Migratory decarboxylative coupling of coumarins: synthetic and mechanistic aspects

Direct enantioselective allylic substitution of 4-hydroxycoumarin derivatives with branched allylic alcohols via iridium catalysis

An iridium catalysed direct asymmetric allylic substitution reaction of 4-hydroxycoumarin derivatives with allylic alcohols with remarkably high yields and excellent enantioselectivities was realized.

Iridium-catalyzed enantioselective direct vinylogous allylic alkylation of coumarins

The first iridium-catalyzed enantioselective vinylogous allylic alkylation of coumarins is presented. Using easily accessible linear allylic carbonates as the allylic electrophile, this reaction installs unfunctionalized allyl groups at the γ-position of 4-methylcoumarins in an exclusively branched-selective manner generally in high yields with an excellent level of enantioselectivity (up to 99 : 1 er).

Peroxy mediated Csp2–Csp3 dehydrogenative coupling: regioselective functionalization of coumarins and coumarin-3-carboxylic acids

Regioselective functionalization of coumarins/coumarin carboxylic acids at C-3 via activation of Csp³–H bonds of ethers under metal-free conditions is developed.

Transition-metal-free decarboxylation of dimethyl malonate: an efficient construction of α-amino acid esters using TBAI/TBHP

A transition-metal-free decarboxylation coupling process for the preparation of α-amino acid esters, which succeeded in merging hydrolysis/decarboxylation/nucleophilic substitution, is well described. This strategy uses commercially available inexpensive starting materials, catalysts and oxidants and has a wide substrate scope and operational simplicity.

Ligand-controlled regiodivergent palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation reaction to access α,α-difluoroketones

α,α-Difluoroketones possess unique physicochemical properties that are useful for developing therapeutics and probes for chemical biology. To access the α-allyl-α,α-difluoroketone substructure, complementary palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation reactions were developed to provide linear and branched α-allyl-α,α-difluoroketones. For these orthogonal processes, the fluorination pattern of the substrate enabled the ligands to dictate the regioselectivity of the transformations.

One-pot synthesis of β-N-glycosyl imidazole analogues via a palladium-catalysed decarboxylative allylation

A concise and highly efficient strategy for the synthesis of N-glycosyl imidazole analogues is reported. This reaction is based on a palladium catalysed decarboxylative allylation and three steps, namely, carbamation, decarboxylation and allylation are involved. All the substrates can afford the desired products with excellent yields and selectivities.

Stereocontrolled O-glycosylation with palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation

The Pd-π-allyl intermediate in an electron-rich glycal system with poor reactivity is employed as an efficient glycosyl donor. Starting from glucal derived carbonate, various O-glycosides were formed via a palladium-catalyzed reaction through a tandem decarboxylation, proton abstraction, and nucleophilic addition, in good yields with excellent selectivity. Iterative glycosylation with the same strategy may provide an access to complex oligosaccharides.

Facile access to cis-2,6-disubstituted tetrahydropyrans by palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation: total syntheses of (±)-centrolobine and (+)-decytospolides A and B

cis-2,6-Tetrahydropyran is an important structural skeleton of bioactive natural products. A facile synthesis of cis-2,6-disubstituted-3,6-dihydropyrans as cis-2,6-tetrahydropyran precursors has been achieved in high regio- and stereoselectivity with high yields. This reaction involves a palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation of various 3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran substrates. Extending this reaction to 1,2-unsaturated carbohydrates allowed the achievement of challenging β-C-glycosylation. Based on this methodology, the total syntheses of (±)-centrolobine and (+)-decytospolides A and B were achieved in concise steps and overall high yields.

Regio- and chemoselective palladium-catalyzed benzylallylation of activated olefins: the remarkable effect of palladium nanoparticles

The palladium-catalyzed three-component reactions of benzyl halides, activated olefins, and allyltributylstannane were successfully conducted to produce the corresponding benzylallylation products in satisfactory to high yields. The benzylallylation reaction proceeded smoothly under mild conditions in the presence of palladium nanoparticles in tetrahydrofuran.

Palladium-catalyzed substitution of (coumarinyl)methyl acetates with C-, N-, and S-nucleophiles

The palladium-catalyzed nucleophilic substitution of (coumarinyl)methyl acetates is described. The reaction proceeds though a palladium π-benzyl-like complex and allows for many different types of C-, N-, and S-nucleophiles to be regioselectively added to the biologically active coumarin motif. This new method was utilized to prepare a 128-membered library of aminated coumarins for biological screening.

Palladium-catalyzed, pyrrolidine-mediated arylmethylation of ketones and aldehydes with coumarinyl(methyl) acetates

We report the palladium-catalyzed, pyrrolidine-mediated α-benzylation of enamines generated from aldehydes and ketones. The method allows for direct coupling of medicinally relevant coumarin moieties with aldehydes and ketones in good yield under mild conditions. The reaction is believed to proceed via a Pd-π-benzyl complex generated from (coumarinyl)methyl acetates.

Chemical synthesis of the cardiotonic steroid glycosides and related natural products

The active components from the extracts of Digitalis, cardiotonic steroid glycosides, have been ingested by humans for more than 200 years as a medicinal therapy for heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms. The positive inotropic activity of the cardiotonic steroids that mediates clinically useful physiological effects in patients has been attributed largely to a high affinity inhibitory interaction with the extracellular surface of the membrane-bound sodium pump (Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase). However, previously unrecognized intracellular signaling pathways continue to be uncovered. This Review examines both partial and de novo synthetic approaches to the medicinally important and structurally captivating cardenolide and bufadienolide steroid families, with an emphasis on the stereocontrolled construction of the pharmacophoric aglycone (genin) framework.