Magnesium catalyzed [3 + 3] heteroannulation of α-enolic dithioesters with MBH acetate: access to functionalized 3,4-dihydro-2 H -thiopyrans.

Magnesium catalysis proved to be efficient towards [3 + 3] chemo- and diastereoselective heteroannulation employing racemic Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) acetate as the C3 unit and α-enolic dithioester as the C2S1 unit, leading to highly substituted 3,4-dihydro-2 H -thiopyrans in excellent yields. The compatibility with a wide range of functional groups makes this domino formation of C-C and C-S bonds interesting. DFT analyses for the regioselective formation of the intermediate was performed.