Paraformaldehyde as Possible Chirality Amplifier

Abstract

Can enantiomerically pure oligooxymethylene helices induce chirality by means of stereoelectronic effects? This question was investigated by use of the model compounds 1, n = 1–4. The asymmetric induction—determined by nucleophilic methylation—occurred in the same direction in all cases. This finding indicates that paraformaldehyde may have been involved in the amplification of chirality during the course of chemical evolution.