Water promoted enantioselective aldol Reaction by proline-cholesterol and -diosgenin based amphiphilic organocatalysts

A series of proline-cholesterol and -diosgenin based amphiphilic organocatalysts were developed for the first time, and their catalytic activities for the enantioselective aldol reaction were investigated. The results indicated that water can significantly enhance the activity and stereoselectivity of the transformation via micelle formation. TEM and AFM analysis demonstrated that the diameter of the micelle particles ranged from 200 to 800 nm.