Cobalt-catalyzed enantioselective hydroboration of 1,1-disubstituted aryl alkenes

J Am Chem Soc. 2014 Nov 5;136(44):15501-4. doi: 10.1021/ja5093908. Epub 2014 Oct 21.

Abstract

We report the synthesis of cobalt complexes of novel iminopyridine-oxazoline (IPO) ligands and their application to the asymmetric hydroboration of 1,1-disubstituted aryl alkenes. The new catalysts afforded α-alkyl-β-pinacolatoboranes with exclusive regioselectivity in high yields with up to 99.5% ee. Furthermore, we have applied this method to an efficient synthesis of naproxen.