Preparation of enantiomerically pure pyridyl amino acids from serine.

A range of substituted pyridyl amino acids have been prepared by palladium catalysed cross-coupling of serine-derived organozinc reagents with differently substituted halopyridines. Following this procedure a DMAP analogue has been synthesised and used as a building block in the preparation of two related tripeptides, which have been tested as catalysts in the kinetic resolution of trans-2-(N-acetylamino)cyclohexan-1-ol, resulting in modest enantioselectivity.