Enantioselective construction of nitrogen-substituted quaternary carbon centers adjacent to the carbonyl group in the cyclohexane ring: first asymmetric synthesis of anesthetic (S)-ketamine with high selectivity
amino ketone 12. However, the reaction of 2-chlorophenyllithium did not work in which this route was unavailable for the synthesis of 1. Then, an alternative strategy directed toward 1, starting with a compound having 2-chlorophenyl groups in advance, was designed in which the chiralquaternarycarboncenter bearing a nitrogen atom in the ring is created by the enantioselective reduction of the atropisomeric