Ni-catalyzed homoallylation of polyhydroxy n,o-acetals with conjugated dienes promoted by triethylborane.

In the presence of Ni-catalyst and triethylborane, N,O-acetals prepared from glycolaldehyde and glyceraldehyde with primary amines in situ underwent homoallylation with conjugated dienes to provide 2-amino-5-hexenols in high regio- and stereoselectivity. Under similar reaction conditions, N,O-acetals from carbohydrates with primary amines provided the corresponding polyhydroxy-bishomoallylamines in good to reasonable yields.