Studies on highly regio- and stereoselective selenohydroxylation reaction of 1,2-allenyl phosphine oxides with PhSeCl

The selenohydroxylation of readily available 1,2-allenyl phosphine oxides with PhSeCl in MeCN/H2O afforded 3-hydroxy-2-phenylselanyl-1(E)-alkenyl diphenyl phosphine oxides in good yields with very high regio- and stereoselectivities including the high efficiency of the axial chirality transfer. The E-stereoselectivity is believed to be determined by the neighboring group participation effect of the diphenyl phosphine oxide functionality.