Diastereoselective Friedel-Crafts Alkylation of Hydronaphthalenes

An efficient and versatile synthesis of chiral tetralins has been developed using both inter- and intra-molecular Friedel Crafts alkylation as a key step. The readily available hydronaphthalene substrates were prepared via a highly enantioselective metal-catalyzed ring opening of meso-oxabicyclic alkenes followed by hydrogenation. A wide variety of complex tetracyclic compounds have been isolated with high levels of regio-, diastereo-, and enantioselectivity.