Organocatalytic stereoselective cyanosilylation of small ketones.

ABSTRACT: Enzymatic stereoselectivity has typically been unrivalled by most chemical catalysts, especially in the conversion of small substrates. According to the 'lock-and-key theory'^1,2, enzymes have confined active sites to accommodate their specific reacting substrates, a feature that is typically absent from chemical catalysts. An interesting case in this context is the formation of cyanohydrins from ketones and HCN, as this reaction can be catalysed by various classes of catalysts, including biological, inorganic and organic ones^3-7. We now report the development of broadly applicable confined organocatalysts for the highly enantioselective cyanosilylation of aromatic and aliphatic ketones, including the challenging 2-butanone. The selectivity (98:2 enantiomeric ratio (e.

SUBMITTER: Zhou H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9068509 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature