Ligand-Controlled C(sp 3 )–H Arylation and Olefination in Synthesis of Unnatural Chiral α–Amino Acids

Abstract

A Palladium 1–2 Punch Methods to replace carbon-hydrogen bonds directly with carbon-carbon bonds offer enticing prospects for streamlining the synthesis of organic compounds. The trouble is that it is hard to select any particular C-H bond and to avoid making complex mixtures of products. He et al. (p. 1216 ) report that a pair of powerful pyrimidine ligands induces a palladium catalyst to add aryl groups selectively to amino acid derivatives. One ligand promotes addition of a single aryl group to the β-carbon center; the other appends a second, potentially different aryl group to the same carbon—all in the same flask.