Electronically Activated Organoboron Catalysts for Enantioselective Propargyl Addition to Trifluoromethyl Ketones.

A broadly applicable, practical, scalable, efficient and highly α- and enantioselective method for addition of a silyl-protected propargyl moiety to trifluoromethyl ketones has been developed. Reactions, promoted by 2.0 mol % of a catalyst that is derived in situ from a readily accessible aminophenol compound at ambient temperature, were complete after only 15 minutes at room temperature.

NHC-Cu-catalyzed addition of propargylboron reagents to phosphinoylimines. Enantioselective synthesis of trimethylsilyl-substituted homoallenylamides and application to the synthesis of S-(-)-cyclooroidin.

A catalytic method for the efficient and enantioselective addition of a 1-trimethylsilyl-substituted allene moiety to phosphinoylimines is presented. Transformations are promoted by 5.0 mol % of a copper complex of an N-heterocyclic carbene in the presence of a propargylboron reagent that can be readily prepared in multigram quantities.