Doctoral thesis

The present doctoral thesis project focuses on the efficient and sustainable preparation of chiral drugs, specifically in the synthesis of chiral amines. Around 40- 45% of drugs in the market contain a chiral amine in their structure. Therefore, the efficient synthesis of these compounds is of vital importance. An ideal methodology for the synthesis of chiral amines is asymmetric hydrogenation. Our laboratory located at the IRB Barcelona has extensive experience in the development of iridium catalysts for asymmetric hydrogenation. The project focuses on the hydrogenation of 3,3-diarylallyl amines, a challenging substrate that poses a significant challenge in the field of asymmetric hydrogenation. The resulting chiral 3,3- diarylpropanamines are important pharmacophores present in various drugs.

In a second stage of the project, we plan to study the synthesis of P-stereogenic ligands, specifically phosphinoquinoline-type ligands. Due to their structural similarity to the original Crabtree catalyst, we anticipate great potential for this new type of catalyst in the asymmetric hydrogenation of alkenes. The effectiveness of these new catalysts will be studied in the hydrogenation of 3,3-diarylallyl amines and other substrates of potential interest.