Dong Zhenzhen, Yap Glenn P A, Fox Joseph M
Brown Laboratories, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, USA.
J Am Chem Soc. 2007 Sep 26;129(38):11850-3. doi: 10.1021/ja073900p. Epub 2007 Aug 31.
The interconversion between helical diastereomers of nickel-salen-based foldamers can be observed on a NMR time scale. Such complexes provide quantitative information about the propensity of different elements of central chirality to control the absolute sense of folding. trans-Cyclohexane-1,2-diamine-a common component of chiral salen catalysts-is a surprisingly weak director of absolute helicity in nickel-salen foldamers. Implications for asymmetric catalysis are discussed.