An Enantioselective Cross-Dehydrogenative Coupling Catalysis Approach to Substituted Tetrahydropyrans

An enantioselective cross-dehydrogenative coupling (CDC) reaction to access tetrahydropyrans has been developed. This process combines in situ Lewis acid activation of a nucleophile in concert with the oxidative formation of a transient oxocarbenium electrophile, leading to a productive and highly enantioselective CDC. These advances represent one of the first successful applications of CDC for the enantioselective couplings of unfunctionalized ethers. This system provides efficient access to valuable tetrahydropyran motifs found in many natural products and bioactive small molecules.