Organic Letters
Letter
sequential protocol prevented cumulative losses of the material
during subsequent isolations and purifications of the
intermediates, illustrating an additional advantage of the
The established protocol integrating alkene cross-metathesis,
isomerization, and enantioselective addition is broadly
applicable (Figure 4). A series of aliphatic alkenes, electron-
rich or electron-deficient vinyl arenes, TMS-protected alkenol,
and stereoelectronically varied aryl boronic acids reacted to
form a range of SBAs in high enantioselectivities (er’s > 95:5)
and 48−87% yields (isolated material).
Lastly, we focused on allylic alcohols bearing a prochiral
double bond. The isomerization−addition sequence for 3-
substituted allylic alcohols constitutes an attractive strategy to
produce the SBAs bearing two stereocenters with a 1,3-
relationship. We surmised that a method utilizing two different
chiral catalysts that independently construct each stereogenic
center would give access to all 1,3-syn and 1,3-anti stereo-
isomers of the product. However, the key requirement is the
independent activity of both chiral catalysts and their
compatibility.
Combining suitable enantiomers of Ru-3, the isomerization
catalyst reported by Ohkuma,24 and Ru-1 enables the
isomerization−addition sequence to form different diaster-
eomers of the products with high stereocontrol in a one-pot
fashion (Figure 5). The catalysts proved to require different
solvents to operate efficiently (i.e., ethanol and toluene,
Therefore, the medium needs to be exchanged between the
steps (evaporation under vacuum); albeit no resource-intensive
workup is needed. Importantly, the stereocontrol for the
formation of each stereogenic center is solely determined by
the catalyst involved. For instance, while the reaction of
geraniol 8a and 2a in the presence of (S)-Ru-3 and (S,S)-Ru-1
furnished 1,3-syn benzylic alcohol (1S,3R)-9aa with >99:1 er,
>20:1 dr, in 62% yield, the same reaction but with (R,R)-Ru-1
in place of (S,S)-Ru-1 furnished 1,3-anti diastereomeric
alcohol (1S,3S)-9aa′, in similarly high 99:1 er, >20:1 dr, and
61% yield. The diastereoselectivity of the transformation
depends on the configuration of the double bond in the
starting material.24 Under the conditions that geraniol 8a
reacted to from 1,3-syn 9aa, nerol 8b, the (Z)-analogue of
geraniol 8a, reacted to form 1,3-anti 9ba′ containing the
opposite major enantiomer of 9aa′, in 99:1 er, > 20:1 dr, and
60% yield. Noteworthy, the isolated double bonds of starting
materials 8a−8b remained intact in the corresponding
products. Chiral phytol 8c, reacted with varied arylboronic
acids to form the products in high stereoselectivity, i.e., 90−
97% of the major stereoisomer, and from 43% to 70% yield.
The presence of an additional chiral center next to the allylic
alcohol moiety in the starting material seems not to disturb the
reaction. (+)-Limonene derivative 8d reacted with 2a to form
9da in >20:1 dr, and 41% yield, expanding the scope of the
system.
Figure 5. Stereoselective conversion of substitute allylic alcohols to
SBAs. (a) As in Figure 2; no workup except for removal of EtOH
under vacuum; yields of the isolated major diastereomer. (b) dr of
1,3-syn (major):1,3-syn(minor):sum of 1,3-anti products.
synthesis of target motifs, increases material efficiency, and
limits cost, time, and waste associated with the standard
stepwise procedures. In a greater perspective, the study
highlights the synthetic potential of the multicatalytic
approaches to quickly access increasingly complex architec-
tures from simple starting materials.
ASSOCIATED CONTENT
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* Supporting Information
The Supporting Information is available free of charge at
In conclusion, the herein disclosed methods enable the rapid
modular stereoselective syntheses of a broad range of
secondary benzylic alcohols from simple available starting
materials.25 The strategy relies on the construction of the
sequences of multiple catalytic reactions occurring consec-
utively with no or minimal intermediary workup. The
transformation is executed with the aid of up to three
transition-metal catalysts and requires a single isolation and
purification of the product. Overall, the approach simplifies the
Experimental details and data (PDF)
AUTHOR INFORMATION
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Corresponding Author
Paweł Dydio − University of Strasbourg, CNRS, ISIS UMR
3505
Org. Lett. 2021, 23, 3502−3506