A Combined Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Stereodynamics of Monoaza[5]helicenes: Solvent-Induced Increase of the Enantiomerization Barrier in 1-Aza-[5]helicene.

Helicenes and heterohelicenes are attractive compounds with great potential in materials sciences to be used in optoelectronics as ligand backbones in enantioselective catalysis and as chiral sensors. The properties of these materials are related to the stereodynamics of these helical chiral compounds. However, little is known about features controlling stereodynamics in helicenes; in particular, for heterohelicenes the position of the heteroatom could be relevant in this respect.

Chiral 1,2-dialkenyl diaziridines: synthesis, enantioselective separation, and nitrogen inversion barriers.

trans-1,2-Disubstituted diaziridines form stable enantiomers at ambient conditions because of the two stereogenic pyramidal nitrogen atoms. Functionalized trans-1,2-disubstituted diaziridines can be utilized as a chiral switching moiety between two enantiomeric states in more complex molecular structures. However, the synthesis of functionalized diaziridines is quite challenging, because of the limited tolerance of reaction conditions that can be applied.

Stereodynamics of small 1,2-dialkyldiaziridines.

Diaziridines are very interesting representatives of organic compounds containing stereogenic nitrogen atoms. In particular, 1,2-dialkyldiaziridines show extraordinarily high stereointegrity. The lone electron pairs of the nitrogen atoms are in trans configuration, avoiding a four-electron repulsive interaction.

Stereodynamics of tetramezine.

The antidepressant drug tetramezine [1,2-bis-(3,3-dimethyldiaziridin-1-yl)ethane] consists of two bridged diaziridine moieties with four stereogenic nitrogen centers, which are stereolabile and, therefore, are prone to interconversion. The adjacent substituents at the nitrogen atoms of the diaziridines moieties exist only in an antiperiplanar conformation, which results in a coupled interconversion. Therefore, three stereoisomers exist (meso form and two enantiomeric forms), which epimerize when the diaziridine moieties are regarded as stereogenic units due to the coupled interconversion.