The Use of Chiro-Inositols in Asymmetric Synthesis

<p>D- and L- chiro-inositols are readily and inexpensively available as their O-methyl ethers pinitol and quebrachitol. To date the use of the choro-inositols in synthesis has not been exploited as fully as that of the more common isomer myo-inositol. The chiro-inositols were protected as either the di-isopropylidene or the di-cyclohexylidene systems to give them more steric bulk and were subsequently evaluated in the three areas of asymmetric synthesis: as chiral reagents, as chiral auxiliaries, as chiral ligands. Outside of these areas was the successful application of methodology for the mono esterification of C-2 symmetric diols to these inositol systems. This allowed a series of molecules to be generated that proved useful in the areas outlined above. For the use of chiro-inositols as chiral reagents, two reagents were investigated. The first was a hydroboration reagent similar to pinenyl borane. The second was the generation of a strained silacycle for use as a reagent in the enantioselective allylation of aldehydes. In the area of chiral auxiliaries, these inositols were successfully used to give selectivity in the Michael reaction. Unfortunately this success was not repeatable in the aldol reaction. Investigations into the development of chiral ligands were unsuccessful in that we were unable to synthesize either a diamine or an amino alcohol from this system. A diol and an amino ether were trialed in asymmetric reactions but failed to provide any catalytic effect. This section of the project did lead to some interesting chemistry and a better understanding of this system that can be applied to future work.</p>

The Use of Chiro-Inositols in Asymmetric Synthesis

<p>D- and L- chiro-inositols are readily and inexpensively available as their O-methyl ethers pinitol and quebrachitol. To date the use of the choro-inositols in synthesis has not been exploited as fully as that of the more common isomer myo-inositol. The chiro-inositols were protected as either the di-isopropylidene or the di-cyclohexylidene systems to give them more steric bulk and were subsequently evaluated in the three areas of asymmetric synthesis: as chiral reagents, as chiral auxiliaries, as chiral ligands. Outside of these areas was the successful application of methodology for the mono esterification of C-2 symmetric diols to these inositol systems. This allowed a series of molecules to be generated that proved useful in the areas outlined above. For the use of chiro-inositols as chiral reagents, two reagents were investigated. The first was a hydroboration reagent similar to pinenyl borane. The second was the generation of a strained silacycle for use as a reagent in the enantioselective allylation of aldehydes. In the area of chiral auxiliaries, these inositols were successfully used to give selectivity in the Michael reaction. Unfortunately this success was not repeatable in the aldol reaction. Investigations into the development of chiral ligands were unsuccessful in that we were unable to synthesize either a diamine or an amino alcohol from this system. A diol and an amino ether were trialed in asymmetric reactions but failed to provide any catalytic effect. This section of the project did lead to some interesting chemistry and a better understanding of this system that can be applied to future work.</p>

Synthesis of C3-Symmetric Cinchona-Based Organocatalysts and Their Applications in Asymmetric Michael and Friedel–Crafts Reactions

In this work, anchoring of cinchona derivatives to trifunctional cores (hub approach) was demonstrated to obtain size-enlarged organocatalysts. By modifying the cinchona skeleton in different positions, we prepared four C3-symmetric size-enlarged cinchona derivatives (hub-cinchonas), which were tested as organocatalysts and their catalytic activities were compared with the parent cinchona (hydroquinine) catalyst. We showed that in the hydroxyalkylation reaction of indole, hydroquinine provides good enantioselectivities (up to 73% ee), while the four new size-enlarged derivatives resulted in significantly lower values (up to 29% ee) in this reaction. Anchoring cinchonas to trifunctional cores was found to facilitate nanofiltration-supported catalyst recovery using the PolarClean alternative solvent. The C3-symmetric size-enlarged organocatalysts were completely rejected by all the applied membranes, whereas the separation of hydroquinine was found to be insufficient when using organic solvent nanofiltration. Furthermore, the asymmetric catalysis was successfully demonstrated in the case of the Michael reaction of 1,3-diketones and trans-β-nitrostyrene using Hub3-cinchona (up to 96% ee) as a result of the positive effect of the C3-symmetric structure using a bulkier substrate. This equates to an increased selectivity of the catalyst in comparison to hydroquinine in the latter Michael reaction.

Beneficial Contribution of Biosourced Ionic Liquids and Microwaves in the Michael Reaction

We developed a synthesis of chiral ionic liquids from proline and one of its derivatives. Nine chiral ionic liquids were synthesized with yields from 78% to 95%. These synthesized ionic liquids played two roles in Michael reactions, as solvents, and as basic catalysts, where the ionic phase could also be reused at least five times without loss of activity. The yields up to 99% were improved by increasing the amount of dimethylmalonate from 1.2 equivalents to 3 or 4 equivalents. Furthermore, the reaction time could be reduced from 24 h to 45 min through microwaves activation.

The solvent-controlled chemoselective construction of C–S/S–S bonds via the Michael reaction/thiol coupling of quinoline-2-thiones

The solvent-controlled selective construction of C–S and S–S bonds containing a quinoline skeleton under mild conditions from quinoline-2-thiones has been reported.

One-pot synthesis of (1RS,21SR)-diethyl 2-[23-amino-22-ethoxycarbonyl-8,11,14-trioxa-25-azatetracyclo[19.3.1.02,7.015,20]pentacosa-2,4,6,15(20),16,18,22-heptaen-25-yl]but-2-endioate

The title compound, C30H34N2O9 (4), is a product of the Michael reaction of azacrown ether with dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate modified by an addition of NH3 (aq.) at 298 K. The aza-14-crown-4-ether ring adopts a bowl conformation. The dihedral angle between the planes of the benzene rings fused to the aza-14-crown-4-ether moiety is 8.65 (5)°. The tetrahydropyridine ring has a boat conformation. The molecular conformation is supported by one N—H...O and two C—H...O intramolecular hydrogen bonds. Both heterocyclic and amino N atoms have essentially planar configurations (sums of the bond angles are 359.35 and 358.00°). Compound 4 crystallizes as a racemate consisting of enantiomeric pairs of the 1R,21S diastereomer. In the crystal, molecules of 4 are connected by N—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming chains along [100]. According to the PASS program (computer prediction of biological activities), compound 4 may exhibit antiallergic (72% probability) and antiasthmatic (67%) activity, as well as be a membrane permeability inhibitor (65%).