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This thesis describes work towards two discrete projects; Chapter 1: Novel enantioconvergent reactions, and Chapter 2: Bioinspired synthesis of pyrroloquinoline alkaloids. Chapter 1: In asymmetric synthesis, kinetic resolutions are limited to 50% yield and often require costly separation of the enantioenriched product from the remaining starting material. Enantioconvergent reactions overcome this by converting both enantiomers to an enantioenriched product in a maximum 100% yield. To achieve an enantioconvergent reaction, the system level symmetry of the racemate must be broken. There are several conceptual approaches to how this can be done, however they all suffer from limited substrate scope as generally the stereogenic elements must be labile, and the substrate cannot contain multiple stereogenic elements. Stereoretentive enantioconvergent reactions overcome these limitations by incorporating both enantiomers in either an unsymmetrical dimerisation, or through a multicomponent reaction with an unsymmetrical linker. This thesis details efforts to establish this concept in i) an unsymmetrical dimerisation through the formation of a distinct atropoisomer, via lithium-halogen exchange, and ii) an unsymmetrical dimerisation through a point-to-axial chirality exchange, via palladium-catalysed carbonylation. Chapter 2: The pyrroloquinoline alkaloids, such as martinellic acid and incargranine B, possess an unusual heterocyclic core, first described upon the isolation of the martinella alkaloids in 1995. These "deceptively simple" natural products have attracted considerable interest from the synthetic community due to their potentially useful biological activities, intriguing structures, and proposed biosynthetic origins. The Lawrence group have previously reported biomimetic syntheses of incargranine B and several other related alkaloids. These chemical syntheses mimicked proposed biosynthetic pathways involving oxidative deamination processes, which are mediated by transaminase enzymes. The use of transaminase biocatalysts in chemoenzymatic syntheses is now well-established, but is heavily focused on reductive amination processes. This thesis details efforts to explore the potential of transaminase biocatalysts for oxidative deamination processes in the chemoenzymatic synthesis of the pyrroloquinoline alkaloids, and to develop a biomimetic synthesis of martinellic acid.

Stambomycin D, a 51-membered glycosylated macrolide, was discovered by a genome mining approach, and the predicted planar structure confirmed by NMR spectroscopic analysis. However, the sequence analysis-predicted stereocenters (except C28 and C50) remain to be validated. This thesis discusses efforts to achieve a chemical synthesis of stambomycin D to fully determine its stereochemistry, including the 'unpredictable' C28 and C50 stereocenters. To begin with, the stambomycin D aglycone was disconnected at C50 to reveal acyclic C1-C51 fragments, which could be divided into five smaller fragments (C1-C11, C13-C22, C23-C31 (1,3-anti or syn diol at C27 and C28) and C33-C48 fragments). The early chapters discuss the synthesis of these fragments as well as deprotection studies, and the later chapters focus on the union of these fragments. Regarding the order of combination, the C13-C22 fragment is coupled to the C23-C31 (1,3-anti diol at C27 and C28, this thesis only discusses the anti diol diastereomer) first to construct the C13-C31 framework. A deprotection study was successfully executed on this fragment. The subsequent union of the C13-C32 fragment and C33-C48 fragment gives the C13-C48 fragment, for which deprotection exploration was also carried out. Through these deprotection studies, we not only supported the sequence analysis-predicted assignment of most of the stereocenters of stambomycin D, but also paved the way for the deprotection of the acyclic C1-C51 fragment and ultimately synthesis of the entire macrolide.

Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to the fundamental principles of organocatalysis and enantioselective synthesis. Seminal contributions to the evolution of modern superbase catalysis are discussed. Chapter 2 describes the development of a novel enantioselective direct aldol reaction catalysed by a bifunctional iminophosphorane. The ability of a BIMP catalyst to activate high-pKa aryl methyl ketone pro-nucleophiles is emphasised against the backdrop of traditional Cinchona and thiourea organocatalysis. The broad downstream utility of the β-hydroxy ketone products is demonstrated, along with an efficient scale-up protocol showcasing catalyst recyclability. Finally, mechanistic considerations are discussed based on NMR studies and reaction observations. Chapter 3 outlines the development of an efficient aza-Michael addition/condensation strategy for the preparation of enantioenriched 2-pyrazolines. A simple one-pot protocol affords useful heterocycles from readily accessible enones. Highly reactive hydrazines are made amenable to enantioselective catalysis by in situ conversion to the corresponding hydrazone, which subsequently engages in an enantio-determining aza-Michael addition. The Cinchona alkaloid-derived catalyst is recyclable, and the large-scale utility of the method was demonstrated with the preparation of over 80 grams of a product in a single reaction.

Non-covalent interactions are routinely used by enzymes to control selectivity of chemical reactions during biosynthesis. This prevalence in nature has inspired chemists to adapt these interactions to control selectivity in small molecule catalysis. This thesis describes efforts towards utilising non-covalent interactions to influence site-selectivity and enantioselectivity during palladium-catalysed cross-coupling reactions - a category of transformations used widely by synthetic chemists for many purposes. This thesis focuses on members of the privileged dialkylbiarylphosphine ligand class, specifically sSPhos, which is the commercially available sulfonated variant of SPhos. The first part investigates the use of this ligand to impart site-selectivity in the cross-coupling of 3,4-dichloroarenes containing an acidic directing group. Selectivity was proposed to arise from an electrostatic interaction between the deprotonated substrate, the cation of the base and the anionic ligand. An intriguing characteristic of sSPhos is that it is a chiral molecule due to its desymmetrisation upon sulfonation. Resolution of the two enantiomers was achieved initially by preparative supercritical fluid chromatography in collaboration with AstraZeneca, and later by chemical resolution using a chiral auxiliary, work described in this thesis. The second half of this thesis evaluates the efficacy of this new chiral ligand in two classes of asymmetric Suzuki-Miyaura coupling: desymmetrisation, and formation of atropisomers. Desymmetrisation was investigated on protected benzyhydrylamines resulting in good to excellent enantioselectivities being observed. The formation of atropisomeric biaryls was investigated with a wide range of coupling partners, with moderate to good enantioselectivity observed for coupling partners containing polar functionality. Excellent enantioselectivity was observed for the synthesis of 2,2'-biphenols: a scaffold prevalent in natural products as well as in numerous privileged catalysts. Overall, this work demonstrates the utility of the privileged ligand sSPhos on controlling site- and enantio- selectivity in palladium-catalysed cross-coupling reactions using non-covalent interactions.

Studies towards C-C bond activation-based methodologies involving strained ring systems are presented. The work aims to develop further directing group-assisted cyclisations developed in Bristol. Specifically, aminocyclopropane-based and related ring systems were examined to identify suitable substrates for directed transition metal-catalysed ring cleavage and subsequent transformations. Rare examples of carbonylative rearrangements of aminocyclopropanes using a temporary directing group have been discovered. The process involves an unusual ring contraction and can be used to provide a range of γ-lactams. The method is conceptually unique compared to other temporary directing group strategies used in C-C bond activation. Investigations into substrates for intramolecular nucleophilic addition to C-C bond activation derived metallacycles identified aminocyclopropanes equipped with anilines as suitable substrates. These cyclopropanes undergo carbonylative cyclisation to form 8-membered Nheterocycles. Studies were also undertaken to evaluate a range of alternative substrates with tethered nucleophiles under carbonylative conditions. A novel (3+1+2) cycloaddition between aminocyclopropanes, CO and tethered π-unsaturates has been developed. An extensive study of the reaction scope was undertaken, and conditions for asymmetric cycloadditions were identified. This methodology provides the first examples of highly enantioselective C-C bond activations of aminocyclopropanes. Additionally, the reactivity of various homologated aminocyclopropanes was investigated. A previously developed carbonylative rearrangement of aminomethylcyclopropanes to α-aminocyclopentanones was re-evaluated. Second-generation conditions were optimised and these offered enhanced efficiencies for certain substrates. The carbonylative rearrangement was integrated into cascade and tandem processes to access various polycyclic products (e.g. spirocycles and indoles). Efforts to achieve challenging C-C bond activation-triggered transformations of aminocyclobutanes are described. Several representative aminocyclobutane-based substrates were evaluated under transition metal-catalysed conditions, but these failed to deliver the desired targets.

This thesis describes transformations on azetidines, with focus on functionalisation α- to N. Direct asymmetric azetidine functionalisation has been a long-standing challenge, with limited examples in the literature. Recent work within the Hodgson group developed the N-tert-butoxythiocarbonyl (Botc) directing/activating group as an effective and practical means to effect asymmetric α-lithiation-electrophile trapping on azetidines. This thesis describes significant expansion and mechanistic understanding of this methodology. The feasibility of accessing enantioenriched 2,4-disubstituted azetidines by α'- lithiation-electrophile trapping is explored, with modifications of the N-directing group detailed. Additionally, examination of an α-boronic ester 'synthetic handle' as a means to functionalise azetidines is detailed. This includes developing a means to synthesise an enantioenriched α-boronic ester azetidine via asymmetric α-lithiation-borylation, with subsequent development of an asymmetric 1,2-metallate rearrangement homologation reaction, to give highly enantioenriched azetidines with control of the two contiguous stereocentres. Derivatisation of the homologated azetidines is described, allowing for access to a range of 2-substituted azetidines previously inaccessible via direct α-lithiation-electrophile trapping. Finally, studies in the origins of the enantiodetermining mechanisms for the asymmetric α-lithiation-electrophile trapping of N-Botc azetidine show an intriguing electrophile dependent mechanism, which can rationalise the origins of the differing sense of asymmetric induction for particular electrophiles.

Transition metal catalysed C-H activation is a highly desirable strategy for the functionalization of organic molecules. It allows for a rapid generation of structurally complex products from simple precursors in an atom- and step-economic fashion. Iridium catalysed borylation of arenes is a powerful yet mild C-H activation transformation which yields synthetically useful boronate esters. Interestingly the selectivity of this reaction is largely based upon steric considerations. As a result, the process is highly effective for 1,3-disubstituted arenes but produces a statistical mixture of regioisomers for 1,2-disubstituted arenes. Non-covalent interactions are a very powerful tool, utilized beautifully in enzymatic catalysis to address issues of regio- and enantioselectivity. In sharp contrast however their utilisation in directing the same aspects of selectivity in transition metal catalysed transformations is rather underexplored. This doctoral thesis aims to explore the use of non-covalent interactions in this setting. Chapter 2 of this thesis discloses the evaluation of an anionic sulfonated bipyridine ligand, previously reported within the group, to act as a hydrogen-bond acceptor to interact with aromatic amides. This interaction was shown to be crucial for the development of a meta-selective borylation process with excellent levels of meta-selectivity seen on three distinct substrate classes: benzylamine, phenethylamine and phenylpropylamine derived amides. Chapter 3 explores the further development of the sulfonated bipyridine scaffold with the introduction of a chiral counter-cation. The approach allows for the formation of a chiral environment around the metal centre via a chiral counter-ion directed catalysis and was demonstrated on the example of desymmetrising iridium catalysed borylation of arenes. The design and development of a modified version of the sulfonated bipyridine ligand bearing a cinchona alkaloid derived counter-cation is presented. The novel ligand design has enabled the borylation of meta-substituted benzhydrylamides and phosphinamides giving enantioenriched products in great enantioselectivities and good yields. When utilised for borylation of ortho-substituted benzhydrylamides, the process was demonstrated not only to be enantioselective, but also regioselective for the meta-position. The reaction represented a rare case of utilising a chiral cation to direct enantioselectivity of a transition metal catalysed process, enabling a challenging enantioselective remote C-H activation to yield highly versatile boronate ester products.

The asymmetric synthesis of tertiary amines is a highly desirable goal, but far fewer efficient synthetic methods exist for their synthesis, relative to primary and secondary amines. A possible atom-efficient method of tertiary amine formation is catalytic hydrogenation. Despite the demand, there are only a few reported examples of asymmetric enamine hydrogenation, and none of these conditions are efficient enough to be viable for industrial processes. Until 2019, there were no reported examples of tertiary amine formation by using direct asymmetric reductive amination using H2 as the reductant. This thesis describes the development of both enantioselective and diastereoselective reductive aminations, using hydrogen gas and homogeneous rhodium catalysts. The enantioselective reductive amination uses an electron deficient phanephos ligand and reduces bicyclic aryl ketones at low catalyst loadings but moderate selectivity. The diastereoselective reductive amination uses electron deficient monophosphines as ligands and includes many chiral 3-substituted cyclic ketones in the substrate scope, mainly 3- arylcyclohexanones. These 3-arylcyclohexanones substrates were synthesised by rhodium catalysed conjugate addition. This enantioselective conjugate addition was combined with our diastereoselective reductive amination, to form a highly stereoselective one-pot process. The rhodium used in the conjugate addition was recycled for the reductive amination step using an ‘assisted tandem catalysis' strategy. The rhodium catalyst was modified in situ by the sequential addition of a monophosphine ligand, allowing it to catalyse the second step. This process formed a chiral tertiary amine with high selectivity and conversion. While developing this one-pot process, BOBPHOS, a phospholane-phosphite ligand, was identified as a highly active ligand in rhodium catalysed conjugate additions. The potential of BOBPHOS-Rh catalysed conjugate additions of challenging substrates like piperidones, coumarins and heteroarylboronic acids was examined, leading to improved protocols.

Chiral amine motifs are found in many bioactive compounds and therefore strategies for their direct asymmetric synthesis are of great interest. Alongside traditional chemical methods, biocatalysis serves as an important tool for the formation of these compounds that can confer the benefits of sustainable catalyst supply and mild reaction conditions. This thesis describes the application of imine reductase (IRED) biocatalysts for the asymmetric reduction of pre-formed imines and the reductive amination of carbonyl compounds to produce chiral amines. These enzymes are relatively recent additions to the toolbox of biocatalysts for chiral amine synthesis and therefore their scope and application is still very much being explored. The research carried out as part of this PhD is presented as a series of manuscripts that have either been published or are planned for submission to peer-reviewed journals. The choice of presenting this thesis in journal format was made because a considerable body of the candidate's PhD research has been published, with the rest planned for publication in the near future. Furthermore, the compiled review articles and research papers lend themselves to a clear thesis narrative and, combined, have taken considerable time and effort to prepare, equal to that of a traditional thesis format. The contents are organised as follows: Chapter 1: an introduction to biocatalysis and its impact on sustainable chemical manufacturing; Chapter 2: a review assessing the current state of the art in imine reductase biocatalysts; Chapter 3: a perspective on the design and implementation of biocatalytic cascades; Chapter 4: a research article on the application of IREDs in a biocatalytic cascade for the synthesis of chiral piperidine and pyrrolidine frameworks; Chapter 5: aims of the PhD project; Chapter 6: a research article on the discovery and investigation of a reductive aminase (RedAm) found within the IRED family; Chapter 7: a research article on the screening of a diverse set of novel IREDs for their ability to facilitate reductive amination; Chapter 8: a research article on the synthesis of complex bulky dibenz[c,e]azepine compounds using IRED and transaminase biocatalysts; Chapter 9: a summary and outlook; Chapter 10: manuscript supporting information further detailing experimental work; Appendix: list of other publications resulting from this doctoral research.

The health benefits of fish oil supplementations have been proven to be effective by several studies which are discussed in this thesis. It was found that these compounds had potent anti-inflammatory properties and since then has prompted much research into the use of these compounds as potential treatments for chronic inflammation based diseases, where the overuse of current anti-inflammatory drugs cause many problems with undesired side-effects. The aim of this research is to study the bioactivity of resolvin E1 and various analogues, and to determine a novel route towards resolvin E1 natural product so that bioactivity tests may be conducted in comparison of synthetically produced resolvin E1 and naturally extracted resolvin E1. The initial aim of this research was to develop a range of analogues of a fragment of Resolvin E1. This was so that a series of compounds could be produced with various R groups to identify any structure-activity relationships for this part of the natural product. There is one stereocentre in this fragment of resolvin E1 and it was decided that a racemic version of these compounds would be tested for bioactivity, and if any of the compounds had significant anti-inflammatory properties then the R and S versions could be separated, allowing for the testing of both enantiomers to determine which gave the most potent anti-inflammatory response. This led to the creation of several novel fragments and their biological testing. The secondary aim of the project was to complete the total synthesis of the resolvin E1 natural product. We devised a novel route towards resolvin E1 which used MIDA boronate protecting group to introduce a fixed trans double bond which was useful in a compound with multiple alkene systems. Resolvin E1 also contains three stereocentres, the synthesis from the fragment work was recycled to begin the synthesis, and made use of 1,2:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-D-mannitol and Noyori s catalyst to setup the stereocentres. The use of new MIDA-boronate moieties were also explored in order to develop a new, efficient synthesis toward resolvin E1.

Quaternary centres bearing a nitrogen atom are found in natural products and therapeutic agents but they represent a remarkably challenging synthetic motif to access when stereochemical control is required. This thesis details investigations into the development of an innovative approach that - by combining biocatalysis with organolithium chemistry - allows the synthesis of enantioenriched α-tertiary amines. The strategy relies on the initial enzymatic asymmetric synthesis of amines. Two complementary pathways were identified: deracemisation with amine oxidases or enantioselective reduction with imine reductases. The enantioenriched amines were converted to the corresponding N-benzyl-N'-aryl ureas and subsequent organolithium-mediated stereospecific aryl migration developed in the Clayden group were carried out to obtain α-tertiary amines. Various scaffold were investigated: 1,1-disubstituted 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline, 2,2-disubstituted azepane and 1,1-disubstituted 2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-benzo[c]azepine derivatives were successfully synthesised. The methodology was extended to acyclic systems, giving 3-pyridyl-derived α-tertiary amines.

This thesis presents the development and application of bifunctional iminophosphorane (BIMP) organocatalysts, incorporating a triaryl-substituted iminophosphorane organosuperbase for organocatalytic enantioselective reactions. Chapter 2 describes the design and synthesis of a new class of BIMP catalysts and its application in the first organocatalytic enantioselective sulfa-Michael reaction of alkyl thiols to unactivated β-substituted α,β-unsaturated esters. The conjugate adducts were obtained in up to 94% yield and 94% ee. In addition, the reaction was performed on a 1 gram preparative scale with 1 mol% catalyst. Chapter 3 describes the application of BIMP catalysts in the enantioselective desymmetrisation reaction via an intramolecular Michael addition of a pendant pronucleophile to prochiral cyclohexadienone. The high Brønsted basicity of BIMP catalysts was demonstrated in the Michael addition of high pKa pronucleophiles, such as a-substituted malonamate and amide. Chapter 4 describes the application of BIMP catalysts in the challenging Michael addition of malonates to crotonates, cinnamates and methacrylates. For example, the conjugate adduct of malonate and hexafluoroisopropyl cinnamate was achieved in 91% yield and 63% ee in 48 h.

This thesis describes the study of organozirconium reagents used in copper-catalyzed asymmetric synthesis. Explorations on the asymmetric allylic alkylation of linear substrates, the cyclic substrates and enantioselective desymmetrization of meso compounds including the oxabicyclic alkenes and meso-allyl substrates are reported here. Chapter 1 has a brief overview about general methods used in asymmetric catalysis. In particular, more relevant introduction about catalytic asymmetric allylic substitution and asymmetric desymmetrization of meso compounds is given. Chapter 2 describes the investigation of organozirconium reagents used in copper-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of linear substrates, and discloses a dynamic kinetic AAA system that employs cyclic allylic chlorides as substrates. Chapter 3 presents the study on expanding the disclosed copper-catalyzed dynamic kinetic AAA chemistry by using more stabilized cyclic allylic phosphate substrates. Further exploration of its possible mechanisms uses substituted substrates, deuterated and enantiopure substrates are also discussed. Chapter 4 demonstrates the study of organozirconium reagents used in copper-catalyzed enantioselective desymmetrization reactions. Investigation of oxabicyclic alkenes and mesoallyl substrates is reported. Chapter 5 gives supporting information of this thesis.

This thesis details investigations into the generation and synthetic utility of α,β-unsaturated acyl ammonium intermediates using isothioureas as Lewis base organocatalysts to generate a range of heterocyclic products. Initial investigations focussed on the development of a Michael addition-lactonisation protocol utilising α,β-unsaturated acyl ammonium intermediates (generated in situ from HBTM 2.1 and α,β-unsaturated homoanhydrides) and a range of 1,3-dicarbonyl nucleophiles. Products could be isolated as lactones or as ring-opened highly functionalised esters, giving good yields and excellent enantioselectivity. 1,3-Diketones were shown to generate a mixture of regioisomers and whereas 1,3-ketoesters afforded only a single regioisomer. A crystal structure of an α,β-unsaturated acyl ammonium intermediate was obtained that clearly demonstrated steric blocking of the Si- face of the alkene by the catalyst stereodirecting groups, therefore it can be postulated that enantiocontrol in the addition occurs by selective nucleophilic addition from the Re- face. α,β-Unsaturated acyl ammonium species were then shown to participate in asymmetric annulation processes with benzazole nucleophiles to afford highly functionalised heterocyclic products, with both lactone and lactam formation observed. The relationship between nucleophile structure and process regioselectivity was investigated and it was demonstrated that benzothiazole and benzimidazole nucleophiles afforded preferential N-cyclisation to give lactams whilst benzoxazoles exhibited O-cyclisation to form lactones. It was also possible to influence the regioselectivity by changing the electronic properties of the acyl group (R'). Due to the reactivity of this class of nucleophiles it was possible to access products with quaternary centres. Palladium-catalysed cross coupling reactions were also successful on 3-bromo substituted lactams, demonstrating the potential for further derivatising these interesting heterocyclic products. Finally, a cascade protocol was developed that employed Michael-Michael-lactonisation steps to give tricyclic products from enone malonate nucleophiles and α,β-unsaturated acyl ammonium intermediates (generated in situ by addition of HBTM 2.1 into acid chlorides). Interestingly, the reaction showed higher enantioselectivity at elevated temperatures (70 ˚C) and moderate regioselectivity (1,4- vs. 1,2-addition), which could not be improved after extensive screening. A range of lactones was isolated in moderate yields and enantioselectivity.

This thesis is concerned with the development of new synthetic routes for the asymmetric syntheses of a range of β- and γ-amino acids. Chapter 1 introduces the various biological activities displayed by cyclic β-amino acid containing compounds together with their occurrence in pharmaceutical molecules and β-peptides. Some of the most commonly used synthetic strategies for the preparation of carbocyclic β-amino acids are briefly described, with the focus on the formation and functionalisation of a five-membered carbocyclic ring. Chapter 2 describes a full investigation into a highly diastereoselective Ireland-Claisen rearrangement of stereodefined allyl β-amino esters to access enantiopure α-substituted β-amino acid products. The synthetic utility of this methodology is highlighted by its application in the asymmetric syntheses of five previously inaccessible C(5)-substituted 1,2-anti-1,5-syn-transpentacins. Chapter 3 delineates investigations into a highly diastereoselective conjugate additionelimination protocol for the preparation of a cyclic β'-amino-α,β-unsaturated ester. Subsequent chemo- and diastereoselective conjugate addition reactions of Grignard reagents and lithium amides to this substrate enabled the asymmetric syntheses of four C(5)-substituted 1,2-anti-1,5-syn-transpentacins and two five-membered β,β'-diamines. Chapter 4 details the extension of the protocol developed in Chapter 3 for the conjugate addition of Grignard reagents to a range of acyclic γ-(N,N-dibenzylamino)-substituted α,β-unsaturated esters. Elaboration of the β,γ-disubstituted γ-amino ester products culminated in the asymmetric syntheses of six β,γ-disubstituted γ-amino acids. Chapter 5 chronicles the preparation of an azabicyclic α,β-unsaturated ester, following which attempts towards the asymmetric synthesis of various substituted pyrrolizidines using a conjugate addition protocol are subsequently described. Chapter 6 contains full experimental procedures and characterisation data for all compounds synthesised in Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5.

The work presented in this thesis involves new transformations of azacycles, focusing on the introduction of functionality α-to N. α-C-H functionalisation on an azetidine has been a long-standing challenge, with N-protecting/activating groups that work well in the higher and lower azacyclic systems not viable. A recent breakthrough in the Hodgson group showed the rarely used N-thiopivaloyl group was effective for α-deprotonation– electrophile trapping on azetidines, but was not without limitations concerning harsh removal conditions and scope for further substitutions. This thesis describes efforts to overcome these issues by development of a new protecting/activating group for N, t-butoxythiocarbonyl (Botc).

This thesis describes expansion of the ability of isothioureas to act as organocatalysts in formal [2+2]-, [3+2]- and [4+2]-cycloadditions between carboxylic acids and various acceptors via Type I ammonium enolate intermediates. Chapter 2 describes the optimisation and investigation of [2+2]-cycloadditions from ammonium enolates and N-sulfonylimines as the two components. The development of this methodology allows successful access to highly stereodefined β-lactams and, following in situ ring-opening, β-aminoesters. The products are obtained from either preformed homoanhydrides or directly from carboxylic acids, using open flask conditions, from simple, bench-stable starting materials and is scalable. A variety of anti-β-lactams (21 examples, 46-68% yield, up to >95:5 dr, 21->99% ee) and β-aminoesters (9 examples, 44-74% yield, up to >95:5 dr, 68-92% ee) were accessed in moderate yield, excellent diastereo- and good enantioselectivity. This represents an improved route to anti-β-lactams over previously described ketene and N-triflyl imine based methods. Chapter 3 subsequently describes studies focussed on the use of ester surrogates in the formal [4+2]-cycloaddition reactions of isothiourea generated Type I ammonium enolates. Iso-propylphosphonate 163 proved highly effective as the four-component in this process, which following the in situ ring-opening of the initial dihydropyranone product allowed isolation of a range of novel diester products which were previously unobtainable using this methodology. The products were accessed in moderate to excellent yields, excellent diastereo- and enantiocontrol (9 examples, 12-63% yield, up to >95:5 dr, 67-99% ee) with this process also amenable to a large scale. Furthermore, selective reduction and acid-catalysed cyclisation allowed access to δ-lactone products in good yield with retention of stereocontrol. Finally, Chapter 4 describes work on isothiourea-catalysed formal [3+2]-cycloadditions of oxaziridines and acetic anhydrides gave access to stereodefined five-membered oxazolidin-4-one heterocycles. In this case, the use of preformed homoanhydrides and an inorganic base was imperitive to avoid reduction of the oxaziridine starting material. The oxazolidin-4-one products could be accessed in excellent yield and ee however poor dr (13 examples, 63-96% yield, up to 59:41 dr anti:syn, up to >99% ee for both diastereoisomers). Following isolation, reduction of these heterocycles allowed access to enantioenriched diols with little loss in stereocontrol. Mechanistic analysis has shown that an improvement in diasterocontrol can be obtained by the use of an enantioenriched oxaziridine, demonstrating the stereospecificity of this process.

The development of new methods for carbon-carbon bond formation is a challenging topic at the heart of organic chemistry. Over the past ten years a number of methods for the catalytic asymmetric 1,4-addition of organometallic reagents such as Grignard, organozinc and organoaluminium reagents have been reported. However these reagents suffer from many limitations, including the need for cryogenic temperatures, which prevent their widespread use. Here we have developed a new asymmetric method: the copper-catalysed enantioselective 1,4-addition of alkylzirconium compounds, generated in situM/em>, from alkenes. A general introduction into the formation of carbon-carbon bonds and catalytic asymmetric 1,4-addition reactions is first given. We then focus our attention on hydrometallation reactions and their current use in the addition of alkenyl and alkyl groups in asymmetric 1,4-addition reactions. In Chapter two, we introduce the development of our methodology. We found that by using copper complex (S,S,S)-A, high enantioselectivities can be achieved (up to 96% ee), in the presence of a broad range of functional groups which are often not compatible with comparable methods using pre-made organometallic reagents. The method gives good enantioselectivity at room temperature, in a wide range of solvents, using readily available alkenes. Chapter three discusses the expansion of our method to the 1,4- and 1,6-addition to complex steroids. Modified conditions were then found to enable the addition to β-substituted enones, to form quaternary centres. This is followed by the successful addition to α,β-unsaturated lactones, another difficult substrate class. All these results gave excellent selectivity. In summary, we have developed a new reaction which offers an alternative to current methods reported in the literature. This robust reaction can tolerate a variety of functional groups and we hope that this will aid in the synthesis of important molecules.

The research presented in this thesis is a project funded by the EU-network of the Marie Curie project NANO-HOST in collaboration with partner institutes. The aims of this network are to develop innovative methods for the preparation, recovery and reuse of single-site, nanostructured catalytic materials, and further on apply them in combination with specifically engineered reactors for a sustainable production process for making high value fine chemicals. One part of this project was to prepare chiral diphosphine ligands and their complexes for currently challenging reactions, such as asymmetric carbonylations (homogeneous catalysis). Catalytic studies of these chiral diphosphine ligands were carried out in asymmetric hydroxy-and alkoxy-carbonylations and hydrogenation reactions. The second part of this project was the heterogenisation of these chiral homogeneous complexes through collaborations with the network partners and furthermore their catalytic behavior was studied.

Obtaining enantiomerically pure compounds is of major importance in modern organic chemistry, and this PhD thesis outlines new advances made in this area. Two new enantioselective synthetic methodologies have been designed using isothiourea based- organocatalysts. A brief introduction to the recent literature involving this catalyst architecture is presented. Then, the results of the structure-activity relationship study carried out on a range of isothiourea catalysts for the kinetic resolution of (±)-1-naphthylethanol 16 is described. Chiral isothiourea HBTM 2.1 58 was identified as the optimum catalyst and was further employed in the resolution of a range of secondary alcohols. Good levels of conversion (c~50%) and selectivity (S up to 100) were achieved delivering alcohols in high levels of enantioselectivity (up to 98% ee). The synthetic utility of this process was subsequently demonstrated through isolation of a range of enantiopure alcohols (>99% ee) on a preparative scale, using low catalyst loading of HBTM 2.1 (0.10 mol%). Secondly, a new organocatalytic asymmetric transformation involving the generation of a C1-ammonium enolate using isothiourea is described. An intramolecular Michael addition-lactonisation (IMAL) of enone-acid substrates was developed using (‒)-tetramisole 37 as a catalyst. The generality of this protocol was probed via structural variation of the enone-acid substrates, providing a range of highly functionalised syn-polycyclic carbo- and heterocycles in excellent yields, diastereo- and enantioselectivities (up to 99% yield, 99 : 1 dr and 99% ee). Whilst investigating this process, we discovered that using cinchona alkaloid derivatives as catalysts gave preferential access to the diastereomeric anti-products. Therefore, a range of anti-dihydrobenzofurans was synthesised from readily available starting materials in good yield and stereoselectivities (up to 73%, 20 : 80 dr and 99% ee) using OTMS-quinidine catalyst. These two complementary synthetic strategies allowed facile and controllable access to both syn- and anti-diasteroisomers of a product in high enantioselectivity via judicious choice of catalyst. Subsequently, two telescoped procedures combining the synthesis of the enone-acid through olefination and asymmetric functionalisation were designed, giving rapid access to stereodefined pyrrolidines in high levels of diastereo- and enantioselectivitiy (up to 99 : 1 dr and 99% ee). The last part of this thesis describes preliminary studies toward the development of a doubly diastereoselective intramolecular Michael addition-lactonisation process, opening new avenues for the construction of complex molecular architectures.

This thesis sought to expand upon the synthetic application of the underexploited ipso, ortho diene cis-diol microbial arene oxidation product from benzoic acid. The microbial oxidation of benzoic acid by mutant strains of bacteria to give the ipso, otho diene cis-diol may be considered to be a green and clean method. This biocatalytic route yields large quantities of an enantiopure chiral building block, which is not assessable via traditional synthetic methods. The fermentation product has seen application towards the synthesis of aminocylitols, which have been tested for their biological activity. Attempts to synthesise the fully oxygenated counterparts, cyclitols, were investigated. Expansion of previous work using a bromine substituted derivative led to a range of cross-coupled and iron co-ordinated products. Finally, a range of novel chiral acids and ketones were synthesised and evaluated for their catalytic activity towards asymmetric epoxidation.

Ion-binding organocatalysis is an emerging field that has the potential to control the stereochemical outcome of any transformation that goes via charged intermediates. The aim of this project was to explore how this concept could be applied to an asymmetric allylation reaction. Chapter 2 of this thesis discusses anion-binding catalysis and investigates a chiral cooperative thiourea catalyst that could bind to fluoride to control allylation using an allylsilane. Optimization using a non-chiral thiourea (Schreiner’s catalyst) demonstrated that the reaction proceeded in high yield with TBAT onto an N-benzoylhydrazone. A chiral cooperative thiourea catalyst library was then synthesized but unfortunately, although the allylation using these catalysts proceeded in excellent yield, the product was isolated as the racemate (Scheme 1). Scheme 1: Anion-binding catalysis gave allylated products in high yields but gave no stereocontrol. Chapter 3 examines a chiral quaternary ammonium fluoride as an example of chiral cation-directed catalysis. We hypothesized that an allylsilane activated by fluoride would generate an allyl anion species that would associate with the chiral quaternary ammonium cation through electrostatic interactions. Extensive optimization found that the allylation reaction proceeded in good yield in chloroform at reflux with N-benzoylhydrazones. Different fluoride catalysts were prepared using an ion-exchange resin, and cinchonidine-derived catalysts performed the best. This methodology was extended to a phase-transfer catalyzed process, where solid cesium fluoride exchanged with chloride in situ, removing the need to synthesize and isolate ammonium fluoride catalysts (Scheme 2). Scheme 2: Cation-directed asymmetric allylation. In Chapter 4 cation-directed asymmetric catalysis was extended to an intramolecular allylation reaction. Substrate synthesis was attempted by cross metathesis but the reaction was capricious and yields were low. Intramolecular allylation with these materials gave promising results (Scheme 3) but a lack of material prevented optimization. Scheme 3: Intramolecular allylation results.

This thesis describes our examination of the reactivity of allenylpalladium intermediates generated from the reaction of palladium(0) with propargylic electrophiles. Chapter 1 provides a general overview of the literature reported to date concerning the nature and reactivity of allenylpalladium intermediates. The coupling of a variety of propargylic electrophiles with aryl boronic acids to form allenes is examined in Chapter 2. However, when employing diastereomerically pure electrophiles, some erosion of stereochemistry was observed in the allene products. This effect was examined further, and epimerisation of the allene product was found to be the origin of the loss of stereochemistry. Evidence for the species likely responsible for this epimerisation is presented. The serendipitous formation of tetrahydrofurans (THFs) from propargylic 7-membered cyclic carbonates prompted an in-depth examination of this reactivity, as described in Chapter 3. The reaction of these cyclic carbonates was rendered stereoselective and the stereochemical outcome of the reaction elucidated. The methodology was extended to propargylic acyclic carbonates which allowed the formation of tetrahydropyrans (THPs). The effect of ring-size and substituents on the cyclisations was examined, culminating in the formation of two rings in a single step from diol-containing bis-carbonates. Chapter 4 describes the extension of this methodology to the formation of azacyclic products. This built upon foundation work conducted by a Part II student within the group, and further improved the selectivity of the reaction. Two diverse azacyclic skeletons could be formed from the same substrate by the employment of different bidentate phosphine ligands, and a variety of substrates were examined under these conditions. Chapter 5 draws general conclusions and sets out possible future directions for the methodology, and full experimental details are outlined in Chapter 6.

This thesis is concerned with the application of the conjugate addition of functionalised lithium amides in the asymmetric syntheses of (−)-morphine and all members of the homalium alkaloids. Chapter 1 introduces the conjugate addition reaction as an important bond forming reaction, and explores its utility in the asymmetric synthesis of a variety of natural products. The conjugate addition of secondary lithium amides derived from α-methylbenzylamine is discussed, along with its application to the asymmetric synthesis of alkaloids. Chapter 2 describes two distinct attempts towards the asymmetric synthesis of (−)-morphine, both reliant upon the lithium amide conjugate addition and an intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction to set the five required stereogenic centres. The use of the novel and highly functionalised reagent lithium (R)-N-[2′-(7-methoxybenzofuran-3-yl)ethyl]-N-(α-methylbenzyl)amide and its derivatives is reported. Chapter 3 focuses on the use of the novel reagent lithium (R)-N-(3-chloroprop-1-yl)-N-(α-methylbenzyl)amide and its derivatives in the asymmetric synthesis of two of the homalium alkaloids, (−)-(S,S)-homaline and (−)-(R,R)-hopromine, culminating in the most efficient syntheses of these alkaloids to date. Further, a sample of the (4′R,4′′S)-diastereoisomer of hopromine was synthesised, serving to confirm the proposed absolute configuration within natural (−)-(R,R)-hopromine. Chapter 4 extends the methodology developed in chapter 3 to the asymmetric synthesis of all possible diastereoisomers of the remaining homalium alkaloids, (−)-hopromalinol and (−)-hoprominol. These syntheses were used to propose the absolute configurations within these alkaloids, and therefore represented the first asymmetric syntheses of natural (−)-(4′S,4″R,2‴R)-hopromalinol and (−)-(R,R,R)-hoprominol. Chapter 5 contains full experimental procedures and characterisation data for all compounds synthesised in Chapters 2, 3 and 4.

This thesis is concerned with the development of transannular iodoamination methodology for the synthesis of pyrrolizidine, indolizidine and tropane alkaloids. Chapter 1 introduces the concept of a ‘transannular cyclisation’ and outlines the utility of such cyclisations in the synthesis of a range of [x.y.z]-azabicyclic alkaloids. Chapter 2 describes the development of a three step lithium amide conjugate addition, ring-closing metathesis and transannular iodoamination protocol for the preparation of the pyrrolizidine scaffold ([3.3.0]-azabicycle). Cyclisation of a hexahydroazocine occurs with concomitant N-debenzylation to give a single diastereoisomer of the corresponding C(7)-iodopyrrolizidine product, which is then elaborated to the known pyrrolizidine, (−)-7a-epi-hyacinthacine A1. Chapter 3 delineates an extension of the methodology described in Chapter 2, and an investigation into accessing alternate diastereoisomeric pyrrolizidine scaffolds via the transannular iodoamination process. These studies culminate in the synthesis of two pyrrolizidine alkaloids, (−)-hyacinthacine A1 and (−)-hyacinthacine A2. Chapter 4 details investigations into the further elaboration of the C(7)-iodopyrrolizidine scaffold synthesised in Chapter 2. A nucleophilic displacement reaction with azide leads to the synthesis of novel 7-deoxy-7-aminoalexine analogues, whilst radical-mediated substitution of the iodide by oxygen allows the synthesis and isolation of the pyrrolizidine alkaloid (−)-1-epi-alexine. Chapter 5 outlines the development of the transannular iodoamination reaction to facilitate the synthesis of the tropane architecture ([3.2.1]-azabicycle). A tandem lithium amide conjugate addition and aldol reaction sequence is followed by ring-closing metathesis to give the required aminocycloheptene. Subsequent treatment with iodine results in transannular cyclisation to give a single iodotropane product which, following elaboration culminates in the synthesis of (+)-pseudococaine. Chapter 6 contains full experimental procedures and characterisation data for all compounds synthesised in Chapters 2, 3, 4 and 5.

This thesis is divided into three main results chapters that reflect the path my research took. In the first results chapter, the first organocatalyst for the carbonyl-ene reaction was discovered and found to give high conversion using 1,3-bis(3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)thiourea. Various carbonyl and alkene precursors were examined in the ene reaction in both catalysed and uncatalysed reactions. It was found that ene reactions using fluoral and ethyl trifluoropyruvate give higher rates of reaction when compared to other carbonyl compounds. A novel enantiopure thiourea was synthesised and the ene reaction was catalysed enantioselectively to 33% e.e. In an attempt to catalyse the reaction to a further extent a new thiourea bonded to a P(=S)R2 group was developed. However, the intramolecular hydrogen bonding of this catalyst was thought to be so strong that this it did not catalyse the reaction. The synthesis of a chiral phosphoric acid was achieved but this was an unsuccessful catalyst in the ene reaction. Two component achiral thiourea and chiral acids were also examined in the ene and Mannich-type reaction. The new easily synthesised thiourea for this reaction has an interesting intermolecular hydrogen bonding coordination in the solid state. Asymmetric fluorination of ketoesters using palladium is a dynamic kinetic resolution. In the 2nd chapter cationic palladium complexes were synthesised and used to determine the optimum parameters for bidentate ligands in this reaction. Four carbon chain phosphines were found to give the highest conversion for this reaction among those ligands tested such as 1,4-bisdiphenylphosphinobutane (bite angle 99º). A new bis-phosphinous amide chiral ligand was developed with a bite angle of 96.7º. The dichloropalladium complex of this phosphine was isolated and structurally characterised. The use of the palladium complex in asymmetric fluorination was attempted however this was found to be unsuccessful. Mechanistic studies reveal that the formation of the desired cationic catalyst did not occur under conditions shown to work well for other palladium phosphine complexes. The ligand was investigated further in hydrogenation reactions. The phosphinous amide was protected as its borane and was used in the rhodium catalysed hydrogenation of alkenes to give high conversion and up to 93% e.e. The borane protected phosphinous amide was also found to catalyse the hydrogenation of acetophenone using copper complexes with up to 84% e.e for the hydrogenation of acetophenone, although conversion was quite low.

The hydroformylation of unfunctionalised olefins (such as prop-1-ene and oct-1-ene) is an extremely valuable process and is practised on a massive scale industrially in the synthesis of commodity chemicals. In fact, it represents the worlds largest scale application of homogeneous catalysis. As a result, the majority of research carried out on this reaction has been in the study of catalytic systems which provide high rates and selectivity for the production of linear aldehydes from terminal unfunctionalised olefins, with the products finding use in the production of plasticizers and detergents. Asymmetric hydroformylation, the enantioselective variant of this reaction is extremely attractive, as low cost or easily accessible olefins are transformed into highly versatile value-added enantioenriched aldehydes in a single step. However synthetic organic chemists interested in the synthesis of fine chemicals, both in academia and industry, have been slow to adopt this attractive protocol for the production of chiral aldehydes. This is mainly due to the fact that in the past catalysts for this reaction exhibited low activity and/or selectivity in this process. However, the last two decades have seen major advances, mainly in the development of highly effective chiral ligands, and with these developments the time has come to tackle the vastly under-explored area of asymmetric hydroformylation of more functionalised olefins. To set the scene for the research carried out during this project a brief introduction will be given which highlights the historical development of highly efficient catalysts for the hydroformylation of olefins. This will be accompanied by some examples of the use of this methodology in the synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant compounds. It should become apparent from the introduction that the asymmetric hydroformylation of functionalised olefins and in particular nitrogen containing olefins, has received very little attention despite the fact that over half of all medicinal compounds contain at least one nitrogen containing functional group. Firstly we describe hydroformylation as a useful alternative to the classical synthesis of a delicate chiral building block, namely α-formyl amides. These compounds, traditionally only available through multi-step synthetic procedures from enantiopure starting materials, have been accessed by asymmetric hydroformylation of readily accessible and in some cases commercially available acrylamides. By judicious choice of reaction conditions and selection of the appropriately active chiral ligand enantioenriched α-formyl amides (e.e. up to 82%) were produced in high yield. A comparison is made between the classical route and the hydroformylation route to illustrate the potential of this efficient transformation. We have studied the hydroformylation of enamides, a much under-studied substrate class in hydroformylation and developed knowledge of how some more functionalised 1,1- and 1-2-subtituted olefinic amides react under hydroformylation conditions. This research illustrates the work still to be done in terms of development of more active and selective catalysts for this reaction but despite limitations we developed a potential route to gamma amino aldehyde derivatives which could be used in turn in the synthesis of physiologically important gamma amino butyric acid (GABA) derivatives. We provide an example of the highly efficient and selective asymmetric hydroformylation of a bicyclic olefinic lactam, which is of industrial importance in the synthesis of carbocyclic nucleosides. We demonstrate the efficiency of this synthetic methodology by synthesising the central pharmacophore of a potent anti- HSV-1 (herpes simplex virus) carbocyclic nucleoside via a hydroformylationreduction protocol. The classical synthesis of this pharmacophore involves nine synthetic transformations to produce racemic material, whereas the hydroformylationreduction protocol produces highly enantioenriched material in just two steps. We also demonstrate some downstream chemistry of the aldehyde products showcasing the synthetic versatility of the aldehyde functionality in the production of a variety of functionalised cyclopentanes. Finally the synthesis and catalytic testing of a group of novel phosphine-phosphite ligands for use in asymmetric hydroformylation is described, one of which produces unprecedented regioselectivity and state of the art enantioselectivity in the asymmetric hydroformylation of styrene. Highly selective asymmetric hydroformylation of the other two ‘model substrates' in this reaction namely, vinyl acetate and allyl cyanide is also achieved. Having shown high activity and selectivity over these ‘model substrates' this ligand takes its place among the small group of highly active and selective ligands available for asymmetric hydroformylation and may also help to broaden the substrate scope of this efficient and atom-economic transformation.

Tertiary thiols are a synthetically challenging class of compounds to prepare asymmetrically. The few reported methods for preparing these species require restrictive functionality to be incorporated into the products or are limited to employing simple carbon electrophiles. This thesis details investigations into the lithiation of N-aryl thiocarbamates. A stereoselective intramolecular arylation within lithiated thiocarbamates has been developed allowing the construction of quaternary stereocentres next to sulfur. Simple deprotection allows the isolation of enantiomerically pure tertiary thiols. A procedure for aryl migration within benzylic thiocarbamates has been developed and optimised. Rearrangement occurs in good yield and excellent stereoselectivity in a wide range of thiocarbamate substrates. Various substitution patterns are tolerated on the migrating aryl ring, the benzylic aryl ring and on the benzylic carbon centre. Extension of this methodology has incorporated an asymmetric alkylation of achiral benzylic thiocarbamates as a method of preparing aryl migration substrates. This allows the asymmetric synthesis of tertiary thiols in 2 steps from simple achiral precursors. Aryl migration has also been found to occur in lithiated allylic thiocarbamates with high stereospecificity, allowing preparation of a wider range of tertiary thiols.

This thesis is concerned with the asymmetric conjugate addition reactions of a range of chiral nucloeophiles. Chapter 1 introduces the conjugate addition reaction as a valuable carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bond forming reaction in organic chemistry, and explores the asymmet- ric conjugate addition of a range of chiral and achiral carbon and nitrogen nucleophiles to a range of acceptors. Chapter 2 explores the use of the N-benzyl-N-(α-methylbenzyl)amino group as a chi- ral auxiliary, by employing the attempted conjugate additions of both N-benzyl-N-(α- methylbenzyl)hydrazine and N -benzyl-N -(α-methylbenzyl)hydroxylamine as chiral ammo- nia and water equivalents respectively. Chapter 3 describes the asymmetric and stereoselective preparation of a range of 4,4- disubstituted isoxazolidin-5-ones from the conjugate addition of lithium (S)-N-tert-butyl- dimethylsilyloxy-N -(α-methylbenzyl)amide. The isoxazolidin-5-ones are then globally de- protected via hydrogenolysis, giving rise to the corresponding β2,2,3-amino acids. Chapter 4 focuses on the development of a protocol to effect the conjugate addition of a chiral aniline equivalent. The scope of the reaction is delineated by varying both the nu- cleophile and the α,β-unsaturated ester. Finally, cyclisation of the β-N-arylamino esters to the corresponding tetrahydroquinolines is explored, and an application to the synthesis of the natural product (−)-angustureine is presented. Chapter 5 contains full experimental procedures and characterisation data for all com- pounds synthesised in Chapters 2, 3 and 4.

Introduction: The introduction provides a survey of the natural product and pharmaceutical targets accessible from dihydropyridines and dihydropyridones as well as an overview of previous work carried out towards the synthesis of these valuable intermediates. The mechanism, scope and limitations of the various approaches are covered, along with the goals of this project. Results and Discussion: A Regioselective Route to Dihydropyridones. The regioselective addition of nucleophiles to a range of disubstituted pyridinium salts has been achieved, with selectivity determined by hard/soft factors. Certain nucleophiles can be added with complete regioselectivity to either C-2 or C-6 of these salts, depending on the conditions employed. Addition at C-2 allows the generation of a quaternary centre in high yield. The conditions discovered can be applied to pyridinium salts with different substitution patterns and an effective procedure has been developed for the removal of the nitrogen protecting group post reduction. The Preparation of Enantiopure Dihydropyridones.After unsuccessful attempts to find a reagent-controlled asymmetric synthesis of dihydropyridones, a highly diastereoselective and non-chiral auxiliary based substrate-controlled procedure has been developed. By prompting an intramolecular hydride migration from a secondary silyl ether onto the pyridinium core, the corresponding dihydropyridones are available in high yield, with the diastereoselectivity being controlled by the minimization of 1,3-allylic strain between the N-allyl group and the hydride-bearing side chain. Thus, an enantiopure pyridyl alcohol may be converted to the corresponding dihydropyridone without loss of enantiomeric purity. Furthermore, the dihydropyridones can be easily converted to complex bicyclic systems via a ring closing metathesis reaction. Experimental: Full experimental procedures and spectroscopic characterization of compounds are provided.

Development of chiral ligands capable of achieving high selectivity for various asymmetric catalytic reactions has been an important aim of both academia and industry. Nature is capable to selectively catalyze chemical reactions by using enzymes. An ideal catalyst would combine the selectivity of nature and the reactivity of man-made catalysts based on transition metal complexes. The two biomolecules chosen to achieve this are DNA and PNA. DNA is a chiral molecule with high binding selectivity towards small molecules and has been used as ligand for asymmetric catalysis. PNA is an achiral structural analogue of DNA that can form duplexes with DNA. To produce DNA based catalysts it is necessary to introduce a ligand such as a phosphine that will strongly coordinate to transition metals. To achieve this, functionalized linkers need to be introduced into a DNA strand, to covalently couple the phosphine moiety at a specific location of the DNA strand. Amine linkers and several modified nucleosides have been prepared containing thiol and amine functionalities and some of them were successfully introduced into DNA strands to function as linkers for the introduction of phosphine functionalities. Those strands were purified and an adequate procedure was developed for their analysis by MALDI-TOF. Diphenylphosphino carboxylic acids have been coupled to amine modified deoxyuridines by amide bond formation. The same coupling method has been used for oligonucleotides. DNA strands containing phosphine moieties were characterized by MALDI-TOF and ³¹P NMR spectrometry. ³¹P NMR spectroscopy was also used to confirm coordination of a phosphine modified 15-mer to [PdCl(η³-allyl)]₂. The phosphine modified nucleobases were also tested as ligands for palladium catalyzed allylic alkylation and allylic amination with diphenylallyl acetate as substrate although no enantioselectivity was observed. A PNA monomer was also modified with a bidentate sulfur protected phosphine and successfully introduced into a short PNA strand using manual solid phase synthesis. This strand was analyzed by MALDI-TOF. Moreover, preliminary studies were performed to test the use of aptamers as scaffolds for targets containing a ligand functionality.

This thesis describes the catalytic asymmetric epoxidation of olefins mediated by chiral iminum salts. The first chapter introduces some of the most novel and effective catalytic asymmetric methods for preparing chiral oxiranes. The second chapter is divided into three sections. The first section of chapter two is dedicated to our efforts to develop new aqueous oxidative conditions using both hydrogen peroxide and sodium hypochlorite as efficient, green oxidants that remove the temperature boundaries observed with the use of Oxone® as the stoichiometric oxidant. A wider range of available temperatures was examined allowing optimization of both oxidative systems. Ethereal hydrogen peroxide was observed to mediate asymmetric epoxidation within an acetonitrile monophasic co-solvent system giving enantioselectivities of up to 56%. When sodium hypochlorite was used in a biphasic solvent system in conjunction with dichloromethane; it was observed to mediate oxidation of the substrate alkenes in up to 71% ee. The second and third sections of chapter two are dedicated to our efforts to synthesize chiral iminium salts as catalysts for asymmetric epoxidation based on a biphenyl azepinium salt catalyst structure. From previous work within the Page group, the asymmetric synthesis and subsequent defined stereochemistry of a chiral carbon atom α to the iminium nitrogen atom was shown to have significant effect on the enantiocontrol of epoxidation using the iminium salt catalyst. Work was completed on biphenyl azepinium salt catalysts, inserting an alkyl or aryl Grignard reagent into the iminium bond using a pre-defined dioxane unit as a chiral auxiliary. Oxidation of the subsequent azepine gave a single diastereoisomerically pure azepinium salt. The methyl analogue of this sub-family of azepinium catalysts has been shown to give up to 81% ee for epoxidation of 1-phenylcyclohexene, furthermore, the binaphthalene azepinium salt with an additional methyl group was also synthesized and was shown to give up to 93% for epoxidation of 1-phenylcyclohexene. Continuation of the substitution α to the nitrogen atom gave rise to an interesting tetracyclic (biphenyl) azepinum salt catalyst. Construction of an asymmetric oxazolidine ring unit encapsulating the azepinium nitrogen and one of the methylene carbon atoms was achieved. In doing so two chiral centres α to the nitrogen atom were generated. The azepinium chiral carbon atom was populated by an addition methyl group with variation in the substitution on the oxazolidine chiral carbon atom. The benzyl analogue of this sub-family of tetracyclic azepinium catalysts has shown to give up to 79% ee for epoxidation 1-phenylcyclohexene. The third chapter is the experimental section and is dedicated to the methods of synthesis and characterization of the compounds mentioned in the previous chapter. X-ray reports regarding the crystallographic analysis of the structures presented in chapter two are provided in appendix A. Appendix B contains the analytical spectra for the determination of enantiomeric excess of the epoxides.

The behaviour of chiral 1,3-dioxolan-4-ones, derived from reaction of mandelic and lactic acid with pivalaldehyde, as chiral acyl anion equivalents has been examined. Addition of the corresponding 5-anions to a substituted nitrostyrene and to butenolide was achieved and the structure and stereochemistry of the adducts established by X-ray crystallography. Fragmentation under flash vacuum pyrolysis (FVP) conditions occurred in the expected way (loss of Bu([superscript]t)CHO and CO) in the latter case, but in the former reductive cyclisation was used to generate functionalised lactams. An unexpected reaction of a dioxolanone anion with the dioxolanone to afford an aldol-like dimer was observed in one case. Attempts to extend the range of dioxolanones by using amino acid-derived α-hydroxy acids met with limited success. Only the 5-benzyl compound derived from phenylalanine was obtained in reasonable yield and an attempt to alkylate it led again to aldol-like dimerisation. Cycloaddition to the double bond of 2-t-butyl-5-methylene-1,3-dioxolan-4-one was used to gain access to a range of novel spiro bicyclic and polycyclic systems and fragmentation of these was expected to provide products resulting from a chiral ketene equivalent. While the epoxide derived from the cyclopentadiene Diels Alder adduct did behave in this way to give the chiral ketone in high e.e., the corresponding aziridine underwent unexpected isomerisation pointing to a stepwise fragmentation mechanism of possible general applicability in these systems. Adducts were also formed with tetracyclone and 1,3-diphenylisobenzofuran and an interesting pattern of exo/endo selectivity was observed in these cases. With tetrachlorothiophene dioxide the adduct again fragmented in an unexpected way to give tetrachlorobenzoic acid, providing further support for the intermediacy of an oxonium carboxylate species. 1,3-Dipolar cycloaddition to 2-t-butyl-5-methylene-1,3-dioxolan-4-one was achieved for the first time and a range of adducts containing novel spiro heterocyclic ring systems derived from nitrile oxides, nitrones and diazo compounds were obtained and characterised. The regiochemistry of addition as well as the relative and absolute stereochemistry was demonstrated by X-ray structures of three adducts. Upon pyrolysis some of these compounds unexpectedly lost Bu([superscript]t)CHO and CO2 to give carbene-derived products, including a β-lactam in one case. Cycloaddition reactions of the achiral 2,2-dimethyl-5-methylene-1,3-dioxolan-4-one were also briefly studied.

Direct generation of enantioenriched mono-α-alkylated aldehydes by intermolecular nucleophilic substitution is a general and long-standing problem in synthesis, and is of importance due to the diverse reactions such aldehydes undergo for introducing asymmetry into molecules. The work described in this thesis initially details the development of the first lithium amide capable of efficiently converting terminal epoxide into enamine functionality, where the latter also demonstrates effective C-alkylation activity. Not only addition to Michael acceptors, but more notably substitution using activated organohalides (α-bromoacetates, benzyl, allyl and propargyl bromide) gave the corresponding α-substituted aldehydes in good to excellent yields. Alkylation with propargyl bromide yielded only the propargyl-substituted aldehyde with none of the corresponding allene observed; this result shows that N-alkylation followed by [3,3] sigmatropic rearrangement is not occuring. Importantly, a range of short-, longer-chain and secondary unactivated alkyl iodides also proved viable. Significantly, with chiral lithium amides, the corresponding chiral enamines could be alkylated with strongly electrophilic benzyl, allyl and propargyl (no allene seen) bromides in very good yields, and with short chain alkyl iodides – MeI and EtI in satisfactory yields, to provide the first direct access to α-alkylated aldehydes with high asymmetric induction by intermolecular nucleophilic substitution.

This thesis described investigations into the synthesis and reactions of chiral monophosphines, in five chapters. Chapter 1 introduces asymmetric catalysis, Chapter 2 and 3 describe the synthesis of enantiomerically pure monophosphine via an oxide and borane route respectively. Chapter 4 describes the organometallic reactions of these monophosphines and Chapter 5 contains experimental details of the reactions. Chapter 1 describes the importance of chirality and significant asymmetric processes. The literature methods of producing homochiral monophosphines are detailed. Chapter 2 describes the synthesis of enantiomerically enriched monophosphine oxides. Diastereomerically pure (2R, 4S, 5R)-2-chloro-5-phenyl-3,4-dimethyl-1,3,2-oxazaphospholidine was prepared from PCl3 and (-)-ephedrine. This compound was reacted with 2-adamantyl magnesium bromide to afford (2R, 4S, 5R) and (2S, 4S, 5R)-3,4-dimethyl-2-2-adamantyl-5-phenyl-1,3,2-oxazaphospholidin-2-oxide after oxidation with tBuOOH. An X-ray crystal structure was obtained of the RP diastereoisomer and a detailed NMR study carried out on the SP diastereoisomer. The RP diastereoisomer was reacted with 2-methoxyphenylmagnesium bromide to give RP-N-methyl-N-(1S,2S)-(1-methyl-2-hydroxy-2-phenyl)-ethyl-P-(2-methoxyphenyl)-P-(2-adamantyl)phosphinamide in 68% yield and 95% d.e. The ephedrinyl residue was replaced by O-methyl under acid catalysis with inversion of configuration and with >85% e.e. Displacement of the methoxy group using phenyl lithium occurred with inversion of configuration to give the corresponding phosphine oxide in 65% e.e., which could be reduced under forcing conditions using polymethylhydrosiloxane in the presence of Ti(OiPr)4. Chapter 3 describes the synthesis of enantiomerically enriched monophosphines via phosphine borane complexes. Diastereomerically pure (2R, 4S, 5R)-2,5-diphenyl-3,4-dimethyl-1,3,2-oxazaphospholidine borane was prepared directly from PhPCl2 and (-)-ephedrine, followed by oxidation with BH3.Me2S. This compound reacted regiospecifically with ortho-anisyl lithium to afford the product formed by P-O cleavage with >96% d.e. and with retention of configuration at phosphorus. The ephedrinyl residue was replaced by O-methyl under acid conditions with inversion of configuration and with >98% e.e. Ferrocenyl, 1-adamantyl and tert-butyl lithium reagents displaced the methoxy group with inversion of configuration and with >92% e.e., as determined by 1H NMR methods. The phosphine borane complexes were then reduced quantitatively with Et2NH with retention of configuration and with >98% e.e. Chapter 4 describes the synthesis of indium and rhodium complexes of (S)-t-butyl-(2-methoxyphenyl)-phenyl phosphine and (S)-ferrocenyl-(2-methoxyphenyl)-phenyl phosphine. The iridium complexes are shown to reduce a range of prochiral olefins, including Z-methyl-2-acetylamino-3-phenylpropenoate (MAC) in up to 19% e.e. The di-(R,R)-(ferrocenyl-(2-methoxyphenyl)-phenyl phosphine) rhodium complex is more selective, reducing MAC in 54% e.e., while the rhodium complex of (S)-t-butyl-(2-methoxyphenyl)-phenyl phosphine reduces MAC in 24% e.e.