An efficient and practical protocol for the enantioselective cobalt-catalyzed hydrovinylation of vinylarenes with ethylene at low (1.2 bar) pressure has been developed. As precatalysts, stable [L2 CoCl2 ] complexes are employed that are activated in situ with Et2 AlCl. A modular chiral TADDOL-derived phosphine-phosphite ligand was identified that allows the conversion of a broad spectrum of substrates, including heterocyclic vinylarenes and vinylferrocene, to smoothly afford the branched products with up to 99 % ee and virtually complete regioselectivity. Even polar functional groups, such as OH, NH2 , CN, and CO2 R, are tolerated.
Due to their pronounced bioactivity and limited availability from natural resources, metabolites of the soft coral Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, such as erogorgiaene and the pseudopterosines, represent important target molecules for chemical synthesis. We have now developed a particularly short and efficient route towards these marine diterpenes exploiting an operationally convenient enantioselective cobalt‐catalyzed hydrovinylation as the chirogenic step. Other noteworthy C−C bond forming transformations include diastereoselective Lewis acid‐mediated cyclizations, a Suzuki coupling and a carbonyl ene reaction. Starting from 4‐methyl‐styrene the anti‐tubercular agent (+)‐erogorgiaene (>98 % ee) was prepared in only 7 steps with 46 % overall yield. In addition, the synthesis of the pseudopterosin A aglycone was achieved in 12 steps with 30 % overall yield and, surprisingly, was found to exhibit a similar anti‐inflammatory activity (inhibition of LPS‐induced NF‐κB activation) as a natural mixture of pseudopterosins A−D or iso‐pseudopterosin A, prepared by β‐D‐xylosylation of the synthetic aglycone.
SummaryA concise (5 to 6 steps), stereodivergent, highly diastereoselective (dr up to >19:1 for both stereoisomers) and scalable synthesis (up to 14 g) of cis- and trans-2-substituted 3-piperidinols, a core motif in numerous bioactive compounds, is presented. This sequence allowed an efficient synthesis of the NK-1 inhibitor L-733,060 in 8 steps. Additionally, a cyclodehydration-realizing simple triethylphosphite as a substitute for triphenylphosphine is developed. Here the stoichiometric oxidized P(V)-byproduct (triethylphosphate) is easily removed during the work up through saponification overcoming separation difficulties usually associated to triphenylphosphine oxide.
The seminal synthesis of the sesquiterpene (±)-α-cedrene reported by Wender in 1981 offers a uniquely short and elegant access to the bridged-tricyclic target compound by exploiting an intramolecular arene-olefin photocycloaddition. However, the synthesis was performed only in the racemic series so far. This synthesis was now re-investigated and the catalytic methods for the enantioselective preparation of the chiral key intermediate were evaluated. It was found that Cucatalyzed allylic substitution of a cinnamyl chloride with MeMgBr in the presence of a Taddol-derived chiral phosphine-phosphite ligand affords the corresponding (1-methylallyl)arene with high enantioselectivity (94% ee). Hydroboration and subsequent Suzuki coupling gave (R)-curcuphenol methyl ether from which (-)-α-cedrene was prepared along the route paved by Wender.
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