Chiral cobalt(II)-salen-catalyzed Michael addition of amines to β-substituted nitroalkenes

Optically active cobalt(II) salen complexes were found to be effective Lewis acid catalysts for the enantioselective Michael addition of O-alkylhydroxylamines to nitroalkenes to afford the corresponding N-alkylhydroxyl-1,2-nitroamines in high yields and with good to high enantioselectivities. This study represents the first example of a transition-metal-catalyzed asymmetric Michael addition of amines to nitroalkenes.