The development of a new method for the synthesis of beta-lactams will be undertaken. This approach involves the palladium-catalyzed asymmetric carbonylation of aryl-and vinylaziridines. Both the precursor aziridines and the chiral catalyst systems are accessible via exiting methodology. The proposal outlines the application of mechanistic studies, the results of which will be utilized in the optimization of the technique in terms of the yield, turnover numbers, turnover frequency, and extent of asymmetric induction. The beta-lactam moeity is present in a large class of antibiotic agents. The continued observation of novel forms of bacterial resistances demands new methods for the construction of the beta-lactam unit in homochiral form, and the approach proposed herein constitutes a powerful, flexible, and useful strategy to this end.
