Strain release in C-H bond activation?

Scalable, Electrochemical Oxidation of Unactivated C-H Bonds

A practical electrochemical oxidation of unactivated C–H bonds is presented. This reaction utilizes a simple redox mediator, quinuclidine, with inexpensive carbon and nickel electrodes to selectively functionalize “deep-seated” methylene and methine moieties. The process exhibits a broad scope and good functional group compatibility. The scalability, as illustrated by a 50 g scale oxidation of sclareolide, bodes well for immediate and widespread adoption.

Iron Complex Catalyzed Selective C-H Bond Oxidation with Broad Substrate Scope

The use of a peroxidase-mimicking Fe complex has been reported on the basis of the biuret-modified TAML macrocyclic ligand framework (Fe-bTAML) as a catalyst to perform selective oxidation of unactivated 3° C-H bonds and activated 2° C-H bonds with low catalyst loading (1 mol %) and high product yield (excellent mass balance) under near-neutral conditions and broad substrate scope (18 substrates which includes arenes, heteroaromatics, and polar functional groups). Aliphatic C-H oxidation of 3° and 2° sites of complex substrates was achieved with predictable selectivity using steric, electronic, and stereoelectronic rules that govern site selectivity, which included oxidation of (+)-artemisinin to (+)-10β-hydroxyartemisinin. Mechanistic studies indicate Fe^V(O) to be the active oxidant during these reactions.

A redox-neutral catechol synthesis

Ubiquitous tyrosinase catalyses the aerobic oxidation of phenols to catechols through the binuclear copper centres. Here, inspired by the Fischer indole synthesis, we report an iridium-catalysed tyrosinase-like approach to catechols, employing an oxyacetamide-directed C–H hydroxylation on phenols. This method achieves one-step, redox-neutral synthesis of catechols with diverse substituent groups under mild conditions. Mechanistic studies confirm that the directing group (DG) oxyacetamide acts as the oxygen source. This strategy has been applied to the synthesis of different important catechols with fluorescent property and bioactivity from the corresponding phenols. Finally, our method also provides a convenient route to ¹⁸O-labelled catechols using ¹⁸O-labelled acetic acid.

Catechols are common structural motifs in bioactive molecules and synthetic building blocks. Here the authors report a method to convert phenol derivatives into catechols via an iridium-catalysed redox-neutral C–H hydroxylation, giving diversely substituted products under mild conditions.

Fine Control over Site and Substrate Selectivity in Hydrogen Atom Transfer-Based Functionalization of Aliphatic C-H Bonds

The selective functionalization of unactivated aliphatic C-H bonds over intrinsically more reactive ones represents an ongoing challenge of synthetic chemistry. Here we show that in hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) from the aliphatic C-H bonds of alkane, ether, alcohol, amide, and amine substrates to the cumyloxyl radical (CumO^•) fine control over site and substrate selectivity is achieved by means of acid-base interactions. Protonation of the amines and metal ion binding to amines and amides strongly deactivates the C-H bonds of these substrates toward HAT to CumO^•, providing a powerful method for selective functionalization of unactivated or intrinsically less reactive C-H bonds. With 5-amino-1-pentanol, site-selectivity has been drastically changed through protonation of the strongly activating NH₂ group, with HAT that shifts to the C-H bonds that are adjacent to the OH group. In the intermolecular selectivity studies, trifluoroacetic acid, Mg(ClO₄)₂, and LiClO₄ have been employed in a orthogonal fashion for selective functionalization of alkane, ether, alcohol, and amide (or amine) substrates in the presence of an amine (or amide) one. Ca(ClO₄)₂, that promotes deactivation of amines and amides by Ca²⁺ binding, offers, moreover, the opportunity to selectively functionalize the C-H bonds of alkane, ether, and alcohol substrates in the presence of both amines and amides.

Unactivated C(sp(3))-H hydroxylation through palladium catalysis with H2O as the oxygen source

A novel palladium catalyzed hydroxylation of unactivated aliphatic C(sp(3))-H bonds was successfully developed. Different from conventional methods, water serves as the hydroxyl group source in the reaction. This new reaction demonstrates good reactivity and broad functional group tolerance. The C-H hydroxylated products can be readily transformed into various highly valuable chemicals via known transformations. Based on experimental and theoretical studies, a mechanism involving the Pd(II)/(IV) pathway is proposed for this hydroxylation reaction.

Readily Accessible Bulky Iron Catalysts exhibiting Site Selectivity in the Oxidation of Steroidal Substrates

Bulky iron complexes are described that catalyze the site-selective oxidation of alkyl C-H bonds with hydrogen peroxide under mild conditions. Steric bulk at the iron center is introduced by appending trialkylsilyl groups at the meta-position of the pyridines in tetradentate aminopyridine ligands, and this effect translates into high product yields, an enhanced preferential oxidation of secondary over tertiary C-H bonds, and the ability to perform site-selective oxidation of methylenic sites in terpenoid and steroidal substrates. Unprecedented site selective oxidation at C6 and C12 methylenic sites in steroidal substrates is shown to be governed by the chirality of the catalysts.

Late-Stage Diversification of Biologically Active Molecules via Chemoenzymatic C-H Functionalization

Engineered variants of rebeccamycin halogenase were used to selectively halogenate a number of biologically active aromatic compounds. Subsequent Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions on the crude extracts of these reactions were used to install aryl, amine, and ether substituents at the halogenation site. This simple, chemoenzymatic method enables non-directed functionalization of C-H bonds on a range of substrates to provide access to derivatives that would be challenging or inefficient to prepare by other means.

Directed Evolution of RebH for Catalyst-Controlled Halogenation of Indole C-H Bonds

RebH variants capable of chlorinating substituted indoles ortho-, meta-, and para- to the indole nitrogen were evolved by directly screening for altered selectivity on deuterium-substituted probe substrates using mass spectrometry. This systematic approach allowed for rapid accumulation of beneficial mutations using simple adaptive walks and should prove generally useful for altering and optimizing the selectivity of C-H functionalization catalysts. Analysis of the beneficial mutations showed that structure-guided selection of active site residues for targeted mutagenesis can be complicated either by activity/selectivity tradeoffs that reduce the possibility of detecting such mutations or by epistatic effects that actually eliminate the benefits of a mutation in certain contexts. As a corollary to this finding, the precise manner in which the beneficial mutations identified led to the observed changes in RebH selectivity is not clear. Docking simulations suggest that tryptamine binds to these variants as tryptophan does to native halogenases, but structural studies will be required to confirm these models and shed light on how particular mutations impact tryptamine binding. Similar directed evolution efforts on other enzymes or artificial metalloenzymes could enable a wide range of C-H functionalization reactions.

Trends in applying C-H oxidation to the total synthesis of natural products

Covering: 2006 to 2015C-H functionalization remains one of the frontier challenges in organic chemistry and drives quite an active area of research. It has recently been applied in various novel strategies for the synthesis of natural products. It can dramatically increase synthetic efficiency when incorporated into retrosynthetic analyses of complex natural products, making it an essential part of current trends in organic synthesis. In this Review, we focus on selected case studies of recent applications of C-H oxidation methodologies in which the C-H bond has been exploited effectively to construct C-O and C-N bonds in natural product syntheses. Examples of syntheses representing different types of C-H oxidation are discussed to illustrate the potential of this approach and inspire future applications.

The medicinal chemist's toolbox for late stage functionalization of drug-like molecules

The advent of modern C–H functionalization chemistries has enabled medicinal chemists to consider a synthetic strategy, late stage functionalization (LSF), which utilizes the C–H bonds of drug leads as points of diversification for generating new analogs.

Enzymatic hydroxylation of an unactivated methylene C-H bond guided by molecular dynamics simulations

The hallmark of enzymes from secondary metabolic pathways is the pairing of powerful reactivity with exquisite site selectivity. The application of these biocatalytic tools in organic synthesis, however, remains under-utilized due to limitations in substrate scope and scalability. Here, we report how the reactivity of a monooxygenase (PikC) from the pikromycin pathway is modified through computationally guided protein and substrate engineering, and applied to the oxidation of unactivated methylene C-H bonds. Molecular dynamics and quantum mechanical calculations were used to develop a predictive model for substrate scope, site selectivity and stereoselectivity of PikC-mediated C-H oxidation. A suite of menthol derivatives was screened computationally and evaluated through in vitro reactions, where each substrate adhered to the predicted models for selectivity and conversion to product. This platform was also expanded beyond menthol-based substrates to the selective hydroxylation of a variety of substrate cores ranging from cyclic to fused bicyclic and bridged bicyclic compounds.

Enhanced Reactivity in Hydrogen Atom Transfer from Tertiary Sites of Cyclohexanes and Decalins via Strain Release: Equatorial C-H Activation vs Axial C-H Deactivation

Absolute rate constants for hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) from cycloalkanes and decalins to the cumyloxyl radical (CumO(•)) were measured by laser flash photolysis. Very similar reactivities were observed for the C-H bonds of cyclopentane and cyclohexane, while the tertiary C-H bond of methylcyclopentane was found to be 6 times more reactive than the tertiary axial C-H bond of methylcyclohexane, pointing toward a certain extent of tertiary axial C-H bond deactivation. Comparison between the cis and trans isomers of 1,2-dimethylcyclohexane, 1,4-dimethylcyclohexane and decalin provides a quantitative evaluation of the role played by strain release in these reactions. kH values for HAT from tertiary equatorial C-H bonds were found to be at least 1 order of magnitude higher than those for HAT from the corresponding tertiary axial C-H bonds (kH(eq)/kH(ax) = 10-14). The higher reactivity of tertiary equatorial C-H bonds was explained in terms of 1,3-diaxial strain release in the HAT transition state. Increase in torsional strain in the HAT transition state accounts instead for tertiary axial C-H bond deactivation. The results are compared with those obtained for the corresponding C-H functionalization reactions by dioxiranes and nonheme metal-oxo species indicating that CumO(•) can represent a convenient model for the reactivity patterns of these oxidants.

Cu(ii)-catalyzed enantioselective oxygen atom transfer from oxaziridine to oxindole derivatives with chiral phenanthroline

In the presence of a Cu(ii) complex of chiral, N,N,O-tridentate phenanthroline ligand (S)-2, asymmetric oxygen atom transfer of oxindole (3) using Davis’ oxaziridine (4) occurred to give the corresponding 3-aryl-3-hydroxy-2-oxindole derivatives (1) with excellent enantioselectivity.

Improving physical properties via C-H oxidation: chemical and enzymatic approaches

Physicochemical properties constitute a key factor for the success of a drug candidate. Whereas many strategies to improve the physicochemical properties of small heterocycle-type leads exist, complex hydrocarbon skeletons are more challenging to derivatize because of the absence of functional groups. A variety of C-H oxidation methods have been explored on the betulin skeleton to improve the solubility of this very bioactive, yet poorly water-soluble, natural product. Capitalizing on the innate reactivity of the molecule, as well as the few molecular handles present on the core, allowed oxidations at different positions across the pentacyclic structure. Enzymatic oxidations afforded several orthogonal oxidations to chemical methods. Solubility measurements showed an enhancement for many of the synthesized compounds.

Recent applications of Cp2TiCl in natural product synthesis

Titanocene(iii)-based approaches have been demonstrated to be useful in the straightforward syntheses of many natural products from readily available starting materials.

Selective intermolecular amination of C-H bonds at tertiary carbon centers

C-H insertion: A method for intermolecular amination of tertiary CH bonds is described that uses limiting amounts of substrate and a convenient phenol-derived nitrogen source. Structure-selectivity and mechanistic studies suggest that steric interaction between the substrate and active oxidant is the principal determinant of product selectivity.

Enhanced reactivity in dioxirane C-H oxidations via strain release: a computational and experimental study

The site selectivities and stereoselectivities of C-H oxidations of substituted cyclohexanes and trans-decalins by dimethyldioxirane (DMDO) were investigated computationally with quantum mechanical density functional theory (DFT). The multiconfiguration CASPT2 method was employed on model systems to establish the preferred mechanism and transition state geometry. The reaction pathway involving a rebound step is established to account for the retention of stereochemistry. The oxidation of sclareolide with dioxirane reagents is reported, including the oxidation by the in situ generated tBu-TFDO, a new dioxirane that better discriminates between C-H bonds on the basis of steric effects. The release of 1,3-diaxial strain in the transition state contributes to the site selectivity and enhanced equatorial C-H bond reactivity for tertiary C-H bonds, a result of the lowering of distortion energy. In addition to this strain release factor, steric and inductive effects contribute to the rates of C-H oxidation by dioxiranes.

An iron catalyst for oxidation of alkyl C-H bonds showing enhanced selectivity for methylenic sites

Many are called but few are chosen: A nonheme iron complex catalyzes the oxidation of alkyl C-H bonds by using H(2)O(2) as the oxidant, showing an enhanced selectivity for secondary over tertiary C-H bonds (see scheme).

First synthesis of (+)-myrrhanol C, an anti-prostate cancer lead

The first synthesis of (+)-myrrhanol C (1), an antitumor polypodane-type bicyclic triterpene with inhibitory activity against androgen insensitive prostate cancers, is reported herein (IC(50) 10 μmolar). A key step in our convergent synthesis of (+)-myrrhanol C and related analogues is the employment of a microbial stereo- and regioselective late stage C-H oxidation. A low-waste and sustainable process has been developed to prepare (+)-myrrhanol C for further biological studies.

Oxidative aliphatic C-H fluorination with fluoride ion catalyzed by a manganese porphyrin

Despite the growing importance of fluorinated organic compounds in drug development, there are no direct protocols for the fluorination of aliphatic C-H bonds using conveniently handled fluoride salts. We have discovered that a manganese porphyrin complex catalyzes alkyl fluorination by fluoride ion under mild conditions in conjunction with stoichiometric oxidation by iodosylbenzene. Simple alkanes, terpenoids, and even steroids were selectively fluorinated at otherwise inaccessible sites in 50 to 60% yield. Decalin was fluorinated predominantly at the C2 and C3 methylene positions. Bornyl acetate was converted to exo-5-fluoro-bornyl acetate, and 5α-androstan-17-one was fluorinated selectively in the A ring. Mechanistic analysis suggests that the regioselectivity for C-H bond cleavage is directed by an oxomanganese(V) catalytic intermediate followed by F delivery via an unusual manganese(IV) fluoride that has been isolated and structurally characterized.

Copper-catalyzed oxaziridine-mediated oxidation of C-H bonds

The highly regio- and chemoselective oxidation of activated C-H bonds has been observed via copper-catalyzed reactions of oxaziridines. The oxidation proceeded with a variety of substrates, primarily comprising allylic and benzylic examples, as well as one example of an otherwise unactivated tertiary C-H bond. The mechanism of the reaction is proposed to involve single-electron transfer to the oxaziridines to generate a copper-bound radical anion, followed by hydrogen atom abstraction and collapse to products, with regeneration of the catalyst by a final single-electron transfer event. The involvement of allylic radical intermediates was supported by a radical-trapping experiment with TEMPO.

Detection and kinetic characterization of a highly reactive heme-thiolate peroxygenase compound I

The extracellular heme-thiolate peroxygenase from Agrocybe aegerita (AaeAPO) has been shown to hydroxylate alkanes and numerous other substrates using hydrogen peroxide as the terminal oxidant. We describe the kinetics of formation and decomposition of AaeAPO compound I upon its reaction with mCPBA. The UV-vis spectral features of AaeAPO-I (361, 694 nm) are similar to those of chloroperoxidase-I and the recently described cytochrome P450-I. The second-order rate constant for AaeAPO-I formation was 1.0 (±0.4) × 10(7) M(-1) s(-1) at pH 5.0, 4 °C. The relatively slow decomposition rate, 1.4 (±0.03) s(-1), allowed the measurement of its reactivity toward a panel of substrates. The observed rate constants, k2', spanned 5 orders of magnitude and correlated linearly with bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) of strong C-H bond substrates with a log k2' vs BDE slope of ∼0.4. However, the hydroxylation rate was insensitive to a C-H BDE below 90 kcal/mol, similar to the behavior of the tert-butoxyl radical. The shape and slope of the Brønsted-Evans-Polanyi plot indicate a symmetrical transition state for the stronger C-H bonds and suggest entropy control of the rate in an early transition state for weaker C-H bonds. The AaeAPO-II Fe(IV)O-H BDE was estimated to be ∼103 kcal/mol. All results support the formation of a highly reactive AaeAPO oxoiron(IV) porphyrin radical cation intermediate that is the active oxygen species in these hydroxylation reactions.

Innate and guided C-H functionalization logic

The combustion of organic matter is perhaps the oldest and most common chemical transformation utilized by mankind. The generation of a C-O bond at the expense of a C-H bond during this process may be considered the most basic form of C-H functionalization. This illustrates the extreme generality of the term "C-H functionalization", because it can describe the conversion of literally any C-H bond into a C-X bond (X being anything except H). Therefore, it may be of use to distinguish between what, in our view, are two distinct categories of C-H functionalization logic: "guided" and "innate". Guided C-H functionalizations, as the name implies, are guided by external reagents or directing groups (covalently or fleetingly bound) to install new functional groups at the expense of specifically targeted C-H bonds. Conversely, innate C-H functionalizations may be broadly defined as reactions that exchange C-H bonds for new functional groups based solely on natural reactivity patterns in the absence of other directing forces. Two substrates that illustrate this distinction are dihydrojunenol and isonicotinic acid. The C-H functionalization processes of hydroxylation or arylation, respectively, can take place at multiple locations on each molecule. Innate functionalizations lead to substitution patterns that are dictated by the inherent bias (steric or electronic) of the substrate undergoing C-H cleavage, whereas guided functionalizations lead to substitution patterns that are controlled by external directing forces such as metal complexation or steric bias of the reagent. Although the distinction between guided and innate C-H functionalizations may not always be clear in cases that do not fit neatly into a single category, it is a useful convention to consider when analyzing reactivity patterns and strategies for synthesis. We must emphasize that although a completely rigorous distinction between guided and innate C-H functionalization may not be practical, we have nonetheless found it to be a useful tool at the planning stage of synthesis. In this Account, we trace our own studies in the area of C-H functionalization in synthesis through the lens of "guided" and "innate" descriptors. We show how harnessing innate reactivity can be beneficial for achieving unique bond constructions between heterocycles and carbonyl compounds, enabling rapid and scalable total syntheses. Guided and innate functionalizations were used synergistically to create an entire family of terpenes in a controlled fashion. We continue with a discussion of the synthesis of complex alkaloids with high nitrogen content, which required the invention of a uniquely chemoselective innate C-H functionalization protocol. These findings led us to develop a series of innate C-H functionalization reactions for forging C-C bonds of interest to the largest body of practicing organic chemists: medicinal chemists. Strategic use of C-H functionalization logic can have a dramatically positive effect on the efficiency of synthesis, whether guided or innate.

Rh2(II)-catalyzed intramolecular aliphatic C-H bond amination reactions using aryl azides as the N-atom source

Rhodium(II) dicarboxylate complexes were discovered to catalyze the intramolecular amination of unactivated primary, secondary, or tertiary aliphatic C-H bonds using aryl azides as the N-atom precursor. While a strong electron-withdrawing group on the nitrogen atom is typically required to achieve this reaction, we found that both electron-rich and electron-poor aryl azides are efficient sources for the metal nitrene reactive intermediate.

An unexpected oxidation of unactivated methylene C-H using DIB/TBHP protocol

An in situ generated hypervalent iodine species, bis(tert-butylperoxy)iodobenzene, was used as a peroxy radical source for the oxidation of unreactive, remote, and isolated alkyl (cyclic or aliphatic) esters and amides to the corresponding keto compounds under very mild conditions.

Highly regioselective amination of unactivated alkanes by hypervalent sulfonylimino-λ³-bromane

Amination of alkanes has generally required metal catalysts and/or high temperatures. Here we report that simple exposure of a broad range of alkanes to N-triflylimino-λ(3)-bromane 1 at ambient temperature results in C-H insertion of the nitrogen functionality to afford triflyl-substituted amines in moderate to high yields. Marked selectivity for tertiary over secondary C-H bonds was observed; primary (methyl) C-H bonds were inert. Addition of hexafluoroisopropanol to inhibit decomposition of 1 dramatically improved the C-H amination efficiencies. Second-order kinetics, activation parameters (negative activation entropy), deuterium isotope effects, and theoretical calculations suggest a concerted asynchronous bimolecular transition state for the metal-free C-H amination event.

If C-H bonds could talk: selective C-H bond oxidation

C-H oxidation has a long history and an ongoing presence in research at the forefront of chemistry and interrelated fields. As such, numerous highly useful articles and reviews have been written on this subject. Logically, these are generally written from the perspective of the scope and limitations of the reagents employed. This Minireview instead attempts to emphasize chemoselectivity imposed by the nature of the substrate. Consequently, many landmark discoveries in the field of C-H oxidation are not discussed, but hopefully the perspective taken herein will allow C-H oxidation reactions to be more readily incorporated into synthetic planning.