Asymmetric synthesis of α-amino-1,3-dithianes via chiral N-phosphonyl imine-based Umpolung reaction without using chromatography and recrystallization.

A series of α-amino-1,3-dithianes have been synthesized via the asymmetric Umpolung reaction of 2-lithio-1,3-dithianes with chiral N-phosphonyl imines in good chemical yields (up to 82%) and good to excellent diastereoselectivities (>99:1). The manner by which chiral N-phosphonyl imines are slowly added into the solution of 2-lithio-1,3-dithiane was found to be crucial for achieving excellent diastereoselectivity. The current synthesis was proven to follow the GAP chemistry (group-assistant-purification chemistry) process, which avoids traditional purification techniques of chromatography or recrystallization, i.e., the pure chiral α-amino-1,3-dithianes attached with the chiral N-phosphonyl group were readily obtained by washing the solid crude products with hexane or a mixture of hexane-ethyl acetate.