Examples of catalytic asymmetric amine synthesis using organic catalysts.

The asymmetric construction of optically active amine compounds is of paramount interest for the chemical industry and academic research. This review describes the use of catalytic asymmetric transformations, such as Mannich-type, Michael, cycloaddition and transfer-hydrogenation reactions using small organic molecules (eg, amino acids, secondary amines, peptides, thioureas and phosphoric acids) as catalysts, for the construction of important compounds for medicinal chemistry that exhibit anticancer, antibiotic or antiviral activity.