Palladium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Decarboxylative Cycloaddition of Vinylethylene Carbonates with Michael Acceptors: Construction of Vicinal Quaternary Stereocenters.

An efficient method for the diastereo- and enantioselective construction of vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenters through palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative cycloaddition of vinylethylene carbonates with activated Michael acceptors was developed. By using a palladium complex generated in situ from [Pd2(dab)3]⋅CHCl3 and a phosphoramidite ligand as a catalyst under mild reaction conditions, the process provides multifunctionalized tetrahydrofurans bearing vicinal all-carbon quaternary stereocenters in high yields with a high level of absolute and relative stereocontrol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]