Chiral Spirophosphoric-Acid-Catalyzed Divergent Vinylogous Mannich and aza-Friedel–Crafts Reactions of 2-Methoxyfuran

The first enantioselective vinylogous Mannich reaction is developed using 2-methoxyfuran under chiral spirophosphoric acid catalysis. The strategy involves 4-isoxazoline derivatives as cyclic ketimine surrogates and provides γ-butenolide scaffolds (up to 97% ee and >20:1 dr). The mechanistic investigations suggest that an in situ generated water molecule plays a crucial role in delivering γ-butenolide, while the use of molecular sieves delivers aza-Friedel–Crafts products. The synthetic utility of γ-butenolide is shown toward obtaining piperidone skeleton via a lactone-lactam rearrangement.