Front Cover: Asymmetric Synthesis of 3‐Pyrrolines through an Aryne‐Induced Domino Process (Asian J. Org. Chem. 4/2021)

Abstract

A new domino reaction is developed for the synthesis of optically active 3‐pyrrolines. The reaction involves the use of (trimethylsilyl)aryl triflates, KF, Schiff bases, and alkynes in the presence of a chiral catalyst (R)‐(–)‐1,1′‐binaphthyl‐2,2′‐diyl hydrogenphosphate. The key features of this reaction include the generation of a single product in very good yields with high stereo‐ and enantioselectivity. The enantiomeric ratio reaches as high as 98.5:1.5. The overall pathway includes four steps in a domino process of 1,2‐elimination, 1,2‐nucleophilic addition, 1,4‐proton shift, and (3+2) cycloaddition. More information can be found in the Full Paper by Jih Ru Hwu et al.