Volume 136, Issue 48 e202406548
Forschungsartikel

Zinc-Catalyzed Enantioselective Formal (3+2) Cycloadditions of Bicyclobutanes with Imines: Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis of Azabicyclo[2.1.1]hexanes

Feng Wu

Feng Wu

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Wen-Biao Wu

Wen-Biao Wu

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

School of Physics and Chemistry, Hunan First Normal University, Changsha, 410205 P. R. China.

These authors contributed equally to this work.

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Yuanjiu Xiao

Yuanjiu Xiao

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Zhenxing Li

Zhenxing Li

Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 P. R. China

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Lei Tang

Lei Tang

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Heng-Xian He

Heng-Xian He

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Xue-Chun Yang

Xue-Chun Yang

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Ji-Jie Wang

Ji-Jie Wang

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Yuanlin Cai

Yuanlin Cai

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Tong-Tong Xu

Tong-Tong Xu

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Jia-Hao Tao

Jia-Hao Tao

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Guoqiang Wang

Corresponding Author

Guoqiang Wang

Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 P. R. China

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Jian-Jun Feng

Corresponding Author

Jian-Jun Feng

State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Advanced Catalytic Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan, 410082 P. R. China

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Dedicated to Professor Yong Tang and Professor Wanbin Zhang on the occasion of their 60th birthday.
First published: 01 September 2024

Abstract

The cycloaddition reaction involving bicyclo[1.1.0]butanes (BCBs) offers a versatile and efficient synthetic platform for producing C(sp3)-rich rigid bridged ring scaffolds, which act as phenyl bioisosteres. However, there is a scarcity of catalytic asymmetric cycloadditions of BCBs to fulfill the need for enantioenriched saturated bicycles in drug design and development. In this study, an efficient synthesis of valuable azabicyclo[2.1.1]hexanes (aza-BCHs) by an enantioselective zinc-catalyzed (3+2) cycloadditions of BCBs with imines is reported. The reaction proceeds effectively with a novel type of BCB that incorporates a 2-acyl imidazole group and a diverse array of alkynyl- and aryl-substituted imines. The target aza-BCHs, which consist of α-chiral amine fragments and two quaternary carbon centers, are efficiently synthesized with up to 94 % and 96.5:3.5 er under mild conditions. Experimental and computational studies reveal that the reaction follows a concerted nucleophilic ring-opening mechanism of BCBs with imines. This mechanism is distinct from previous studies on Lewis acid-catalyzed cycloadditions of BCBs.

Conflict of Interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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