aminoindanes in good yields and high enantioselectivities. The obtained 1-aminoindene can be utilized as useful synthetic intermediate for synthesis of (S)-rasagiline, an effective drug for the symptomatic treatment of Parkinson's disease. And the obtained tetracyclic 1-aminoindanes are the skeleton of homoisoflavanoid natural products such as brazilin.