Fig. 8: Proposed catalytic cycle.
From: Lewis acid-catalyzed asymmetric reactions of β,γ-unsaturated 2-acyl imidazoles
The in situ formed chiral catalyst [Y*] catalyzes isomerization of E-1a into E/Z-10 in the presence of NEt3, followed by nucleophilic addition of E-1a and protonation to deliver the final product 2a.
