A Michael Addition-Asymmetric Transfer Hydrogenation One-Pot Enantioselective Tandem Process for Syntheses of Chiral γ-Secondary Amino Alcohols.

An aza-Michael addition-asymmetric transfer hydrogenation tandem process for preparation of chiral γ-secondary amino alcohols has been developed. This one-pot tandem process involves an aza-Michael addition of aryl-substituted enones and amines to form aryl-substituted γ-secondary amino ketones, followed by a Ru-catalyzed asymmetric transfer hydrogenation to form aryl-substituted γ-secondary amino alcohols. An advantageous feature of this tandem reaction is that it provides various γ-secondary amino alcohols in high yields with high enantioselectivities.