Stereoselective Synthesis of Oxacycles via Ruthenium-Catalyzed Atom-Economic Coupling of Propargyl Alcohols and Michael Acceptors.

Synthesis of β-hydroxyenones and its application toward development of tetrahydro-4-pyran-4-one in an atom-economic fashion is limited. This manuscript describes a ruthenium-catalyzed atom-economic coupling of pent-2-yne-1,5-diols and Michael acceptors as an efficient route for the synthesis of β-hydroxyenones with excellent yields and high regioselectivity. The β-hydroxyenones further undergo a 6- cyclization under acid-catalyzed conditions to deliver the tetrahydro-4-pyran-4-ones with high diastereoselectivity. An intramolecular aldol condensation under mild basic conditions and palladium-catalyzed oxidative aromatization was developed for the synthesis of hexahydro-6-isochromen-6-ones and isochromanols, respectively, from highly substituted tetrahydro-4-pyran-4-ones with excellent yield and diastereoselectivity. Overall, this work demonstrates the synthetic potential toward the synthesis of oxacycles like tetrahydro-4-pyran-4-ones, hexahydro-6-isochromen-6-ones, and isochromanols via an atom-economic catalysis.