Organocatalytic Enantioselective Aziridination of α-Substituted α,β-Unsaturated Aldehydes: Asymmetric Synthesis of Terminal Aziridines

The first example of a highly enantioselective organocatalytic aziridination of alpha-substituted alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes is presented. The reaction is catalyzed by simple chiral amines and gives access to highly functional terminal azirdines containing an alpha-tertiary amine stereocenter in high yields and enantiomeric ratios (95.5:4.5-98:2).