Organocatalytic enantio- and diastereoselective assembly of cyclopropane-incorporated polycyclic molecules via isobenzopyrylium ions

A highly enantio- and diastereoselective organocatalytic formation of cyclopropanes embedded in a complex bridged polycyclic architecture is disclosed. In the presence of a chiral phosphoric acid catalyst, this reaction generates four new stereogenic centers and three new C-C bonds efficiently from isochromene acetals and vinylboronic acids under mild conditions. Different from conventional asymmetric cyclopropanation strategies, this process does not involve carbenes or carbenoids. The complex products can serve as precursors to useful homoenolate equivalents. Mechanistically, DFT studies provided insights into the key transition states of the enantiodetermining [4 + 2] cycloaddition, in which the enantioselectivity is induced by the chiral phosphate counter anion of the isobenzopyrylium intermediate.