Asymmetric acyl-transfer promoted by readily assembled chiral 4-N,N-dialkylaminopyridine derivatives

Article abstract of DOI:10.1039/b604632k

The development of a new class of chiral 4-N,N-dialkylaminopyridine acyl-transfer catalysts capable of exploiting both van der Waals (π) and H-bonding interactions to allow remote chiral information to stereochemically control the kinetic resolution of sec-alcohols with moderate to excellent selectivity (s = 6-30). Catalysts derived from (S)-α,α- diarylprolinol are considerably superior to analogues devoid of a tertiary hydroxyl moiety and possess high activity and selectivity across a broad range of substrates. The Royal Society of Chemistry 2006.

Full text of DOI:10.1039/b604632k

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PAPER
www.rsc.org/obc | Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry
Asymmetric acyl-transfer promoted by readily assembled chiral
4-N,N-dialkylaminopyridine derivatives†
a
a
b
b
´
Ciara´n O. Da´laigh, Stephen J. Hynes, John E. O’Brien, Thomas McCabe,
Declan J. Maher,a Graeme W. Watsonb and Stephen J. Connon*a
Received 30th March 2006, Accepted 2nd June 2006
First published as an Advance Article on the web 20th June 2006
DOI: 10.1039/b604632k
The development of a new class of chiral 4-N,N-dialkylaminopyridine acyl-transfer catalysts capable of
exploiting both van der Waals (p) and H-bonding interactions to allow remote chiral information to
stereochemically control the kinetic resolution of sec-alcohols with moderate to excellent selectivity (s =
6–30). Catalysts derived from (S)-a,a-diarylprolinol are considerably superior to analogues devoid of a
tertiary hydroxyl moiety and possess high activity and selectivity across a broad range of substrates.
Asymmetric organocatalysis has recently been propelled from rela-
tive obscurity to the forefront of contemporary organic chemistry
research and is fast-becoming a key strategy in enantioselective
synthesis.1,2
conformational change upon acylation driven by intramolecular
interaction between the catalyst’s chiral substituents and the
pyridinium cation moiety, thereby allowing remote chirality to
exercise stereochemical control over the subsequent acylation
event.18,27 In this regard, we were intrigued by a report from
Yamada and Morita30 demonstrating that the 3-substituted pyri-
dine 1 exhibited a p–p stacking interaction on acylation/alkylation
which both rigidified the structure and effectively shielded one
face of the resultant pyridinium cation, allowing the subsequent
diastereoselective attack of a nucleophile at C-4 (1a, Fig. 1).
We therefore reasoned that a 4-pyrrolidino-analogue of 1 (i.e. 2,
Fig. 1) held promise as a tunable and easily constructed acyl-
transfer catalyst template capable of operating via an induced-fit
mechanism.31
An important facet of this broad domain is the asymmetric non-
enzymatic3 catalysis of acyl-transfer by chiral organic nucleophiles
such as tertiary amines,4–7 phosphines,8 N-heterocyclic carbenes9,10
and secondary alcohols.11 Although it has been over a century
since the discovery of pyridine-promoted alcohol acylation,12 the
design of efficient and selective chiral pyridine-based catalysts
for these reactions is a young field less than 10 years old. The
desymmetrisation of the ‘hypernucleophilic’ achiral catalyst 4-
N,N-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP)13,14 via one of three general
strategies, (the introduction of ‘planar chirality’ either 2,3-pyrido-
fused15 or installed at the C-3-position of the pyridine ring,16 the
use of axially chiral substituents at C-317 or the installation of
tetrahedral chirality at either C-4,18–23 or C-3,24–27) has proven a
particularly productive approach which has given rise to a number
of highly selective chiral catalysts for the kinetic resolution (KR)
of sec-alcohols and other asymmetric acyl-transfer processes.15,27,28
The design of such systems is complicated by an activity–
selectivity conundrum: i.e. to maximise the effectiveness of catalyst
stereochemical information it is desirable to install chiral groups as
close to the nucleophilic ring nitrogen as possible, however, bulky
substituents in the vicinity of the same strongly attenuate catalyst
activity.14,17c,29 A successful (i.e. active and selective) catalyst design
must necessarily embody a compromise between these opposing
constraints.
Fig. 1 Yamada’s chiral pyridinium ion 1a and 1st generation chiral
acyl-transfer catalyst 2.
The synthesis of 2 was straightforward: conversion of 332 to
its acid-chloride followed by coupling with (S)-phenylalaninol-
derived 433 gave chloropyridine 5, which could be converted to
2 via a nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction with excess
pyrrolidine (Scheme 1). An immediate cause for concern was the
One appealing solution to this problem (inspired by enzymatic
systems) is the design of promoters capable of operating by
an ‘induced-fit’ mechanism, in which the catalyst undergoes a
1
presence of two rotameric species in a ca. 1 : 1 ratio in the H
aCentre for Synthesis and Chemical Biology, School of Chemistry, University
of Dublin, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland. E-mail: connons@tcd.ie;
Fax: +353 1 6712826; Tel: +353 1 6081306
NMR spectrum of 2; as only one of these (i.e. 2 and not 2ꢀ) could
conceivably adopt a conformation conducive to intramolecular p–
p-stacking. Interestingly, upon methylation of 2 slow equilibration
over 12 h to a single rotamer (2a, Scheme 1) which exhibited a
1H NMR spectrum consistent with a p-stacked conformation, as
proposed by Yamada,30 was observed (Scheme 1). It seemed likely
therefore, that this equilibration process would be slow enough
to allow both rotamers of the intermediate acylated form of 2 to
bSchool of Chemistry, University of Dublin, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland
† Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: General exper-
imental procedures and details, characterisation data for the synthesis
1
of catalysts 14 and 15, H and 13C NMR spectra for 6 and 7 (and their
precursors), X-ray crystal structure data for 6-Bn, atomic coordinates from
the DFT calculations and CSP-HPLC data for all resolved alcohols. See
DOI: 10.1039/b604632k
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Scheme 1 Synthesis of catalysts 2, 6 and 7.
possess independent catalytic profiles. In order to a) better control
the catalyst’s conformational preference and b) augment the
potential for p-pyridinium ion interactions we therefore prepared
the novel (S)-a,a-diphenylprolinol-derived34 6 and its 2-naphthyl
analogue 7 (Scheme 1), which are characterised by a large steric
discrepancy between the substituents a- to the amide nitrogen
atom and the presence of an additional pendant aromatic moiety.
Catalysts 2, 6 and 7 were evaluated in the acylative KR of cis-
1,2-cyclohexane diol derivatives 11–13 (Table 1) using isobutyric
anhydride. Prototype promoter 2 displayed excellent activity,
however enantioselectivity (quantified by s; the ratio of the second
order acylation rate constants for the fast and slow reacting
alcohol enantiomers respectively35) was unsatisfactory (entry 1).
Gratifyingly, bis-aryl catalysts 6 and 7 exhibited more promising
selectivity approaching that regarded as synthetically useful (s =
10) at low temperature (entry 3).
Optimisation of the reaction conditions identified CH2Cl2
and NEt3 as the optimum solvent and general-base additive
respectively. It is notable that selectivity diminished in polar
solvents and that poor enantio-discrimination was also observed
in the aromatic (yet relatively non-polar) solvent (entry 10). Bis-
naphthyl catalyst 7 was found to be a marginally more selective
catalyst than bis-phenyl variant 6 (entries 2 and 5), and relatively
electron-rich benzoates 11 and 12 were superior substrates to the
unsubstituted analogue 13.
We speculated that the latter observation could be due to either
the involvement of a hydrogen bonding or a p-pyridinium ion
interaction between the substrate and the acylated catalyst in the
enantioselection process.36 To determine the contribution of the
catalyst hydroxy group to enantioselectivity, we prepared reduced
analogues of 6 and 7 (14 and 15 respectively),37 and evaluated their
performance as catalysts in the KR of sec-alcohol 16 (Table 2).
The results of these experiments were instructive; while removal
of the hydroxy moiety from 6 and 7 had little effect on catalyst
activity, reduced catalysts 14 and 15 promoted the formation of the
opposite antipode of 17 to that observed using either 6 or 7, with
reduced enantioselectivity. It was therefore clear that the catalyst
tertiary alcohol moiety plays a pivotal role in determining which
enantiomer of the racemic substrate is preferentially acylated
by both 6 and 7. It is also noteworthy that in line with the
trend observed using hydroxy substituted catalysts, bis-naphthyl
derivative 15 proved more selective (albeit not significantly) than
the less hindered analogue 14.
In order to garner further insight into the mode of action of 6–
7, attention turned to the question of substrate scope. A range
of substrates (18–25) chosen to systematically probe the cata-
lyst’s sensitivity to substrate steric, electronic and hydrogen-bond
donating/accepting characteristics were acylated by isobutyric
anhydride in the presence of 6 at low temperature. The results of
these studies are presented in Table 3; in the case of benzyl
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Table 1 Evaluation of 2, 6 and 7 in the KR of 11–13
Entry
Catalyst
Substrate
Solvent
Base
Conversion (%)d
Ee (%)e
sf
Abs. config.g
1a
2a
2
6
6
6
7
7
7
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
11
11
11
12
11
12
13
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CDCl3
PhMe
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
NEt3
55
78
69
68
73.5
71
88
64
69
67
63
64
66
64
61
19
38.5
61
13
93
97
74
90
80
95
70
77
67
55
26
20
70
63
6
1.4
4.9
9.4
4.3
5.4
4.4
3.5
4.6
4.4
3.7
3.1
1.7
1.5
4.6
4.4
1.9
3.4
3.7
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)h
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)h
(1S,2R)h
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
(1S,2R)
3b
4a
5a
6a
7a
8c
9c
10c
11c
12c
13c
14c
15c
16c
17c
18c
THF
Et2O
DMSO
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
CH2Cl2
NEt3
iPr2NEt
DABCOi
Imidazole
DBUj
Na2CO3
28
58
a Conditions: (iPrO)2O (0.80 equiv.), NEt3 (0.80 equiv.), rt. b Reaction at −78 ◦C for 8 h using 1.5 equiv. (iPrCO)2O. c Conditions: (iPrO)2O (0.70 equiv.),
base (0.70 equiv.), rt. d Conversion could be determined (with excellent agreement) either by 1H NMR spectroscopy or using chiral HPLC, where
conversion = 100 × eealcohol/(eealcohol + eeester). e Ee of 11a–13a determined by chiral HPLC using a Chiralcel OD-H column (4.6 × 250 mm) f s =
enantioselectivity (kfast/kslow, see ref. 35). g Absolute configuration of the recovered alcohol (major enantiomer) as determined by comparison with
literature retention times (ref. 7). h Tentative assignment based on the elution order of the p-dimethylamino-benzoate. i 1,4-Diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane.
j 1,8-Diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene.
Table 2 Determination of the influence of the catalyst hydroxy substituent on selectivity
Entry
Catalyst
C (%)a
Eealcohol (%)b
Eeester (%)b
sc
Abs. config.d
1
2
3
4
6
7
14
15
72
43e
36
43
93
51
22
30
29
63
36
38
6.3
8.7
2.8
3.0
(R)
(R)
(S)
(S)
a Refers to conversion, which could be determined (with excellent agreement) either by 1H NMR spectroscopy or using chiral HPLC, where C = 100 ×
eealcohol/(eealcohol + eeester). b Determined by chiral HPLC using a Chiralcel OD-H column (4.6 × 250 mm) c s = selectivity index (kfast/kslow, see ref. 35).
d Absolute configuration of the recovered alcohol (major enantiomer) as determined by comparison with literature retention times (ref. 17f ). e 0.8 eq.
(iPrCO)2O, 8 h.
alcohols 18–22, as expected selectivity increased with aliphatic
substituent bulk (entries 1 and 4), while an enlargement of the
steric requirement of the aromatic substituent was poorly tolerated
by the catalyst (entries 1–3 and 5–6). The latter observation was
somewhat surprising, as examples of the beneficial effects of
augmenting alkyl and aromatic substituent bulk on enantio-
selectivity being additive (in a qualitative sense) are known in
the literature,15d,17f which strongly implies that the nature of the
aromatic substituent is critical for the efficient KR of benzyl
alcohols promoted by 6. This thesis was supported by the clear
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Table 3 Substrate scope
Table 4 Contribution of substrate aromatic group to enantioselectivity
Entry Substrate
1
C (%)a
Ee (%)b sc
Abs. config.d
Entry Substrate
1
C (%)a
Ee (%)b sc
Abs. config.d
27.5
25
14
1
6.3
R
18
18
40
14
11.4
R
2
3
4
17
6.0
1.1
R
R
R
2
3
40
15
6.2
9.5
R
R
14.6
19
19
13.5
4
5
28
27
6
6
1.5
1.4
R
R
5
22.5
20
6.6
R
6
7
37
20
40
19
7.6
9.1
R
R
a Conversion: which could be determined (with excellent agreement) either
by 1H NMR spectroscopy or using chiral HPLC, where C = 100 ×
eealcohol/(eealcohol + eeester). b Determined by chiral HPLC using a Chiralcel
OD-H column (4.6 × 250 mm) c s = enantioselectivity (kfast/kslow, see ref.
35). d Absolute configuration of the recovered alcohol (major enantiomer)
as determined by comparison with literature retention times or optical
rotation data (see supplementary information†).
8
9
23
19
11
22
2.3
R
It was clear at this juncture that both the steric and electronic
makeup of the substrate aromatic substituents influence the
efficacy of enantio-discrimination using catalyst 6. In an attempt
to clarify this role, o- and p-substituted aromatic sec-alcohols 26–
30 were evaluated (Table 4) under identical conditions to those
used in the KR of 18–23. Substrates incorporating relatively
electron deficient aromatic substituents performed poorly in
comparison with more electron rich analogues (entries 1 and
4; compare also entry 7, Table 3 with entry 5, Table 4). The
presence of a substrate o-methoxy group clearly facilitates enantio-
discrimination (entry 1), however the effects of increased electron
density at the aromatic ring and augmented aliphatic substituent
steric bulk on enantioselectivity are not additive (entries 1–3),
even though 6 promotes the preferential acylation of the same
(R)-antipode of 26, 27 and 28.
30.0
1R,2S
a Conversion: which could be determined (with excellent agreement) either
by 1H NMR spectroscopy or using chiral HPLC, where C = 100 ×
eealcohol/(eealcohol + eeester). b Determined by chiral HPLC using a Chiralcel
OD-H column (4.6 × 250 mm) c s = enantioselectivity (kfast/kslow, see ref.
35). d Absolute configuration of the recovered alcohol (major enantiomer)
as determined by comparison with literature retention times or optical
rotation data (see supplementary information†).
In view of the considerable sensitivity of the catalyst to the
nature of the substrate aromatic group, aliphatic carbamate 31
was acylated in the presence of 6 under standard conditions
(Scheme 2). The resolution of this substrate with relatively good
selectivity (s = 8.6) demonstrates the broad scope of catalyst
6 and indicates that an aromatic substituent is not an absolute
requirement for selectivity in this system.
superiority of 4-methoxy substituted substrate 23 over the
unsubstituted parent alcohol 18 (entries 1 and 7).
In this context, it is interesting to note that 24, which may
have been expected to prove a suitable KR substrate (considering
the obvious compatibility of 11 with 6, Table 1) underwent
acylation with poor selectivity.38 In contrast, the KR of trans-
2-phenylcyclohexanol (25) using 6 proceeded with excellent enan-
tioselectivity (entry 9).
On analysis of the data in Tables 1–4, a picture emerges in
which a confluence of contributions from the catalyst hydroxy
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While 6a proved difficult to crystallise, an X-ray structure
of the corresponding benzylated catalyst 6-Bn was obtained
(Fig. 2).40 The amide moiety is in an s-cis conformation with
the diaryl tertiary alcohol substituent oriented towards H-2 and
the nucleophilic ring-nitrogen: consistent with the proposed p-
interactions and observed catalytic importance of the hydroxy
group.
Scheme 2 Kinetic resolution of aliphatic carbamate 31.
group/aromatic substituents (Tables 1 and 2) and substrate
aliphatic/aromatic components (Tables 3 and 4) seem responsible
for selectivity in KR processes using catalyst 6. In an attempt
to detect possible aryl–pyridinium ion p-stacking interactions,
the 1H NMR spectra of catalysts 6, 7, 14, 15 and control
material 33 (prepared from 3 and pyrrolidine) were compared
to those of their corresponding products on methylation with
iodomethane (Table 5).30 These experiments were informative;
while little evidence was found to support a ‘face–face’ p–p
stacking interaction (Fig. 1),18,30 a strong upfield shift associated
with H-2 upon methylation of 6, 7, 14 and 15 (which is absent on
methylation of 33) was observed, the magnitude and localisation
of which indicates that an interaction between the substituted edge
of the pyridinium cation (or H-2 itself) and one of the pendant
aryl moieties takes place.22,39
Fig. 2 Crystal structure of benzylated catalyst 6-Bn (counterion has been
omitted for clarity).‡
‡ Crystal data for 6-Bn: C34H36N3O22(CH2Cl2)Br, M = 768.45, orthorhom-
◦
˚
bic, a = 9.7318(13), b = 18.078(2), c = 20.751(3) A, a = b = c = 90 , U =
3
˚
3650.8(8) A , T = 123 K, space group P212121, Z = 4, l(Mo-Ka) =
0.650 mm−1, 28680 reflections collected, 12852 unique (Rint = 0.0676).
R = 0.0777, wR2 [I > 2r(I)] = 0.1786. CCDC reference numbers 293598.
For crystallographic data in CIF or other electronic format see DOI:
10.1039/b604632k.
Table 5 Selected 1H NMR data for 6, 7, 14, 15, 33 and methylated/acylated analogues
Entry
Cat.
d H-2a,b,c
d H-5a,b,c
d H-6a,b,c
d CH3/HCMe2
1
2
3
4
5
6
8
9
10
11
12
13
6
7.33
6.45
8.09
—
6a
6b
7
6.52 (−0.81)
8.06 (0.73)
7.51
6.80 (0.45)
7.15 (0.70)
6.45
6.70 (0.25)
6.42
6.79 (0.37)
6.42
6.66 (0.24)
6.47
8.04 (−0.05)
9.10 (1.01)
8.09
3.88
4.14
—
3.33
—
4.02
—
3.49
—
7a
14
14a
15
15a
33
33a
33b
5.99 (−1.52)
7.88 (−0.21)
7.73
8.12
6.68 (−1.05)
7.93
8.10 (−0.02)
8.11
6.39 (−1.54)
7.88 (−0.23)
8.19
8.16
8.17 (−0.02)
8.72 (0.53)
6.90 (0.43)
7.32 (0.85)
8.21 (0.05)
9.32 (1.16)
4.21
4.11
a d quoted in ppm in CDCl3 as solvent. b Value in parentheses represents Dd: the change in chemical shift of the proton indicated on methylation or
acylation (in ppm), a negative value for Dd indicates an upfield shift. c All pyridine ring proton resonances were unambiguously assigned by NMR
spectroscopy (1H–1H COSY, 1H–13C COSY, NOE and 1-D TOCSY experiments).
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Table 6 Calculated relative energies of I–IV
Similar, yet less dramatic effects were observed upon acylation
of both 6 and 33 with isobutyric acid chloride. While no upfield
shift of the H-2 resonance was observed upon acylation of 6,
this is perhaps unsurprising in view of the powerful (anisotropic)
electron withdrawing ability of the carbonyl moiety. However,
it is noteworthy that H-2 of acylated catalyst 6b resonates at
considerably higher field (ca. 0.5 ppm) than that of 33b and that
there is a greater difference between d H-2 and d H-6 in pyridinium
ion 6b (1.04 ppm) than in the case of 33b (0.50 ppm). These results
indicate that in the case of both 6b and 33b (contrary to what
might be expected from first principles but in agreement with
reports from Spivey17c and Yamada27) the bulky isopropyl moiety
is located on the same side of the N–N axis as the catalyst amide
substituent41 (i.e. as depicted above Table 5).
The results in Tables 1–5 indicate that the ability of 6 and 7 to
serve as active and enantioselective acyl-transfer catalysts is due to
a unique combination of several factors including aryl–pyridinium
ion p–p (or p–H), and substrate–catalyst H-bonding and possibly
also p–p interactions. To better understand the origins of enantio-
discrimination using 6 and 7 we have examined the conformational
preferences of 6a and 6c (the N-acetyl analogue of 6b) using
B3LYP hybrid density functional theory (Gaussian 03, 6-31G*
basis set42). Postulating that two conformational features would
have particularly strong influence on catalyst performance: 1)
isomerism of the C-3 amide linkage (i.e. s-cis vs. s-trans) and
crucially, the preferred conformation of the acyl-moiety in 6b, we
calculated the gas-phase energetics of methylated and acetylated
analogues of 6 (I–IV, Fig. 3 and Table 6) with respect to these
parameters. The results of these calculations are presented in
Table 6. Examination of the relative energies for the s-cis vs. s-
trans chiral amide conformation reveal a strong preference for
the s-cis rotamer (entries 1–2, Table 6), consistent with the X-ray
crystal structure obtained for 6-Bn (Table 6 entries 1–2).
Amide
N-Acetyl Relative energy/
Entry Cat. Conformation rotamer rotamer
kJ mol−1a,b
1
2
3
4
6a
6a
6c
6c
I
s-cis
—
—
s-trans
0
44.9
0
II
s-trans
s-cis
III
IV
s-cis
s-cis
4.2
a Calculated relative energies. b Does not account for the influence of the
counter ion.
phenomenon does not seem to be sterically driven, it may, by
analogy with a suggestion made by Spivey,17c be related to partial
conjugation with the C-3 substituent. In this regard it is interesting
that a C2-symmetric analogue of 6 (34, Fig. 4) designed to
circumvent potential problems associated with N-acyl isomerism
proved a completely inactive acylation catalyst.
Fig. 4 C2-symmetric catalyst 34.
Conclusions
In summary, we have developed a new class of active, chiral
4-(pyrrolidino)-pyridine derivatives (6 and 7) for the kinetic
resolution of an exceptionally wide range (both aromatic and
aliphatic) of sec-alcohols with synthetically useful selectivity.
These proline-derived promoters are readily prepared from simple,
readily available starting materials34 without the need for resolu-
tion steps. A combination of optimisation (Table 1), substrate
screening (Tables 1, 3 and 4), catalyst modification (Table 2),
spectroscopic (Table 5) and computational (Table 6) studies have
clearly identified both hydrogen bonding and (intra as well as
possibly also intermolecular) p-pyridinium-ion interactions as
playing a role in enantiodiscrimination, and have provided insight
into the conformational preferences of the key acylated catalytic
intermediates in these reactions. To our knowledge 6 and 7
represent the first chiral 4-N,N-dialkylaminopyridine catalysts to
(synergistically) employ both van der Waals (p) interactions and
hydrogen bonding to allow remote chirality to exert stereochemical
influence on an acylation reaction, and while the levels of
enantiodiscrimination possible are lower than that associated with
the benchmark literature catalyst, nonetheless synthetically useful
Fig. 3 Calculated optimum conformers of 6a (I–II) and 6c (III–IV).
Interestingly, these studies also indicate (somewhat counter-
intuitively but nonetheless consistent with the findings of the
NMR-studies, see Table 5) that the conformer of 6c (s-cis C-3
amide) in which the methyl group resides on the more hindered
catalyst hemisphere (III) is more stable than the corresponding
conformer where the smaller carbonyl group is directed towards
the chiral amide substituent (IV entries 3–4, Table 6). Since this
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(s > 10) KR processes promoted by 6 have been demonstrated (up
to a maximum of s = 30). Furthermore, the ready accessibility of
these materials combined with the demonstrable influence of three
independent, tunable catalyst properties (hydrogen bond accept-
ing/donating ability, aromatic substituent steric and electronic
characteristics) on enantioselectivity provides considerable scope
for future catalyst development.
Chloropyridine 10. Prepared as per the synthesis of 9 using 3
(329 mg, 2.09 mmol), SOCl2 (2.0 cm3), THF (5 + 4 cm3), 8b43
(740 mg, 2.10 mmol) and triethylamine (870 lL, 6.28 mmol).
Purification by column chromatography (9 : 1 CHCl2–EtOAc, Rf
0.3) gave 10 (350 mg, 34%) as a white solid, mp 140–142 ◦C;
[a]2D0 = −84 (c 0.1 in CHCl3); dH (CDCl3) 1.61–1.94 (2H, m), 2.18–
2.42 (2H, m,), 2.92 (1H, m), 3.11 (1H, m), 5.61 (1H, dd, J 7.0
and 7.5), 6.62 (1H, s) 7.30–7.91 (15H, m), 8.20 (1H, s), 8.47 (1H,
d, J 5.6); dC (CDCl3) 23.5, 29.6, 49.9, 67.5, 81.7, 125.3, 125.5,
125.7, 125.8, 125.9, 126.2, 126.7, 126.9, 127.1, 127.7, 127.9, 128.0,
132.2, 132.3, 132.4, 132.5, 139.7, 142.2, 147.7, 150.5, 165.9; mmax
(KBr)/cm−1 3371, 1612, 1377, 1155, 721; m/z (ES) 493.1681 (M+ +
H. C31H26N2O2Cl requires 493.1683).
Experimental
General
Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectra were recorded on a
400 MHz spectrometer in CDCl3 referenced relative to residual
CHCl3 (d = 7.26 ppm). Chemical shifts are reported in ppm and
coupling constants in Hertz. Carbon NMR spectra were recorded
on the same instrument (100 MHz) with total proton decoupling.
All melting points are uncorrected. Infrared spectra were obtained
on a Perkin Elmer spectrophotometer. Flash chromatography was
carried out using silica gel, particle size 0.04–0.063 mm. TLC
analysis was performed on precoated 60F254 slides, and visualised
by either UV irradiation or KMnO4 staining. Optical rotation
measurements were made on a Rudolph Research Analytical
Autopol IV instrument, and are quoted in units of 10−1 deg cm2 g−1.
Toluene, ether and THF were distilled from sodium. Methylene
chloride and triethylamine were distilled from calcium hydride.
Analytical CSP-HPLC was preformed using Daicel CHIRALCEL
OD-H (4.6 mm × 25 cm) and CHIRALCEL AS-H (4.6 mm ×
25 cm) columns. Unless otherwise stated, all chemicals were
obtained from commercial sources and used as received. Alcohols
20, 21, 24, 28, 26, 29, and 30 were synthesised according to
literature procedures. Alcohol 27 was prepared by the reduction
of 2,4-dimethoxyacetophenone with NaBH4 and was purified by
flash chromatography prior to use. Unless otherwise specified, all
reactions were carried out in oven-dried glassware with magnetic
stirrers under an atmosphere of argon.
Catalyst 6. A 10 cm3 round bottom flask was charged with
9 (160 mg, 0.41 mmol) and toluene (4 cm3) with stirring. To this
was added pyrrolidine (2.00 cm3, 28.2 mmol) via syringe. The flask
◦
was fitted with a reflux condenser and heated at 85 C for 16 h.
CH2Cl2 (20 cm3) was then added and the solution washed with
NaHCO3 (2 × 30 cm3) and brine (2 × 30 cm3). The organic extracts
were separated, dried (MgSO4) and the solvent removed in vacuo.
Purification by column chromatography (80 : 20 EtOAc–CHCl2,
Rf 0.3), gave 6 (171 mg, 98%) as a white solid, mp 144–146 ◦C;
[a]2D0 = −98 (c 0.96 in CHCl3); dH (CDCl3) 1.48–1.72 (2H, m), 1.80–
2.20 (6H, m), 2.90–3.15 (3H, m), 3.40–3.55 (3H, m), 5.20 (1H, dd,
J 9.0 and 8.5), 6.45 (1H, d, J 6.0), 7.25–7.38 (6H, m), 7.41–7.53
(4H, m), 7.60 (2H, d, J 6.0), 8.09 (1H, d, J 6.0); dC (CDCl3) 23.3,
25.1, 30.2, 48.8, 51.6, 68.3, 81.5, 108.1, 116.2, 127.0, 127.1, 127.2,
127.3, 127.4, 127.6, 142.1, 144.6, 146.6, 147.6, 148.5, 170.4; mmax
(KBr)/cm−1 3179, 2854, 1590, 1304, 971; m/z (ES) 428.2328 (M+ +
H. C27H30N3O2 requires 428.2338).
Catalyst 7. Prepared as per the synthesis of 6 using 10
(71.5 mg, 0.145 mmol), toluene (4 cm3) and pyrrolidine (2.00 cm3,
28.2 mmol). Purification of the resulting product by column
chromatography (99 : 1 EtOAc–NEt3, Rf 0.2) gave 7 (55 mg, 72%)
◦
as a white solid, mp 146–148 C; [a]2D0 = −65 (c 0.11 in CHCl3);
Chloropyridine 9. A 10 cm3 round bottom flask charged with 4-
chloronicotinic acid (3) (315 mg, 2.00 mmol) and SOCl2 (2.00 cm3)
was fitted with a reflux condenser and heated at 90 ◦C for
1 hour. Removal of SOCl2 by distillation gave 4-chloronicotinic
acid chloride hydrochloride as a yellow solid, which was placed
under an atmosphere of Ar, cooled to 0 ◦C and suspended in
THF (5 cm3) added via syringe. Subsequently a solution of (S)-
a,a-diphenylprolinol (8a) (506 mg, 2.00 mmol) and NEt3 (550 lL,
3.96 mmol) in THF (4 cm3), was added via syringe. The yellow
solution was left to stir overnight. CH2Cl2 (100 cm3) was then
added and resulting solution washed with NaHCO3 (2 × 40 cm3),
and brine (2 × 40 cm3). The organic extracts were separated, dried
(MgSO4) and the solvent removed in vacuo. Purification by column
chromatography (9 : 1 CHCl2–EtOAc, Rf 0.2) gave 9 (627 mg, 80%)
as a white solid, mp 64–66 ◦C; [a]D20 = −95 (c 0.11 in CHCl3); dH
(CDCl3) 1.74 (2H, m), 2.05 (1H, m), 2.22 (1H, m), 2.90 (1H, m,),
3.10 (1H, m), 5.30 (1H, dd, J 7.0 and 8.0), 6.48 (1H, s), 7.22–7.60
(12H, m), 8.52 (1H, d, J 5.6); dC (CDCl3) 23.9, 30.1, 50.5, 68.2,
81.8, 124.5, 127.5, 127.55, 127.6, 127.7, 127.8, 128.0, 132.7, 140.0,
142.7, 145.2, 148.1, 150.9, 167.2; mmax (KBr)/cm−1 3281, 1615,
1431, 1155, 699; m/z (ES) 415.1200 (M+ + Na. C23H21N2O2ClNa
requires 415.1189).
dH (CDCl3) 1.34–1.62 (2H, m), 1.88–2.27 (6H, m), 2.92–3.15 (3H,
m,), 3.35–3.53 (3H, m,), 5.43 (1H, app. t, J 8.0), 6.45 (1H, d, J
6.0), 7.41–7.56 (5H, m), 7.64–7.94 (10H, m), 8.09 (1H, d, J 6.0),
8.16 (1H, s); dD (CDCl3) 23.6, 25.4, 30.2, 48.8, 51.7, 67.6, 82.0,
108.3, 116.4, 125.7, 125.9, 126.0, 126.1, 126.5, 126.9, 127.3, 127.4,
127.8, 128.2, 128.3, 132.5, 132.6, 132.7, 140.1, 142.6, 148.2, 148.3,
149.4, 171.7; mmax (KBr)/cm−1 3369, 1588, 1539, 1505, 1123, 721;
m/z (ES) 528.2673 (M+ + H. C35H34N3O2 requires 528.2651).
Kinetic resolution experiments: general procedure
A 1 cm3 reaction vessel charged with catalyst (2.34 lmol) and a
small magnetic stirring bar was placed under an atmosphere of
Ar. To this was added a solution of alcohol (0.234 mmol) and
triethylamine (23 lL, 0.164 mol) in CHCl2 (500 lL). The resulting
solution was cooled to −78 ◦C and left to stir for 30 minutes.
Isobutyric anhydride (0.183 mmol) was subsequently added via
◦
syringe. After 8 h at − 78 C the reaction was quenched by the
addition of MeOH (200 lL) and allowed to warm to ambient
temperature. Solvents were removed in vacuo. The alcohol and its
ester were separated from the catalyst by passing a concentrated
solution of the crude (CH2Cl2) through a pad of silica gel. The
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Org. Biomol. Chem., 2006, 4, 2785–2793 | 2791
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selectivity of the kinetic resolution was then established by CSP-
HPLC.
Miller, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2002, 124, 11653; (g) J. E. Imbriglio, M. M.
Vasbinder and S. J. Miller, Org. Lett., 2003, 5, 3741; (h) M. B. Fierman,
D. J. O’Leary, W. E. Steinmetz and S. J. Miller, J. Am. Chem. Soc.,
2004, 126, 6967; (i) F. Formaggio, A. Barazza, A. Bertocco, C. Toniolo,
Q. B. Broxterman, B. Kaptein, E. Brasola, P. Pengo, L. Pasquato and
P. Scrimin, J. Org. Chem., 2004, 69, 3849.
NMR analysis of pyridinium salts (Table 5): general procedures
7 For the development of a highly selective histidine-derived catalyst for
the kinetic resolution of sec-alcohols see: K. Ishihara, Y. Kosugi and
M. Akahura, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2004, 126, 12212.
8 (a) E. Vedejs, O. Daugulis and S. T. Diver, J. Org. Chem., 1996, 61,
430; (b) E. Vedejs and O. Daugulis, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1999, 121, 5813;
(c) E. Vedejs and J. A. MacKay, Org. Lett., 2001, 3, 535; (d) E. Vedejs
and E. Rozners, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2001, 123, 2428; (e) E. Vedejs, O.
Daugulis, L. A. Harper, J. A. MacKay and D. R. Powell, J. Org. Chem.,
2003, 68, 5020; (f) E. Vedejs and O. Daugulis, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2003,
125, 4166.
9 Y. Suzuki, K. Yamauchi, K. Muramatsu and M. Sato, Chem. Commun.,
2004, 2770.
10 T. Kano, K. Sasaki and K. Maruoka, Org. Lett., 2005, 7, 1347.
11 G. T. Notte, T. Sammakia and P. J. Steel, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2005, 127,
13502.
Methyl pyridinium salts. To a solution of the pyridine
(0.07 mmol) in CH2Cl2 (0.5 cm3) in a 5 cm3 round bottomed
flask was added iodomethane (0.7 mmol) via syringe and the
resulting solution stirred at room temperature. After TLC analysis
indicated complete conversion of the starting material the resulting
solution was concentrated in vacuo, taken up in CDCl3 (0.4 cm3)
and analysed by 1H NMR spectroscopy.
Isobutyryl pyridinium salts. (Note: These intermediates are
relatively unstable and decompose rapidly in the presence of
adventitious water. Under anhydrous conditions these materials
1
are stable enough to be analysed by H NMR spectroscopy over
12 A. Einhorn and F. Hollandt, F., Ann., 1898, 301, 95.
a period of several hours.) A solution of the pyridine (0.07 mmol)
in CDCl3 (0.4 cm3, freshly distilled and stored for short periods
13 (a) L. M. Litvinenko and A. I. Kirichenko, Dokl. Chem., 1967, 763;
(b) W. Steglich and G. Ho¨fle, Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl., 1969, 8,
981.
˚
under Ar over 4 A mol. sieves) was added to a screw-cap-NMR
14 For reviews see: (a) A. C. Spivey and S. Arseniyadis, Angew. Chem., Int.
Ed., 2004, 43, 5436; (b) R. Murugan and E. F. V. Scriven, Aldrichimica
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Res., 1998, 31, 494; (d) A. Hassner, in Encyclopedia of Reagents for
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pp. 2002; (e) E. F. V. Scriven, Chem. Soc. Rev., 1983, 12, 129; (f) G.
Ho¨fle, W. Steglich and H. Vorbruggen, Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. Engl.,
1978, 17, 569.
tube under an atmosphere of Ar. To this was added isobutryic acid
chloride (0.07 mmol) via syringe. The NMR tube was shaken for
10 s and the resulting mixture analysed by 1H NMR spectroscopy.
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37 See supplementary information for synthetic details†.
38 While it is tempting to point toward the presence of two substrate
aromatic moieties here, other factors such as the conformational
preferences of the amide (relative to the ester functionality of substrate
11), the relative planarity of the benzo-fused five membered ring and
the presence of a second potentially hydrogen bond donating group
(amide N-H) may also contribute to making 24 a poor substrate for
KR using 6.
39 (a) For general references concerning cation–p and intermolecular
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40 This structure has been deposited at the Cambridge Crystallographic
Data Center, deposit No. CCDC 293598. The solvent molecules and
bromide counter-ion have been removed for clarity.
41 Several attempts to support this hypothesis (which is based on d H-2
and d H-6) through the detection of an NOE between the isopropyl
proton and either H-2 or H-6 of 6b proved inconclusive.
42 M. J. Frisch, G. W. Trucks, H. B. Schlegel, G. E. Scuseria, M. A. Robb,
J. R. Cheeseman, J. A. Montgomery, Jr., T. Vreven, K. N. Kudin, J. C.
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28 Recently it has been shown that chiral 1,2-dihydroimidazo[1,2-
a]pyridine and quinoline systems can serve as highly effective chiral
nucleophilic catalysts for the KR of secondary alcohols, see: (a) V. B.
Birman, E. W. Uffman, H. Jiang, X. Li and C. J. Kilbane, J. Am. Chem.
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´
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and S. J. Connon, Org. Biomol. Chem., 2005, 3, 981.
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34 Both antipodes of a,a-diphenylprolinol are commercially available.
35 H. B. Kagan and J. C. Fiaud, Top. Stereochem., 1988, 18, 249.
36 It has also been shown alcohols can participate as both nucleophiles
and general base catalysts in the acylation of primary alcohols by aroyl
and a-chloro acid chlorides, and as such an intriguing general-base role
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The Royal Society of Chemistry 2006
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