Chiral Lanthanum(III)-Binaphthyldisulfonate Complexes for Catalytic Enantioselective Strecker Reaction

A catalytic enantioselective Strecker reaction catalyzed by novel chiral lanthanum(III)-binaphthyl disulfonate complexes was developed. The key to promoting the reactions was a semistoichiometric amount of AcOH or i-PrCO2H, which takes advantage of HCN generation in situ. The corresponding cyanation products were obtained in high yields and with high enantioselectivities.