Rhodium-catalyzed asymmetric arylation of β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoamides for the construction of nonracemic γ,γ-diarylcarbonyl compounds.

A highly regio- and enantioselective rhodium-catalyzed 1,4-addition of arylboronic acids to β,γ-unsaturated α-ketoamides using a simple new chiral sulfinylphosphine ligand is described. This transformation provides an attractive approach to construct chiral nonracemic γ,γ-diarylsubstituted carbonyl compounds, as exemplified in the concise syntheses of sertraline and tetrahydroquinoline-2-carboxylamide.