title: Pericyclic reactions in an aqueous molecular flask.
abstract: A self-assembled molecular flask with a nanometer-sized restricted cavity offers a new reaction environment that is quite different from the bulk solution. The self-assembled cage accommodates a pair of hydrophobic molecules to perform unusual Diels-Alder reactions and [2+2] photoadditions of otherwise unreactive aromatic molecules. In this cage, for example, the Diels-Alder reaction of naphthalene proceeds smoothly under mild conditions, and aceanthrylene shows reactivity for both [2+2] and [2+4] cycloadditions via the identical ternary host-guest complex. The observed greatly enhanced reactivity stems from the increased local concentration and pre-organization of the substrate pair within the cage, which reduces the entropic cost and switches the reaction profile from a bimolecular to a pseudo-intramolecular reaction pathway. The reinforced orientation and arrangement of substrate pairs specify regio- and stereo-selectivities of the subsequent reactions in the cavity. Chiral auxiliaries outside the cage create the inner chiral environment and induce asymmetric reactions inside the cage (up to 50% ee).
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, and Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology (CREST), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8656, Japan.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Murase
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujita