Herein, we report our preliminary results concerning the first promising asymmetric synthesis of highly functionalized 2-oxospiro-[indole-3,4'-(1',4'-dihydropyridine)] via the reaction of an enamine with isatylidene malononitrile derivatives in the presence of a chiral base organocatalyst. The moderate, but promising, enantioselectivity observed (30%-58% ee (enantiomeric excess)) opens the door to a new area of research for the asymmetric construction of these appealing spirooxindole skeletons, whose enantioselective syntheses are still very limited.
Keywords: 1,4-dihydropyridine; 2-oxospiro-[indole-3,4′- (1′,4′-dihydropyridine)]; chiral base; enamine; enantioselective; isatin; isatylidene malononitrile; organocatalysis; spirooxindole.