Chiral Palladium(II)-catalyzed asymmetric glyoxylate-Ene reaction: alternative approach to the enantioselective synthesis of alpha-hydroxy esters

An effective chiral palladium catalyst [Pd(CH(3)CN)(2)(S)-Tol-BINAP](SbF(6))(2) (2b) is developed for asymmetric glyoxylate-ene reactions. This palladium dicationic catalyst provides a simple but efficient approach to the asymmetric synthesis of alpha-hydroxy esters in excellent yields with high enantioselectivities at relatively higher reaction temperature (60 degrees C).