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Updated: Oct 5, 2026

Enzymatic Cascade Reactions for the Synthesis of Chiral Amino Alcohols from L-lysine
Published on: February 16, 2018
Asymmetric total synthesis of (-)-alpha-kainic acid using an enantioselective, metal-promoted ene cyclization
1Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Baker Laboratory, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, USA.
Abstract:
[figure: see text] A short and efficient asymmetric total synthesis of the title compound 1, which is an important neurotransmitter, has been achieved. The synthesis features a metal-promoted, enantioselective ene reaction that provides entry into the kainic acid ring system from very simple precursors. Moreover, the zirconium-mediated Strecker reaction, which represents an outgrowth of earlier amide-to-imine methodology developed in our laboratory, demonstrates remarkable chemoselectivity and stereoselectivity.
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