Enantioselective [alpha]-Alkylation of Aldehydes by Photoredox Organocatalysis: Rapid Access to Pharmacophore Fragments from [beta]-Cyanoaldehydes

The combination of photoredox catalysis and enamine catalysis has enabled the development of an enantioselective [alpha]-cyanoalkylation of aldehydes. This synergistic catalysis protocol allows for the coupling of two highly versatile yet orthogonal functionalities, allowing rapid diversification of the oxonitrile products to a wide array of medicinally relevant derivatives and heterocycles. This methodology has also been applied to the total synthesis of the lignan natural product (-)-bursehernin.