Amino acids and amines have been used to catalyze three component hetero-domino Knoevenagel/Diels-Alder/epimerization reactions of readily available various precursor enones (1a-l), aldehydes (2a-p), and 1,3-indandione (3). The reaction provided excellent yields of highly substituted, symmetrical and nonsymmetrical spiro[cyclohexane-1,2'-indan]-1',3',4-triones (5) in a highly diastereoselective...

Saturated carbonyl compounds, such as aldehydes and esters, are basic building blocks for the synthesis of organic molecules and materials. Reactions with carbonyl compounds as substrates primarily occur at the carbonyl carbon atom (as an electrophilic center) or the a-carbon atom (as a prenucleophile). In organocatalysis, several powerful approaches have been developed for the asymmetric funct...

Organocatalysts activate substrates through mild noncovalent and covalent interactions, their cooperative actions at multiple catalytic sites are essential even in intrinsically rapid organic reactions such as intramolecular cyclizations. The enzyme-like system is effective for recognizing specific molecular conformations of substrates, which continually change under reaction conditions, multip...