A two-component, three-molecule cascade reaction between sulfur ylides and 2-hydroxy-β-nitrostyrenes is developed for the efficient and stereoselective synthesis of complex polycyclic alkaloid-like scaffolds. This metal-free protocol proceeds smoothly under mild conditions using readily available materials, affording structurally diverse products in good yields with excellent diastereoselectivity. A plausible mechanism is proposed.
Cen et al. (Mon,) studied this question.