Within the framework of this master thesis, I performed research on the organocatalyzed asymmetric [4+2] annulation of (hetero)arylidene Δ2-pyrrolin-4-one derivatives with malononitrile. Optimization of the reaction conditions (solvent, reaction stoichiometry, temperature) and evaluation of the effect of different chiral noncovalent bifunctional organocatalysts on the stereochemical outcome of the model asymmetric transformation of N-methyl substituted benzylidene Δ2-pyrrolin-4-one derivative was performed. The reaction under optimized conditions and with the use of the optimal bifunctional organocatalyst (quinine derivative with a squaramide moiety) resulted in the isolation of the enantiomerically enriched annulated bicyclic compound in high yield (97% ee, 92% yield, major (S)-enantiomer). The same reaction performed in methanol resulted in unprecedented reversal of stereoselectivity (93% ee; major (R)-enantiomer).
Having established the optimal reaction conditions, the next step was to determine the scope of the investigated transformation by evaluating the stereoselectivity of the organocatalyzed [4+2] annulation of the representative N-methyl substituted (hetero)arylidene Δ2-pyrrolin-4-one derivatives. Racemic (hetero)aryl dihydropyranopyrrole derivatives were prepared with the reaction of a series of Δ2-pyrrolin-4-ones with malononitrile in the presence of an achiral 1,2-diamine organocatalyst. Isolated products were characterized and the enantiomer separation conditions were determined by HPLC analysis (use of chiral columns). Under the established optimal asymmetric conditions, transformations of the representative substrates provided the corresponding non-racemic pyranopyrroles. In most cases, the products were isolated with high enantioselectivity and moderate to high yields (15 products, up to 99% ee, typical yield between 68% and 97%). The absolute configuration of the major (S)-enantiomer of the non-racemic pyranopyrrole product was determined by a single crystal X-ray analysis. Analogous reaction of N-unsubstituted benzylidene Δ2-pyrrolin-4-one derivative gave the pseudo-enantiomeric product (99 % ee, major (R)-isomer), which is in line with the configuration of the starting alkene ((Z)-alkene→major (R)-product; (E)-alkene→major (S)-product). The high enantioselectivity of the investigated organocatalyzed [4+2] annulation proved to be a viable strategy for accessing such enantiomerically pure bicyclic compounds, as well as points to the potential use of similar unsaturated heterocyclic scaffolds (Δ2-pyrrolin-4-ones) as substrates for the further development of novel organocatalyzed cascade reactions.
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