Optically active compounds are widely used in pharmaceuticals, pesticides, liquid crystal materials, etc., and in recent years, the development of efficient synthetic methods thereof has been regarded as important.Even if the structural formula is the same, the action on the living body differs greatly depending on the three-dimensional arrangement of the atoms, so a method (high stereoselective synthesis method) that can selectively synthesize useful substances has been required.

　This time, the research group focused on optically active aziridine compounds that can be used as synthetic raw materials for various pharmaceutical products.Although several methods for synthesizing this aziridine already exist, they have drawbacks such as the need for expensive catalysts and raw materials, so we aimed to develop a simpler and more efficient synthesis method.Then, he devised a method capable of synthesizing aziridine in a highly stereoselective manner by reacting azirine with a nucleophile (a substance that attacks a chemical species rich in electrons to a chemical species lacking electrons).We also developed a new catalyst to enable this reaction, and succeeded in the world's first highly stereoselective synthesis method of aziridine compounds.

　By using the aziridine compound synthesized by this method, cost reduction in the development of pharmaceutical products is expected.In addition, by reacting this aziridine compound with various reactants, it is possible to induce optically active amines, which are also abundant in pharmaceutical products, so it is expected to develop more pharmaceutical products, pesticides, and liquid crystal materials. ..

Paper information:[Angewandte Chemie International Edition] Enantio selective Reaction of 2H-Azirines with Phosphite Using Chiral Bis (imidazoline)-Zn (II) Catalysts