Diastereodivergent Synthesis of (+)‐α‐Conhydrine and (−)‐β‐Conhydrine from a η,γ‐Dibromo‐β‐ketosulfoxide

Abstract

AbstractDiastereodivergent syntheses of the enantiopure hemlock alkaloid (+)‐α‐conhydrine and its diastereomer (−)‐β‐conhydrine are reported. Our approach relies on efficient Crystallization‐Induced Diastereomer Transformation (CIDT) of an epimeric mixture of a η,γ‐dibromo‐β‐ketosulfoxide, optically pure only at the sulfur atom, that provided a stable α‐bromoketone, and diastereoselective β‐ketosulfoxide reduction that led to the corresponding anti and syn‐bromohydrins with high level of asymmetric induction.