Nickel-catalyzed enantio- and diastereoselective three-component coupling of 1,3-dienes, aldehydes, and silanes using chiral N-heterocyclic carbenes as ligands

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/ol702543m

Nickel(0)-catalyzed asymmetric three-component coupling of 1,3-dienes, aldehydes, and silanes has been realized utilizing a chiral N-heterocyclic carbene as a ligand. On the basis of the screening of various NHC precursors, an imidazolium salt having 1-(2

Full text of DOI:10.1021/ol702543m

ORGANIC
LETTERS
2007
Vol. 9, No. 26
5597-5599
Nickel-Catalyzed Enantio- and
Diastereoselective Three-Component
Coupling of 1,3-Dienes, Aldehydes, and
Silanes Using Chiral N-Heterocyclic
Carbenes as Ligands
Yoshihiro Sato,* Yu Hinata, Reiko Seki, Yoshihiro Oonishi, and Nozomi Saito
Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido UniVersity, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan
biyo@pharm.hokudai.ac.jp
Received October 19, 2007
ABSTRACT
Nickel(0)-catalyzed asymmetric three-component coupling of 1,3-dienes, aldehydes, and silanes has been realized utilizing a chiral N-heterocyclic
carbene as a ligand. On the basis of the screening of various NHC precursors, an imidazolium salt having 1-(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)propyl
groups on the nitrogen was designed and synthesized. In this reaction, various coupling products were produced in good yields with high
regio-, diastereo- (anti selective in the case of the internal 1,3-diene), and enantioselectivities (up to 97% ee).
Multicomponent reactions that produce complex molecules
from more than three parts of a simple compound in one
Scheme 1
operation are quite useful in organic synthesis.1 We have
recently developed nickel(0)-catalyzed stereoselective three-
component coupling of 1,3-diene 1, aldehyde 2, and silane
(R3SiH) 3, in which the stereoselectivity and the reaction
pathway are controlled by the properties of the phosphorus
ligand and N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) (Scheme 1).2,3
Thus, the use of PPh3 as a ligand gave the coupling product
(E)-4 via π-allylnickel intermediate I, generated by the
reaction of 1,3-diene 1 and H-Ni(II)-SiR3.2a
On the other hand, it is interesting that the reaction using
NHC 5 instead of PPh3 proceeds via σ-bond metathesis
between nickelacycle III and R3SiH 3, exclusively giving
the latter reaction to an asymmetric one using a chiral NHC.
(Z)-4.2b,c The unique property of NHC prompted us to expand
NHCs have attracted much attention as ligands of various
transition metals;4 however, there are only a few examples
(1) (a) Zhu, J., Bienayme´, H., Eds. In Multicomponent Reactions; Wiley-
VCH Verlag Gmbh and Co. KGaA: Weinhein, Germany, 2005. (b) Ramo´n,
D. J.; Yus, M. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2005, 44, 1602.
(2) (a) Takimoto, M.; Hiraga, Y.; Sato, Y.; Mori, M. Tetrahedron Lett.
1998, 39, 4543. (b) Sato, Y.; Sawaki, R.; Mori, M. Organometallics 2001,
20, 5510. (c) Sawaki, R.; Sato, Y.; Mori, M. Org. Lett. 2004, 6, 1131.
of asymmetric reactions using a chiral NHC as a ligand.5
Herein we report a nickel(0)-catalyzed asymmetric three-
component coupling of 1,3-diene, aldehyde, and silanes using
a chiral NHC.6
10.1021/ol702543m CCC: $37.00
© 2007 American Chemical Society
Published on Web 11/17/2007

First, we examined the coupling reaction of 1,3-diene 1a,
anisaldehyde (2a), and Et3SiH (3a) using Ni(cod)2 (20 mol
%), PPh3 (20 mol %), and chiral imidazolium salt 5a7a (20
mol %) as an NHC precursor in the presence of Cs2CO3 (40
mol %) according to the previously reported optimal proced-
ure (Scheme 2).2c As a result, the coupling product (Z)-4aa
(5b, 79%, 4% ee (S); 5c, 92%, 8% ee (R); 5d, 76%, 28% ee
(S); 5e, 72%, 12% ee (S); 5f, 78%, 20% ee (R)).
Next, we tried to modify the structure of 5a to improve
the enantioselectivity (Table 1). The use of 5g having
Table 1. Reaction Using Various NHC Precursorsa
Scheme 2
a All reactions (except for runs 4 and 5) were carried out using 20 mol
% PPh3-Ni-NHC* catalyst generated in situ from Ni(cod)2 (20 mol %),
PPh3 (20 mol %), and imidazolium salt (20 mol %) in the presence of
Cs2CO3 (40 mol %). b The reaction was carried out in the absence of PPh3.
was obtained in a stereoselective manner, and its enantio-
meric excess was determined to be 24% by HPLC analysis
of alcohol (Z)-6aa obtained by desilylation of (Z)-4aa (80%
yield, two steps). Asymmetric coupling utilizing 5b,7b 5c,7c
5d,7d 5e,7b or 5f7b as an NHC precursor was investigated
under the same conditions, but the ee was low in each case
1-phenylpropyl groups slightly increased the ee of (Z)-4aa
up to 31% (run 1).
In the reaction using 5h7a having naphthyl groups,
(Z)-4aa was obtained in 92% yield with 46% ee (run 2),
suggesting that the bulkiness of the aromatic ring is important
for obtaining good enantioselectivity. The reaction was
carried out using 5i, in which mesityl groups had been
introduced instead of phenyl groups in 5a, and the ee of
(Z)-4aa was improved to 61% (run 3). The reaction using
Ni-NHC* catalyst prepared from Ni(cod)2, 5i, and Cs2CO3
in the absence of PPh3 gave a better result (run 4). Finally,
we designed and synthesized imidazolium salt 5j, in which
both methyl and phenyl groups in 5a were changed into ethyl
and mesityl groups, respectively. As expected, the ee of
(Z)-4aa was improved to 71% (run 5).
Having tuned up the structure of the NHC precursor, we
turned our attention to asymmetric coupling of various 1,3-
dienes, aldehydes, and Et3SiH using 5j as the NHC precursor
(Table 2). The reaction of 1a and aldehyde 2b, 2c, or 2d in
the presence of Et3SiH using Ni-NHC* catalyst prepared
from Ni(cod)2, 5j, and Cs2CO3 afforded the product (Z)-4ab,
4ac, or 4ad in good yield with enantioselectivity comparable
to that of (Z)-4aa (runs 1-3). The reaction of sila-diene 1b,
2a, and Et3SiH (3a) gave 6ba having a (Z)-allylsilane moiety
in 60% yield (two steps) and 70% ee (run 4). It is interesting
that the coupling of unsymmetrical internal 1,3-diene 1c, 2a,
(3) Reviews on Ni(0)-catalyzed multicomponent coupling, see: (a) Ikeda,
S.-i. Acc. Chem. Res. 2000, 33, 511. (b) Montgomery, J. Acc. Chem. Res.
2000, 33, 467. (c) Montgomery, J. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2004, 43, 3890.
For recent examples of Ni(0)-catalyzed multicomponent coupling: (d)
Mahandru, G. M.; Liu, G.; Montgomery, J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2004, 126,
3698. (e) Chrovian, C. C.; Montgomery, J. Org. Lett. 2007, 9, 537. (f) Terao,
J.; Nii, S.; Chowdhury, F. A.; Nakamura, A.; Kambe, N. AdV. Synth. Catal.
2004, 346, 905. (g) Kimura, M.; Miyachi, A.; Kojima, K.; Tanaka, S.;
Tamaru, Y. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2004, 126, 14360. (h) Kimura, M.; Ezoe,
A.; Mori, M.; Tamaru, Y. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 201. (i) Kimura,
M.; Kojima, K.; Tatsuyama, Y.; Tamaru, Y. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128,
6332. (j) Cozzi, P. G.; Rivalta, E. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2005, 44, 3600.
(k) Ng, S.-S.; Ho, C.-Y.; Jamison, T. F. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 11513.
(l) Ho, C.-Y.; Jamison, T. F. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2007, 46, 782.
(4) Reviews of NHC ligands: (a) Herrmann, W. A. Angew. Chem., Int.
Ed. 2002, 41, 1290. (b) Nolan, S. P., Ed. In N-Heterocyclic Carbenes in
Synthesis; Wiley-VCH Verlag Gmbh and Co. KGaA: Weinhein, Germany,
2006. (c) For NHC ligands for Ni complex, see: Tekavec, T. N.; Louie, J.
Top. Organomet. Chem. 2007, 21, 159.
(5) Reviews of asymmetric reaction using chiral NHC ligands: (a) Gade,
L. H.; Bellemin-Laponnaz, S. Top. Organomet. Chem. 2007, 21, 117. (b)
Perry, M. C.; Burgess, K. Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 2003, 14, 951. For
representative examples of asymmetric C-C bond forming reaction
catalyzed by metal-NHC* complex, see: (c) Enders, D.; Gielen, H.; Raabe,
G.; Runsink, J.; Teles, H. Chem. Ber. 1996, 129, 1483. (d) Lee, S.; Hartwig,
J. F. J. Org. Chem. 2001, 66, 3402. (e) Funk, T. W.; Berlin, J. M.; Grubbs,
R. H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 1840. (f) Bonnet, L. G.; Douthwaite,
R. E.; Kariuki, B. M. Organometallics 2003, 22, 4187. (g) Ma, Y.; Song,
C.; Ma, C.; Sun, Z.; Chai, Q.; Andrus, M. B. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2003,
42, 5871. (h) Larsen, A. O.; Leu, W.; Oberhuber, C. N.; Campbell, J. E.;
Hoveyda, A. H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2004, 126, 11130. (i) Lee, Y.; Hoveyda,
A. H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 15604. (j) Martin, D.; Kehrli, S.;
d’Augustin, M.; Clavier, H.; Mauduit, M.; Alexakis, A. J. Am. Chem. Soc.
2006, 128, 8416. Very recently, a Ni(0)-catalyzed asymmetric coupling using
a chiral NHC ligand has been reported, see: (k) Chaulagain, M. R.;
Sormunen, G. J.; Montgomery, J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 9568.
(6) For other examples of Ni(0)-catalyzed asymmetric coupling, see:(a)
Ikeda, S.-i.; Cui, D.-M.; Sato, Y. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1999, 121, 4712. (b)
Miller, K. M.; Huang, W.-S.; Jamison, T. F. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125,
3442.
(7) (a) Herrmann, W. A.; Goossen, L. J.; Ko¨cher, C.; Artus, G. R. J.
Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl. 1996, 35, 2805. (b) Guillen, F.; Winn, C. L.;
Alexakis, A. Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 2001, 12, 2083. (c) Huang, J.;
Jafarpour, L.; Hillier, A. C.; Stevens, E. D.; Nolan, S. P. Organometallics
2001, 20, 2878. (d) Seiders, T. J.; William, W.; Grubbs, R. H. Org. Lett.
2001, 3, 3225.
5598
Org. Lett., Vol. 9, No. 26, 2007

a low catalyst loading. Thus, the coupling of 1d, 2a, and 3a
proceeded at 23 °C (run 7) and even at -20 °C (run 8),
giving (Z)-4da in 90% yield (93% ee) and 93% yield
(97% ee), respectively. The same reaction using 10 mol %
Ni-NHC* catalyst also produced (Z)-4da in a quantitative
yield with a high enantioselectivity (97% ee) (run 9).
Similarly, the coupling of 1d, 2d, and 3a also proceeded at
23 °C, giving (Z)-4da in 81% yield and 95% ee (run 10).
Furthermore, aliphatic aldehydes are tolerated as a substrate
in this coupling reaction, and the reaction of 1d with 2e or
2f in the presence of 3a proceeded at 50 °C in a regio- and
diastereoselective manner, giving the corresponding anti-
product (Z)-4de or (Z)-4df in 91% yield (82% ee) or 85%
yield (93% ee), respectively.
Table 2. Reactions of Various 1,3-Dienes and Aldehydesa
The diastereoselectivity in the case of internal 1,3-dienes
1c and 1d can be explained as shown in Scheme 3. When
Scheme 3
the oxanickelacycle is formed from the internal 1,3-diene
and aldehyde, it is thought that nickelacycle IV is most stable
because all substituents are in a trans-orientation with respect
to each other. Nickelacycle IV would be in equilibrium with
V, and σ-bond metathesis between V with Et3SiH occurs,
giving the anti product (Z)-4ca, (Z)-4da, (Z)-4dd, (Z)-4de,
or (Z)-4df in a diastereoselective manner.
In summary, an asymmetric three-component coupling of
1,3-dienes, aldehydes, and silane has been realized using
Ni-NHC* catalyst, and various coupling products were
produced in good yields with high regio-, diastereo-, and
enantioselectivities. Compared to the extensive and successful
results of NHC as a ligand for transition metals, asymmetric
reactions utilizing a chiral NHC in which a high enantiose-
lectivity (>90% ee) has been achieved are still rare. The
present results pave the way for extension of the utilization
of NHCs as chiral ligands. Further studies along this line
are in progress.
a Reaction run using 1,3-diene 1 (1.0 equiv), aldehyde 2 (1.0 equiv),
Et3SiH (5.0 equiv), and 20 mol % Ni-NHC* catalyst prepared from
Ni(cod)2 (20 mol %), (S,S)-5j (20 mol %) in the presence of Cs2CO3 (40
mol %), unless otherwise noted. b Reaction run using 1.5 equiv of aldehyde
2a to 1,3-diene 1b. c Reaction run using 10 mol % of Ni-NHC* catalyst.
d Reaction run using 20 mol % of Ni-NHC* catalyst prepared from Ni(cod)2
(20 mol %), (R,R)-5j (20 mol %) in the presence of Cs2CO3 (40 mol %).
and 3a proceeded in a regio- and diastereoselective manner,
giving (Z)-4ca in 81% yield as a sole product, although the
ee was modest (50%) (run 5).8 The reaction of (1E,3E)-1,4-
diphenylbuta-1,3-diene (1d),9 2a, and 3a under the same
conditions was completed within 1.5 h, and the anti-product
(Z)-4da was again produced in 87% yield as a sole product
(run 6).8 We were very pleased that the ee of (Z)-4da
increased up to 90%. The high reactivity of 1d enabled us
to conduct the coupling reaction at a lower temperature with
Acknowledgment. This work was supported by a Grant-
in-Aid for Scientific Research on Priority Areas (No.
19028001, “Chemistry of Concerto Catalysis”) from the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technol-
ogy, Japan and by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research
(B) (No. 19390001) from the Japan Society for the Promotion
of Science (JSPS).
(8) The reaction of 1c or 1d and 2c in the presence of Et3SiH using an
achiral NHC, IiPr as a ligand under similar conditions also gave 1cc (95%,
anti:syn ) 11:1) or 1dc (58%, anti only) in a diastereoselective manner:
Sawaki, R.; Mori, M.; Sato, Y. Unpublished results.
(9) Very recently, an asymmetric reductive coupling of 1d and aldehydes
in the presence of ZnEt2 using chiral phosphoramidite ligands has been
reported. See: Yang, Y.; Zhu, S.-F.; Duan, H.-F.; Zhou, C.-Y.; Wang, L.-
X.; Zhou, Q.-L. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 2248.
Supporting Information Available: Experimental details
and determination of the stereochemistry of the products.
This material is available free of charge via the Internet at
http://pubs.acs.org.
(10) For determination of the absolute and relative configuration of the
coupling products, see Supporting Information.
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