A general and efficient method for the synthesis of oxazolidin‐2‐ones and imidazolidin‐2‐ones directly from 1,3‐diols and 3‐amino alcohols has been developed using the same reagent combination of iodobenzene dichloride (PhICl2) and sodium azide (NaN3).
An efficient route to 4‐cyanoquinolines via a palladium‐catalyzed cyanative reaction of 2‐alkynylbenzaldimines with isocyanides has been developed. The transformation proceeds through 6‐endo cyclization, isocyanide insertion, and cyanation. 4‐Amidylisoquinolines can be generated as well if water is involved in the reaction.
A method for copper‐catalyzed aryltrifluoromethylation of N‐phenylcinnamamides is reported. This method provides a straightforward route to a variety of CF3‐containing 3,4‐dihydroquinolin‐2(1 H)‐ones with excellent regioselectivity and diastereoselectivity.
A divergent synthesis of cyclitol derivatives has been developed utilizing an N‐heterocyclic carbene‐catalyzed benzoin‐type cyclization of C2‐symmetrical dialdoses. The resulting inososes are versatile intermediates, which are readily converted into not only inositols but also amino‐, deoxy‐, O‐methyl‐ and C‐methyl‐inositols.
Efficient Ni‐catalyzed direct cross‐couplings of benzylic alcohol derivatives with arylacetonitriles via C O activation are described. Various α‐benzylated arylacetonitriles including those with functional groups can be prepared under mild reaction conditions.
Pentaarylpyridines were conveniently prepared in one step by pentafold Suzuki–Miyaura reactions of pentachloropyridine. Moreover, site selective reactions were performed, leading to various substituted arylpyridines. Pentaarylpyridines were studied in detail by means of DFT calculations and by optical spectroscopy.
A simple N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) derived from 1‐methyl‐3‐ethylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate was found to be an efficient ligand for a range of copper‐catalyzed cross‐coupling reactions, leading to the formation of aromatic ethers and thioethers.
Single phase rutile titania supported gold nanoparticles (Au/TiO2‐R) are found to be efficient and versatile catalysts for chemo‐ and regioselective transfer hydrogenation of quinoline derivatives to 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroquinolines (THQs) using formic acid (FA) as a safe and convenient hydrogen source under mild conditions. The activity and chemoselectivity of the Au/TiO2‐R catalyst towards THQs is excellent, with a substrate to catalyst ratio (S/C) of 1000 being feasible. Furthermore, a straightforward and selective route to N‐formyltetrahydroquinolines (FTHQ) directly from quinoline compounds and FA by one‐pot, gold‐catalyzed reductive N‐formylation protocol is also established.
Copper chloride‐catalyzed aerobic oxidative annulation of N‐furfuryl‐β‐enaminones provides access to polysubstituted pyrroles and indoles. This protocol involves an unprecedented copper chloride‐catalyzed oxidative chlorination of furan and pyrrole rings with oxygen as the terminal oxidant.
The catalytic asymmetric [4+2] annulations of isatins with but‐3‐yn‐2‐one catalyzed by the Cinchona alkaloids‐derived oragnocatalyst (DHQD)2PHAL have been developed in the presence of 3.0 equivalents of D ‐diethyl tartrate in the mixed solvent (diphenyl ether/diethyl ether=1/1) or a slightly modified one, affording the corresponding substituted spiro[indoline‐3,2′‐pyran]‐2,4′(3′H)‐diones in good to excellent yields with high enantioselectivities under mild conditions.
We present the first organocatalytic asymmetric vinylogous Michael/cyclization reaction of α,α‐dicyanoalkenes with 3‐alkylideneoxindoles. A series of diversely structured spiro‐oxindole skeletons was smoothly delivered with excellent yields and stereoselectivity control (94–99% yields, >20:1 dr and 91 to >99% ee).
An efficient protocol for the copper‐mediated trifluoromethylthiolation of heteroaryl bromides has been achieved using the copper complex (bpy)Cu(SCF3) as trifluoromethylthiolating reagent. This procedure provides a straightforward synthetic method for heteroaryl trifluoromethyl sulfides from readily available, simple starting materials. The reaction demonstrates a broad substrate scope and tolerates a wide array of functional groups, including nitrile, ester, chloro, nitro, or methoxy substituents.
A new transition metal‐free oxidative coupling of unactivated terminal alkenes with aldehydes and hydroperoxides in the presence of 10 mol% potassium tert‐butanolate (t‐BuOK) is described thereby realizing trifunctionalization of alkenes toward 2,3‐epoxy ketones. This method is applicable to a wide range of aldehydes, including aryl and alkyl aldehydes, with excellent functional group tolerance, and provides for the one‐step assembly of 2,3‐epoxy ketones.
The first active aza analogue of narciclasine was synthesized from a pentasubstituted derivative of nicotinic acid. The key features of the synthesis include a halogen dance of bromopyridine and an intramolecular Heck reaction with a conduramine derived chemoenzymatically from bromobenzene. 10‐Aza‐narciclasine was found to have reasonable activity against several cancer cell lines.
An N,N′‐dioxide/zinc bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide complex has been developed as an efficient catalyst for the highly enantioselective Diels–Alder reaction of cyclopentadiene with alkynones. Various 2‐acyl substituted norbornadiene derivatives were obtained in moderate to high yields (up to 99 %) with good enantiomeric excesses (up to 95 %).
This review describes recent progress made in the rapidly developing field of C H bond activation, in particular for syntheses of biaryls. The catalysts presented here provide convenient strategies for the direct arylation of arenes, via single or double C H bond activation, leading to inter‐, and intramolecular carbon‐carbon bond formation. The literature from mid‐2009 to December 2013 has been discussed.
Production of structurally diverse chiral amines via biocatalytic transamination is challenged by severe steric interference in a small active site pocket of ω‐transaminase (ω‐TA). Herein, we demonstrated that structure‐guided remodeling of a large pocket by a single point mutation, instead of excavating the small pocket, afforded desirable alleviation of the steric constraint without deteriorating parental activities toward native substrates. Molecular modeling suggested that the L57 residue of the ω‐TA from Ochrobactrum anthropi acted as a latch that forced bulky substrates to undergo steric interference with the small pocket. Removal of the latch by a L57A substitution allowed relocation of the small pocket and dramatically improved activities toward various arylalkylamines and alkylamines (e.g., 1100‐fold increase in kcat/KM for α‐propylbenzylamine). This approach may provide a facile strategy to broaden the substrate specificity of ω‐TAs.
