Chirality transfer from guanidinium ylides to 3-alkenyl (or 3-alkynyl) aziridine-2-carboxylates and application to the syntheses of (2R,3S)-3-hydroxyleucinate and D-erythro-sphingosine.

[Reaction: see text]. Reaction of chiral guanidinium ylides with alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes gives 3-(alpha,beta-unsaturated) aziridine-2-carboxylates in high diastereo- and enantioselectivities (up to 93% diastereomeric excess and 98% enantiomeric excess). 3-(1-methylvinyl)- and 3-[(E)-pentadec-1-enyl]aziridine-2-carboxylates were successfully employed to prepare (2R,3S)-3-hydroxyleucinate and d-erythro-sphingosine, respectively.