New Methods for Asymmetric Carbon-Carbon Bond Formation

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The preparation of functionalized molecules is a central theme in organic synthesis and it is at the core of the related applied sciences such as medicine and biotechnology. A large number of biologically active organic molecules, including several medicinal agents on the market, can exist in two distinct structural forms which are non-superimposable mirror images. These are known as enantiomers. Interestingly, only one of the two possible enantiomers has the desired biological activity whereas the other is either inactive or toxic. Consequently, chemical methods for the preparation of single enantiomers are of great practical significance. The central theme of this proposal is the development of such preparative methods, and these are broadly described as methods for 'asymmetric synthesis' of organic compounds. One of the important methods of making organic molecules involves the joining of small, readily available building blocks by making new bonds between selected carbon atoms in these building blocks. The proposed investigations will examine new methods for making carbon-carbon bonds in such a way that one enantiomer is formed preferentially. Related methods for making carbon-oxygen and carbon-nitrogen bonds will also be studied. The planned research has significant potential to uncover novel advances in asymmetric synthesis and catalysis that will be of wide-ranging and fundamental interest to the synthetic chemistry community. The investigations will provide complementary strategies that are more selective, may have broader scope and are also environmentally sound. The new methods are anticipated to have applications in the preparation of medicinal compounds for the treatment of disease, and in the development of molecules with applications in the health and material sciences.