Doubly stereocontrolled asymmetric conjugate addition of acetylacetone to nitroolefins catalyzed by bifunctional tertiary amine-thiourea catalysts derived from both acyclic α-amino acids and carbohydrates

A novel class of easily preparative, cheap, and fine-tunable bifunctional chiral tertiary amine thiourea organocatalysts have been developed by combining both acyclic diamines derived from acyclic a.-amino acids and carbohydrates. These organocatalysts promoted the enantioselective conjugate addition of acetylacetone to various nitroolefins in good yields (up to 93%) with good enantioselectivities (up to 91% ee). The present research demonstrates the advantages of incorporating two stereocontrolling structures into a single catalyst. Notably, it offers a simple and convenient doubly stereocontrolled approach for the catalytic asymmetric synthesis of a chiral organic molecule. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.