Ketone-imide versus ketone-oxime reductive cross-coupling promoted by samarium diiodide: new mechanistic insight gained from a failed aminocyclopentitol synthesis.

[reaction: see text] The intramolecular 1,6-ketone/imide reductive coupling promoted by samarium diiodide competes favorably with an alternative 1,5-ketone/oxime ether coupling in a keto-oxime substrate derived from D-glucosamine N-protected with a phthalimido group. This pinacol coupling reaction affords new homochiral alpha-hydroxylactam scaffolds that could be useful in diversity-oriented synthesis. A mechanistic proposal for this reaction that explains the experimental results is supported by DFT quantum-mechanical calculations on model compounds.