Asymmetric carbohydroxylation of alkenes via sequential photocatalytic oxo-alkylation and enzymatic reduction

Abstract

Asymmetric carbohydroxylation of alkenes offers an efficient approach to access chiral alcohols, a class of versatile building blocks in pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries, from abundant simple alkenes. Herein we reported a sequential photo-biocatalysis protocol for the asymmetric carbohydroxylation of alkenes, involving a stepwise photocatalytic decarboxylative radical addition/Kornblum oxidation and enzymatic reduction. A series of chiral alcohols with bulky structures were synthesized in up to 75 % isolated yields and 99 % ee from N-hydroxyphthalimide esters and aryl alkenes.