A metal-free, mild and chemodivergent transformation involving nitroalkanes has been developed. Under optimized reaction conditions, in the presence of trichlorosilane and a tertiary amine, aliphatic nitroalkanes were selectively converted into amines or nitriles. Furthermore, when chiral β-substituted nitro compounds were reacted, the stereochemical integrity of the stereocenter was maintained and α-functionalized nitriles were obtained with no loss of enantiomeric excess. The methodology was successfully applied to the synthesis of chiral β-cyano esters, α-aryl alkylnitriles, and TBS-protected cyanohydrins, including direct precursors of four active pharmaceutical ingredients (ibuprofen, tembamide, aegeline and denopamine).
Keywords: chiral nitriles; metal-free reactions; nitroalkanes; stereoselectivity; trichlorosilane.
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