Er-Jun Hao, Xiao-Bo Ding, Jing-Ran Shan, Zhixian Wu, Xin Wang, Renxu Cao, Fangyi Jin, K N Houk, Lei Shi
Biaryl frameworks combining axial and multiple central chiralities are highly valuable in synthesis and drug discovery. However, simultaneous construction of axial and vicinal central chiralities faces severe matching/mismatching limitations. Herein, we describe a dual photoredox/nickel-catalytic system for desymmetrization of biaryl dialdehydes. By employing a bisoxazoline ligand bearing bulky adamantylphenyl side arms, its chiral cavity and distal substituent effects work synergistically to achieve high stereoselectivity, furnishing homoallylic alcohols with up to >20:1 dr and 99% ee. DFT calculations demonstrate that stereoselectivity is predominantly governed by a complex network of noncovalent interactions between the ligand and substrate.