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Area of Science:

  • Organic Chemistry
  • Catalysis
  • Computational Chemistry

Background:

  • Peptides and foldamers are emerging as effective chiral catalysts for asymmetric transformations.
  • Previously, short helically folded aliphatic oligoureas were shown to catalyze C-C bond formation with high efficiency.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate substrate-catalyst interactions in oligourea-catalyzed conjugate addition reactions.
  • To rationalize the observed chain-length dependence of catalytic activity and selectivity.

Main Methods:

  • Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations were employed.
  • Analysis of substrate-catalyst interactions, including hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions.
  • Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) and Electrostatic Potential (ESP) analyses were performed.

Main Results:

  • The first two urea units of the oligourea are the primary sites for hydrogen bonding with substrates.
  • Catalyst-substrate interactions facilitate close proximity of reactants, promoting conjugate addition.
  • Electrostatic interactions, rather than orbital interactions, dominate molecular recognition.
  • Charge separation within the catalyst, particularly around the initial urea residues, increases with chain length.

Conclusions:

  • Oligourea foldamers effectively catalyze conjugate addition via specific H-bonding interactions involving the first two urea units.
  • Catalyst performance is influenced by chain length due to electrostatic effects and charge distribution.
  • DFT investigations provide insights into the mechanism and design principles for foldamer-based catalysts.