Outer-Sphere Control for Divergent Multicatalysis with Common Catalytic Moieties

Controlling Stereoselectivity with Noncovalent Interactions in Chiral Phosphoric Acid Organocatalysis

Chiral phosphoric acids (CPAs) have emerged as highly effective Brønsted acid catalysts in an expanding range of asymmetric transformations, often through novel multifunctional substrate activation modes. Versatile and broadly appealing, these catalysts benefit from modular and tunable structures, and compatibility with additives. Given the unique types of noncovalent interactions (NCIs) that can be established between CPAs and various reactants─such as hydrogen bonding, aromatic interactions, and van der Waals forces─it is unsurprising that these catalyst systems have become a promising approach for accessing diverse chiral product outcomes. This review aims to provide an in-depth exploration of the mechanisms by which CPAs impart stereoselectivity, positioning NCIs as the central feature that connects a broad spectrum of catalytic reactions. Spanning literature from 2004 to 2024, it covers nucleophilic additions, radical transformations, and atroposelective bond formations, highlighting the applicability of CPA organocatalysis. Special emphasis is placed on the structural and mechanistic features that govern CPA-substrate interactions, as well as the tools and techniques developed to enhance our understanding of their catalytic behavior. In addition to emphasizing mechanistic details and stereocontrolling elements in individual reactions, we have carefully structured this review to provide a natural progression from these specifics to a broader, class-level perspective. Overall, these findings underscore the critical role of NCIs in CPA catalysis and their significant contributions to advancing asymmetric synthesis.

The Diversity and Evolution of Chiral Brønsted Acid Structures

The chemical space of chiral Brønsted acid catalysts is defined by quantity and complexity, reflecting the diverse synthetic challenges confronted and the innovative molecular designs introduced. Here, we detail how this successful outcome is a powerful demonstration of the benefits of utilizing both local structure searches and a comprehensive understanding of catalyst performance for effective and efficient exploration of Brønsted acid properties. In this concept article we provide an evolutionary overview of this field by summarizing the approaches to catalyst optimization, the resulting structures, and functions.

N,N'-[1,4-Phenyl-enebis(imino-carbon-yl)]bis-(l-phenyl-alanine) tetra-hydro-furan disolvate

The title compound, C26H26N4O6·2C4H8O, representing a bis-urea with terminal phenyl-alanine units, crystallized with two tetra-hydro-furan (THF) mol-ecules. The main mol-ecule is located on a crystallographic twofold axis, while the solvent mol-ecule is disordered over two positions, with occupancies of 0.571 (15) and 0.429 (15). The host mol-ecules are linked by N-H⋯O=C hydrogen bonds and C-H⋯O contacts with R 2 1(6) and R 2 1(7) ring motifs. The THF mol-ecules enclosed in the crystal are connected to the bis-urea compound via O-H⋯O and C-H⋯O inter-actions.

Design, Synthesis, and Application of Chiral Bicyclic Imidazole Catalysts

Asymmetric organocatalysis has been considered to be an efficient and reliable strategy for the stereoselective preparation of optically active chemicals. In particular, chiral tertiary amines as Lewis base organocatalysts bearing core structures including quinuclidine, dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP), N-methylimidazole (NMI), amidine, etc. have provided new and powerful tools for various chemical transformations. However, due to the limitations in structural complexity, synthetic difficulty, low catalytic efficiency, and high cost, the industrial application of such catalysts is still far from being widely adopted. Therefore, the development of new chiral tertiary amine catalysts with higher activity and selectivity is greatly desired.In order to address the contradiction between activity and selectivity caused by the ortho group, a bicyclic imidazole structure bearing a relatively large bond angle ∠θ was designed as the skeleton of our new catalysts. 6,7-Dihydro-5H-pyrrolo[1,2-a]imidazole (abbreviated as DPI) and 5,6,7,8-tetrahydroimidazo[1,2-a]pyridine (abbreviated as TIP) are two of the utilized skeletons. In addition to obtaining satisfactory catalytic activity, excellent enantioselectivity would also be expected because the stereocontrol R group is neither far nor close to the catalytic active site (sp²-N atom) and is adjustable. Based on this skeleton, a family of chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts were easily prepared and successfully applied in several enantioselective reactions for the synthesis of a variety of valuable chiral compounds.6,7-Dihydro-5H-pyrrolo[1,2-a]imidazole (abbreviated as DPI) is the predominantly utilized skeleton. First, HO-DPI, the key intermediate of the designed chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts, could be efficiently synthesized from imidazole and acrolein, then separated by kinetic resolution or optical resolution. Second, Alkoxy-DPI, the alkyloxy-substituted chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts, were synthesized by a one-step alkylation from HO-DPI. This type of catalyst has been successfully applied in asymmetric Steglich rearrangement (C-acylation rearrangement of O-acylated azlactones), asymmetric phosphorylation of lactams, and a sequential four-step acylation reaction. Third, Acyloxy-DPI, the acyloxy-substituted chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts, were synthesized with a one-step acetylative kinetic resolution from racemic HO-DPI or acylation from enantiopure HO-DPI. The catalyst AcO-DPI has been successfully applied in enantioselective Black rearrangement and in direct enantioselective C-acylation of 3-substituted benzofuran-2(3H)-ones and 2-oxindoles. Fourth, Alkyl-DPI was synthesized via a two-step reaction from racemic HO-DPI and separated easily by resolution. The catalyst Cy-DPI has been successfully applied in dynamic kinetic resolution of 3-hydroxyphthalides through enantioselective O-acylation. Cy-PDPI was synthesized through a Cu-catalyzed amidation from Cy-DPI and successfully applied in the kinetic resolution of secondary alcohols with good to excellent enantioselectivities. Finally, the carbamate type chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts, Carbamate-DPI, were readily synthesized from HO-DPI, and the catalyst Ad-DPI bearing a bulky adamantyl group was successfully applied in the synthesis of the anti-COVID-19 drug remdesivir via asymmetric phosphorylation. Alongside our initial work, this Account also introduces four elegant studies by other groups concerning asymmetric phosphorylation utilizing chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts.In summary, this Account focuses on the chiral bicyclic imidazole catalysts developed in our group and provides an overview on their design, synthesis, and application that will serve as inspiration for the exploration of new organocatalysts and related reactions.

Asymmetric Catalysis Mediated by Synthetic Peptides, Version 2.0: Expansion of Scope and Mechanisms

Low molecular weight synthetic peptides have been demonstrated to be effective catalysts for an increasingly wide array of asymmetric transformations. In many cases, these peptide-based catalysts have enabled novel multifunctional substrate activation modes and unprecedented selectivity manifolds. These features, along with their ease of preparation, modular and tunable structures, and often biomimetic attributes make peptides well-suited as chiral catalysts and of broad interest. Many examples of peptide-catalyzed asymmetric reactions have appeared in the literature since the last survey of this broad field in Chemical Reviews (Chem. Rev. 2007, 107, 5759-5812). The overarching goal of this new Review is to provide a comprehensive account of the numerous advances in the field. As a corollary to this goal, we survey the many different types of catalytic reactions, ranging from acylation to C-C bond formation, in which peptides have been successfully employed. In so doing, we devote significant discussion to the structural and mechanistic aspects of these reactions that are perhaps specific to peptide-based catalysts and their interactions with substrates and/or reagents.

In Situ Switching of Site-Selectivity with Light in the Acetylation of Sugars with Azopeptide Catalysts

We present a novel concept for the in situ control of site-selectivity of catalytic acetylations of partially protected sugars using light as external stimulus and oligopeptide catalysts equipped with an azobenzene moiety. The isomerizable azobenzene-peptide backbone defines the size and shape of the catalytic pocket, while the π-methyl-l-histidine (Pmh) moiety transfers the electrophile. Photoisomerization of the E- to the Z-azobenzene catalyst (monitored via NMR) with an LED (λ = 365 nm) drastically changes the chemical environment around the catalytically active Pmh moiety, so that the light-induced change in the catalyst shape alters site-selectivity. As a proof of principle, we employed (4,6-O-benzylidene)methyl-α-d-pyranosides, which provide a change in regioselectivity from 2:1 (E) to 1:5 (Z) for the monoacetylated products at room temperature. The validity of this new catalyst-design concept is further demonstrated with the regioselective acetylation of the natural product quercetin. In situ irradiation NMR spectroscopy was used to quantify photostationary states under continuous irradiation with UV light.

The various levels of integration of chemo- and bio-catalysis towards hybrid catalysis

Hybrid catalysis is an emerging concept that combines chemo- and biocatalysts in a wide variety of approaches. Combining the specifications and advantages of multiple disciplines, it is a very promising way to diversify tomorrow's catalysis.