Alkylation of the enolates of the propanoylamides of two chiral auxiliaries (S)-(-)-2-(pyrrolidin-2-yl)propan-2-ol 1a and (S)-(-)-2-(2-methoxypropan-2-yl)pyrrolidine 1b, derived from (S)-proline, with benzyl bromide and n-butyl iodide has been studied. The auxiliaries 1a and 1b induced opposite selectivity that is (R)- and (S)-configuration, respectively, at the newly created stereogenic centre. The diastereoselectivities and conversion yields in these alkylations were moderate to excellent. When Cp2ZrCl2 was used as an enolate coordinating agent, benzylation of propanoylated 1b gave an excellent diastereomeric ratio of 99:1. The benzylated diastereomeric products from either propanoylated 1a or 1b were easily separated by liquid chromatography.
Two chiral auxiliaries, 2-[(S)-indolin-2-yl]propan-2-ol 1a and (S)-2-(2-methoxypropan-2-yl)indoline 1b, were synthesised from enantiomerically pure (S)-indoline-2-carboxylic acid 3. High diastereoselectivities in alkylations of enolates of the propanoylamides derived from the two auxiliaries are presented. Surprisingly, both auxiliaries induced the same selectivity at the newly created stereogenic centre. The benzyl bromide and n-butyl iodide alkylation reactions showed diastereomeric ratios that were moderate (81:19) to very good (96:4) and with very good yields (86-98%). When LiCl was used as an enolate coordinating agent, in the benzylation of the enolate from propanoylated auxiliary 1a, a very high crude diastereomeric ratio was obtained (99.7:0.3).
The enantiomers of the naturally occurring alkaloid dihydropinidine 1, potential antifeedants against the pine weevil, Hylobius abietis, were prepared by diastereoselective, dimethylzinc mediated addition of pinacolyl 2-propenylboronate 14 to nitrones (R)- and (S)-2-methyl tetrahydropyridine-N-oxide 3, prepared from d- and l-alanine, respectively.
Several racemic methyl decanoic acids have been synthesised and successfully resolved in esterification with 1-hexadecanol at aw=0.8 in cyclohexane using immobilised Candida rugosa lipase (CRL) as the catalyst. The enantiomeric ratios (E=2.8-68) obtained were surprisingly high even when the methyl group was as remotely located as in 8-methyldecanoic acid (E=25). Interestingly, the lipase shows enantiopreference for the S-enantiomer when the methyl group is located on even numbered carbons i.e. for the 2-,4-,6- and 8-methyldecanoic acids and to the R-enantiomer when the methyl group is located on uneven numbered carbons i.e. for the 3-,5- and 7-methyldecanoic acids.
Thiophenol was added to racemic cryptone (4-isopropyl-2-cyclohexene-1-one) and the resulting 1,4-addition products, cis- and trans-4-isopropyl-3-(phenylsulfanyl)cyclohexanone) were separated and the latter reduced to rac-1,3-cis-1,4-trans-4-isopropyl-3-(phenylsulfanyl)cyclo¬he¬xanol which was subjected to lipase catalysed resolution by acylation catalysed by CAL-B (Candida antarctica lipase B). The remaining alcohol was separated from the produced acetate, which was hydrolysed to the alcohol. The enantiomeric alcohols so obtained were oxidised. The initial products, probably sulfoxidoketones spontaneously decomposed to furnish enantiomerically enriched (R)- and (S)-cryptone with up to 76% and 98% ee, respectively.
The racemic synthetic building block (2R*,3R*)-3-methyl-4-(phenylsulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2R*,3R*)-2 was obtained in a high diastereomeric ratio [95:5, (2R*,3R*)/(2R*,3S*)-ratio] by Lewis acid catalysed dimethylzinc addition to racemic 2-methyl-3-(phenylsulfanyl)propanal (rac-1). Two consecutive acylations with vinyl acetate catalysed by Chirazyme L-2 (immobilised Candida antarctica lipase 13, CAL-B) led to preferential esterification of three of the four stereoisomers leaving (2S,3S)-3-methyl-4-(phenylsulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2S,3S)-2 of 98:2 dr and 98% ee. The stereoisomerically impure acetate of (2R,3R)-3-methyl-4-(phenyisulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2R,3R)-2, obtained in the first CAL-B-catalysed acylation step, was hydrolysed and reesterified using CAL-A (immobilised Novozyme SP 525) as the catalyst, which left (2R,3R)-3-methyl-4-(phenylsulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2R,3R)-2 of 98:2 dr and 99% ee as the remaining substrate. The individual enantiomers of 2-methyl-3-(phenylsulfanyl)propanal 1 were prepared from readily available (S)- and (R)-3-hydroxy-2-methylpropanoic acid methyl ester and reacted with dimethylzinc to give both enantiomers of (2R*,3R*)-3-methyl-4-(phenylsulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2R, 3R)- or (2S,3S)-2 of both high dr and ee. These products were purified by lipase catalysed acylation to give the enantiomerically and diastereomerically highly pure enantiomers (>99.5:0.5 dr, >99.9% ee). Pure (2S,3S)-3-methyl-4-(phenylsulfanyl)butan-2-ol (2S,3S)-2 was transformed into a potential pheromone precursor isolated from some pine sawflies of the genus Gilpinia, (2S,3R)-3-methylpentadecan-2-ol in 54% yield over eight steps.
The four stereoisomeric 3-bromo-2-butanols and/or their acetates were prepared via lipase-catalysed kinetic resolution by hydrolyses of the acetates of the (+/-)-syn- and (+/-)-anti-3-bromo-2-butanols, or via esterifications of the alc hols. The diastereomeric bromoacetates were obtained by syntheses from the dl- and meso-2,3-butanediols, respectively. On a preparative scale, the four stereoisomers, either as the free alcohols or as their acetates, were obtained in > 95% ee, and in 35-40% yield (based on the starting racemates).
Enantioselective acylation of some (±)-3-alkyl-3-phenyl-l-propanols was performed with enzymes as catalysts. Moderate enantiomeric ratios (E), ranging up to E = 11.6, were obtained. In the resolution, some of the lipases selectively acylated the (+)-enantiomer while others acylated the (-)-enantiomer of the γ-substituted primary alcohols 1-4. Thus, it is possible to obtain both enantiomers of the alcohols as remaining substrate with high enantiomeric purity. The resolution of (±)-4,4-dimethyl-3-phenyl-1-pentanol 4 was extensively studied and screening experiments were conducted to select suitable lipase(s), reaction medium, acyl donor and appropriate temperature combinations to increase the enantiomeric ratio. Chirazyme® L-6/chloroform/vinyl propionate/38 °C and Chirazyme® L-7/di-iso-propyl ether/vinyl propionate/0 °C were chosen to obtain both enantiomers, (R)-(+)-4 and (S)-(-)-4, respectively, via sequential resolutions in excellent enantiomeric excess (>98%) and in 25% and 22% yield, respectively.