Synthesis of Bicyclic Hemiacetals Catalyzed by Unnatural Densely Substituted gamma-Dipeptides

The asymmetric synthesis of bicyclic highly substituted tetrahydropyrans is described. The reaction is catalyzed by unnatural gamma-dipeptides based on densely substituted L- and D- proline derivatives. This organocatalytic one-pot reaction takes place among a ketone, a nitroalkene, and an aldehyde to yield an octahydro-2H-chromene scaffold. Monomeric species, from which the corresponding gamma-dipeptides are synthesized, cannot catalyze the reaction, thus confirming the emergent nature of the catalytic behavior of these dimeric species.