Titanium-catalyzed highly stereoselective anti-Markovnikov intermolecular hydroalkoxylation of alkynes to prepare Z-enol ethers

Org Biomol Chem. 2023 Dec 6;21(47):9422-9427. doi: 10.1039/d3ob01514a.

Abstract

Enol ethers are essential synthetic frameworks and widely applied in organic synthesis; however, high regio- and stereo-selective access to enol ethers remains challenging. Herein, we report a titanium-catalyzed stereospecific anti-Markovnikov hydroalkoxylation reaction of alkynes for the synthesis of Z-enol ethers with excellent functional group tolerance and yields. Mechanistic studies showed that the titanium coordinates with the alkyne and then an oxygen anion attacks the π-bond of the alkyne from the backside to provide a trans-oxygen metallation intermediate, which accounts for the high Z-stereoselectivity. Furthermore, Z-enol ethers could be applied as a kind of synthon for late-stage transformations and gram-scale synthesis, which demonstrates their potential value in organic synthesis.