Chromium-mediated aldol and homoaldol reactions on solid support directed towards an iterative polyol strategy

Chromium-Reformatsky and chromium-homoaldol reactions run under neutral and mild reaction conditions. They are highly chemoselective, tolerant towards most common functional groups, and are not prone to retroaldol reactions. Initial studies directed to transfer these homogeneous chromium-mediated solution-phase reactions to solid phase are presented. The main objective was to develop a methodology to aid a combinatorial iterative strategy to polyols (polyketides) on solid phase. A general reactivity problem was observed with polystyrene based resins compared to the solution-phase reactions, independent if the electrophilic (aldehyde) or nucleophilic (bromide) end of the polyol chain was supported to the resin. A complicated penetration, or loss of the polar solvent environment after penetration into the resin, might be responsible for the reduced reactivity. Application of either a soluble polystyrene resin or a polystyrene resin with a polar polyethylene glycol tether resulted in improved yields.