Head of the Class

Head of the Class

Author: Angewandte Chemie International Edition

Researchers led by Benjamin List, Max Planck Institute in Mülheim, Germany, have reported the direct enantioselective synthesis of cyclic aminal compounds from aldehydes through a sequence consisting of imine formation and intramolecular amidation. To do this, they designed a novel chiral Brønsted acid catalyst by introducing a phosphinyl amido moiety (see catalyst 1). With bringing in new substituents, these catalysts were easily modified and fine-tuned for a particular reaction (see scheme).

List’s methodology was used in the first catalytic asymmetric synthesis of the pain killer (R)-chlorothenoxazine. It is envisioned that the N,O-acetals prepared by this approach will be useful intermediates for the synthesis of biologically active compounds.


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