A general solution for the 2-pyridyl problem

Pd-NHC (NHC = N-Heterocyclic Carbene)-Catalyzed B-Alkyl Suzuki Cross-Coupling of 2-Pyridyl Ammonium Salts by N-C Activation: Application to the Discovery of Agrochemical Molecular Hybrids

2-Alkylpyridines are a privileged scaffold throughout the realm of organic synthesis and play a key role in natural products, pharmaceuticals, and agrochemicals. Herein, we report the first B-alkyl Suzuki cross-coupling of 2-pyridyl ammonium salts to access functionalized 2-alkylpyridines. The use of well-defined, operationally simple Pd-NHCs permits for an exceptionally broad scope of the challenging B-alkyl C-N cross-coupling with organoboranes containing β-hydrogen, representing a novel method for the discovery of highly sought-after molecules for plant protection.

Recent Developments with Organogermanes: their Preparation and Application in Synthesis and Catalysis

Within the sphere of traditional Pd0 /PdII cross coupling reactions, organogermanes have been historically outperformed both in terms of scope and reactivity by more conventional transmetalating reagents. Subsequently, this class of compounds has been largely underutilized as a coupling partner in bond-forming strategies. Most recent studies, however, have shown that alternative modes of activation of these notoriously robust building blocks transform organogermanes into the most reactive site of the molecule-capable of outcompeting other functional groups (such as boronic acids, esters and silanes) for both C-C and C-heteroatom bond formation. As a result, over the past few years, the literature has increasingly featured methodologies that explore the potential of organogermanes as chemoselective and orthogonal coupling partners. Herein we highlight some of these recent advances in the field of organogermane chemistry both with respect to their synthesis and applications in synthetic and catalytic transformations.

Photoinduced Dehydrogenative Borylation via Dihydrogen Bond Bridged Electron Donor and Acceptor Complexes

Air-stable amine- and phosphine-boranes are discovered as donors to integrate with pyridinium acceptor for generating photoactive electron-donor-acceptor (EDA) complexes. Experimental results and DFT calculations suggest a dihydrogen bond bridging the donor and acceptor. Irradiating the EDA complex enables an intra-complex single electron transfer to give a boron-centered radical for dehydrogenative borylation with no need of external photosensitizer and radical initiator. The deprotonation of Wheland-like radical intermediate rather than its generation is believed to determine the good ortho-selectivity based on DFT calculations. A variety of α-borylated pyridine derivatives have been readily synthesized with good functional group tolerance.

Protection of Boronic Acids Using a Tridentate Aminophenol ONO Ligand for Selective Suzuki-Miyaura Coupling

Boronic acid protecting group chemistry powerfully enhances the versatility of Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling. Prominent examples include trifluoroborate salts, N-methyliminodiacetic acid (MIDA) boronates, and 1,8-diaminonaphthalene boronamides. In this work, we present a bis(2-hydroxybenzyl)methylamine (BOMA) ligand that forms tridentate complexes with boronic acids much like the MIDA ligand but the deprotection is facilitated by organic acids. The BOMA boronates showed considerable stability in both aqueous base and acid, and a variety of chemoselective reactions were performed on these boronates, including selective Suzuki-Miyaura coupling, palladium-catalyzed borylation, ester hydrolysis, alkylation, lithiation-borylation, and oxidative hydroxydeboronation.

A rapid construction of 1,3,2-benzodiazaborininones [R-B(aam)] from boronic acids and anthranilamides

A simple, efficient and mild methodology for the synthesis of 1,3,2-benzodiazaborininones [R-B(aam)] from boronic acids and anthranilamides on ethyl acetate is described. A series of 1,3,2-benzodiazaborininones were prepared in moderate to excellent yields at room temperature without dehydrating agents, metal catalysts, corrosive acids or other additives. Meanwhile, a multi-gram scale reaction is also performed to ensure the scalability of the reaction, and the product can be conveniently isolated by simple filtration.

Yttrium-Catalyzed ortho-Selective C-H Borylation of Pyridines with Pinacolborane

This work reports a site-selective C-H borylation of pyridines at the ortho-position with pinacolborane enabled by an yttrocene catalyst. The reaction provides a new family of 2-pyridyl boronates with a broad substrate scope and high atom efficiency. The resultant boronates were able to undergo a variety of transformations, e.g., oxidation, Suzuki-Miyaura coupling, Chan-Lam amination and etherification. Catalytic intermediates, including ortho-C-H metalated and borylated complexes, were isolated from stoichiometric experiments and confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction.

A Modular Synthesis of Teraryl-Based α-Helix Mimetics, Part 5: A Complete Set of Pyridine Boronic Acid Pinacol Esters Featuring Side Chains of Proteinogenic Amino Acids

Teraryl-based α-helix mimetics have proven to be useful compounds for the inhibition of protein-protein interactions (PPI). We have developed a modular and flexible approach for the synthesis of teraryl-based α-helix mimetics using pyridine containing boronic acid building blocks to increase the water solubility. Following our initial publication in which we have introduced the methodology in combination with sequential Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling for teraryl assembly, we can now report a complete set of pyridine based boronic acid building blocks decorated with side chains of all proteinogenic amino acids relevant for PPI (Ala, Arg, Asn, Asp, Cys, Gln, Glu, His, Ile, Leu, Lys, Met, Phe, Ser, Thr, Trp, Tyr, Val) to complement the core fragment set. For a representative set of teraryls we have studied the influence of the pyridine rings on the solubility of the assembled oligoarenes.

Aryl Boronic Esters Are Stable on Silica Gel and Reactive under Suzuki-Miyaura Coupling Conditions

A wide range of aryl boronic 1,1,2,2-tetraethylethylene glycol esters [ArB(Epin)s] were readily synthesized. Purifying aryl boronic esters by conventional silica gel chromatography is generally challenging; however, these introduced derivatives are easily purified on silica gel and isolated in excellent yields. We subjected the purified ArB(Epin) to Suzuki-Miyaura couplings, which provided higher yields of the desired biaryl products than those obtained using the corresponding aryl boronic acids or pinacol esters.

Ability of Boron to Act as a Nucleophile and an Electrophile in Boryl Shift Reactions Unveiled by Electron Density Distribution Analysis

The behavior of the tetracoordinate boron of N-methyliminodiacetic acid (MIDA) boronates as a nucleophile and an electrophile during the 1,2-boryl migration promoted by a Lewis acid and the 1,4-boryl migration promoted by a neighboring atom, respectively, have been investigated using density functional theory and the quantum theory of atoms in molecules. We found that when boron acts as a nucleophile, the electron density of the B-N interaction of the BMIDA moiety maintains the charge concentration over the boron atom, facilitating its transport toward the electron-deficient center. In this process, the BMIDA remains as a tetracoordinate. On the other hand, the B-N weakening generates a charge depletion region over the boron, allowing it to interact with the electron-rich center of O₁, developing the boron atom, a pentacoordinate form. Then, the B-N bond breaking triggers a series of changes in the electronic structure of the boron atom. Our results explain the role of the MIDA ligand upon the remarkable susceptibility of the boron atom for switching its structural and electronic characteristics in the migration processes. In addition, the dichotomous behavior was evaluated with a different scenario, considering tricoordinate pinacol boronate as a boryl migrating group.

A General, Multimetallic Cross-Ullmann Biheteroaryl Synthesis from Heteroaryl Halides and Heteroaryl Triflates

Despite their importance to medicine and materials science, the synthesis of biheteroaryls by cross-coupling remains challenging. We describe here a new, general approach to biheteroaryls: the Ni- and Pd-catalyzed multimetallic cross-Ullmann coupling of heteroaryl halides with triflates. An array of 5-membered, 6-membered, and fused heteroaryl bromides and chlorides, as well as aryl triflates derived from heterocyclic phenols, proved to be viable substrates in this reaction (62 examples, 63 ± 17% average yield). The generality of this approach to biheteroaryls was further demonstrated in 96-well plate format at 10 μmol scale. An array of 96 possible products provided >90% hit rate under a single set of conditions. Further, low-yielding combinations could be rapidly optimized with a single "Toolbox Plate" of ligands, additives, and reductants.

Saturated Boronic Acids, Boronates, and Trifluoroborates: An Update on Their Synthetic and Medicinal Chemistry

This review discusses recent advances in the chemistry of saturated boronic acids, boronates, and trifluoroborates. Applications of the title compounds in the design of boron-containing drugs are surveyed, with special emphasis on α-amino boronic derivatives. A general overview of saturated boronic compounds as modern tools to construct C(sp³ )-C and C(sp³ )-heteroatom bonds is given, including recent developments in the Suzuki-Miyaura and Chan-Lam cross-couplings, single-electron-transfer processes including metallo- and organocatalytic photoredox reactions, and transformations of boron "ate" complexes. Finally, an attempt to summarize the current state of the art in the synthesis of saturated boronic acids, boronates, and trifluoroborates is made, with a brief mention of the "classical" methods (transmetallation of organolithium/magnesium reagents with boron species, anti-Markovnikov hydroboration of alkenes, and the modification of alkenyl boron compounds) and a special focus on recent methodologies (boronation of alkyl (pseudo)halides, derivatives of carboxylic acids, alcohols, and primary amines, boronative C-H activation, novel approaches to alkene hydroboration, and 1,2-metallate-type rearrangements).

Base-Activated Latent Heteroaromatic Sulfinates as Nucleophilic Coupling Partners in Palladium-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling Reactions

Heteroaromatic sulfinates are effective nucleophilic reagents in Pd0 -catalyzed cross-coupling reactions with aryl halides. However, metal sulfinate salts can be challenging to purify, solubilize in reaction media, and are not tolerant to multi-step transformations. Here we introduce base-activated, latent sulfinate reagents: β-nitrile and β-ester sulfones. We show that under the cross-coupling conditions, these species generate the sulfinate salt in situ, which then undergo efficient palladium-catalyzed desulfinative cross-coupling with (hetero)aryl bromides to deliver a broad range of biaryls. These latent sulfinate reagents have proven to be stable through multi-step substrate elaboration, and amenable to scale-up.

C-H functionalisation tolerant to polar groups could transform fragment-based drug discovery (FBDD)

We have analysed 131 fragment-to-lead (F2L) examples targeting a wide variety of protein families published by academic and industrial laboratories between 2015-2019. Our assessment of X-ray structural data identifies the most common polar functional groups involved in fragment-protein binding are: N-H (hydrogen bond donors on aromatic and aliphatic N-H, amides and anilines; totalling 35%), aromatic nitrogen atoms (hydrogen bond acceptors; totalling 23%), and carbonyl oxygen group atoms (hydrogen bond acceptors on amides, ureas and ketones; totalling 22%). Furthermore, the elaboration of each fragment into its corresponding lead is analysed to identify the nominal synthetic growth vectors. In ∼80% of cases, growth originates from an aromatic or aliphatic carbon on the fragment and more than 50% of the total bonds formed are carbon-carbon bonds. This analysis reveals that growth from carbocentric vectors is key and therefore robust C-H functionalisation methods that tolerate the innate polar functionality on fragments could transform fragment-based drug discovery (FBDD). As a further resource to the community, we have provided the full data of our analysis as well as an online overlay page of the X-ray structures of the fragment hit and leads: https://astx.com/interactive/F2L-2021/.

Heteroaryl-Heteroaryl, Suzuki-Miyaura, Anhydrous Cross-Coupling Reactions Enabled by Trimethyl Borate

Reaction conditions have been developed for refractory heteroaryl-heteroaryl Suzuki-Miyaura cross-couplings. The reported method employs neopentyl heteroarylboronic esters as nucleophiles, heteroaryl bromides and chlorides as the electrophiles, and the soluble base potassium trimethylsilanolate (TMSOK) under anhydrous conditions. The addition of trimethyl borate enhances reaction rates by several mechanisms, including (1) solubilization of in situ-generated boronate complexes, (2) preventing catalyst poisoning by the heteroatomic units, and (3) buffering the inhibitory effect of excess TMSOK. The use of this method enables cross-coupling of diverse reaction partners including a broad range of π-rich and π-deficient heteroaryl boronic esters and heteroaryl bromides. Reactions proceed in good yields and short reaction times (3 h or less).

Base-Mediated Direct C-H Germylation of Heteroarenes and Arenes

The direct C-H germylation of heteroarenes, arenes, and benzylic C-H bonds promoted by lithium tetramethylpiperidide (LiTMP) is reported. The method is rapid, selective, and operationally simple, consisting of direct addition of all reagents at room temperature (one-pot procedure). The synthetic utility of these newly accessed aryl germanes as viable coupling partners in Pd catalysis is also showcased.

A radical approach for the selective C-H borylation of azines

Boron functional groups are often introduced in place of aromatic carbon-hydrogen bonds to expedite small-molecule diversification through coupling of molecular fragments^1-3. Current approaches based on transition-metal-catalysed activation of carbon-hydrogen bonds are effective for the borylation of many (hetero)aromatic derivatives^4,5 but show narrow applicability to azines (nitrogen-containing aromatic heterocycles), which are key components of many pharmaceutical and agrochemical products⁶. Here we report an azine borylation strategy using stable and inexpensive amine-borane⁷ reagents. Photocatalysis converts these low-molecular-weight materials into highly reactive boryl radicals⁸ that undergo efficient addition to azine building blocks. This reactivity provides a mechanistically alternative tactic for sp² carbon-boron bond assembly, where the elementary steps of transition-metal-mediated carbon-hydrogen bond activation and reductive elimination from azine-organometallic intermediates are replaced by a direct, Minisci⁹-style, radical addition. The strongly nucleophilic character of the amine-boryl radicals enables predictable and site-selective carbon-boron bond formation by targeting the azine's most activated position, including the challenging sites adjacent to the basic nitrogen atom. This approach enables access to aromatic sites that elude current strategies based on carbon-hydrogen bond activation, and has led to borylated materials that would otherwise be difficult to prepare. We have applied this process to the introduction of amine-borane functionalities to complex and industrially relevant products. The diversification of the borylated azine products by mainstream cross-coupling technologies establishes aromatic amino-boranes as a powerful class of building blocks for chemical synthesis.

The 2-Pyridyl Problem: Challenging Nucleophiles in Cross-Coupling Arylations

Azine-containing biaryls are ubiquitous scaffolds in many areas of chemistry, and efficient methods for their synthesis are continually desired. Pyridine rings are prominent amongst these motifs. Transition-metal-catalysed cross-coupling reactions have been widely used for their synthesis and functionalisation as they often provide a swift and tuneable route to related biaryl scaffolds. However, 2-pyridine organometallics are capricious coupling partners and 2-pyridyl boron reagents in particular are notorious for their instability and poor reactivity in Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions. The synthesis of pyridine-containing biaryls is therefore limited, and methods for the formation of unsymmetrical 2,2'-bis-pyridines are scarce. This Review focuses on the methods developed for the challenging coupling of 2-pyridine nucleophiles with (hetero)aryl electrophiles, and ranges from traditional cross-coupling processes to alternative nucleophilic reagents and novel main group approaches.

Acylboronates in Polarity-Reversed Generation of Acyl Palladium(II) Intermediates

We report a catalytic cross-coupling process between aryl (pseudo)halides and boron-based acyl anion equivalents. This mode of acylboronate reactivity represents polarity reversal, which is supported by the observation of tetracoordinated boronate and acyl palladium(II) species by ¹¹B, ³¹P NMR, and mass spectrometry. A broad scope of aliphatic and aromatic acylboronates has been examined, as well as a variety of aryl (pseudo)halides.

Oxidative Rearrangement of MIDA (N-Methyliminodiacetic Acid) Boronates: Mechanistic Insights and Synthetic Applications

Herein we report that coordinative hemilability allows the MIDA (N-methyliminodiacetic acid) nitrogen to behave as a nucleophile and intramolecularly intercept palladium π-allyl intermediates. A mechanistic investigation indicates that this rearrangement proceeds through an S_N2-like displacement at tetrasubstituted boron to furnish novel DABN boronates. Oxidative addition into the N-C bond of the DABN scaffold furnishes borylated π-allyl intermediates that can then be trapped with a variety of nucleophiles, including in a three-component coupling.

Organogermanes as Orthogonal Coupling Partners in Synthesis and Catalysis

Since the advent of metal-catalyzed cross-coupling technology more than 40 years ago, the field has grown to be ever-increasingly enabling, yet the employed coupling partners are largely still those that were originally employed in the context of Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling, namely, arylboronic esters/acids, aryl silanes, aryl stannanes, or organometallic reagents (RMgX, RZnX). Aryl germanes have little precedent in the literature; they were historically explored in the context of Pd⁰/Pd^II-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions but were found to be much less reactive than the already established reagents. Consequently, few efforts were made by the community on their further mechanistic or synthetic exploration.In 2019, our group described trialkyl aryl germanes as robust, convenient, and nontoxic reagents. Although structurally similar to trialkyl aryl stannanes or silanes, the GeEt₃ site does not engage in the traditional transmetalation mode of Pd^II complexes. Our studies instead provided strong support for an unprecedented and orthogonal reactivity of organogermanes that follows electrophilic aromatic substitution (S_EAr)-type reactivity. This mode of bond activation allowed us to devise a number of synthetic strategies in which the Ge functionality was for the first time more reactive and exclusively functionalized in preference over several of the established coupling partners (e.g., silanes, boronic acids/esters, halogens).Within the past year we have showcased the unique reactivity of organogermanes in C-C and C-X bond-forming transformations. Because of the exquisite mode of bond activation, the new strategies offer access to complementary chemical transformations, tolerating other cross-coupling enabling functionalities, and allow for their further downstream diversification. We have for instance demonstrated that organogermanes can be coupled efficiently with aryl halides under Pd nanoparticle conditions with tolerance of all other established cross-coupling partners, while under homogeneous Pd⁰/Pd^II catalysis all of the other established groups can be functionalized preferentially over the Ge functionality. We similarly were able to harness this orthogonal reactivity mode in oxidative gold catalysis, where organogermanes proved to be more reactive than the established silanes or boronic esters. We have also developed an orthogonal approach for metal-free halogenation of organogermanes with convenient halogenation agents, offering access to the chemo- and regioselective installation of valuable halide motifs in the presence of alternative groups that can also engage in electrophilic halogenations.In this Account, we wish to provide an overview of (i) the historic versus current reactivity findings and synthetic utility of organogermanes, (ii) the current state of mechanistic understanding of their reactivity, and (iii) the synthetic repertoire and ease of installing the germanium functionality in organic molecules.

10-N-heterocylic aryl-isoxazole-amides (AIMs) have robust anti-tumor activity against breast and brain cancer cell lines and useful fluorescence properties

A novel series of anthracenyl-isoxazole amide (AIM) antitumor agents containing N-heterocycles in the 10 position (N-het) were synthesized using palladium cross-coupling. The unique steric environment of the N-het-AIMs required individual optimization in each case. Lanthanide mediated double activation was used to couple the dimethylamino pyrrole moiety, required for antitumor action. Robust antitumor activity was observed against breast and brain cancer cell lines. The compounds were docked with the c-myc oncogene promoter sequence, which adopts a G4 quadruplex DNA conformation, and represents the working hypothesis for biological action. The N-het-AIMs have useful fluorescence properties, allowing for observation of their distribution within tumor cells.

Synthesis and Photochromism of Novel Pyridyl-Substituted Naphthopyrans

Multitarget synthetic strategies to access novel photochromic 3H-naphtho[2,1-b]pyrans decorated with pyridyl units are described. The new pyridyl-substituted 3H-naphtho[2,1-b]pyrans display good photochromic properties with reversible generation of photomerocyanines, which exhibit mainly orange/red hues. Photochromic parameters including photocolorability and persistence of color vary tremendously on structural modification of the naphthopyran core.

Transition metal-free B(dan)-installing reaction (dan: naphthalene-1,8-diaminato): H-B(dan) as a B(dan) electrophile

H-B(dan) was demonstrated to serve as a B(dan) electrophile, despite its highly diminished boron-Lewis acidity, leading to direct and transition metal-free approach to R-B(dan) of high synthetic utility upon treatment with Grignard reagents. Iterative cross-coupling of 5-bromo-2-pyridyl-B(dan), synthesized by the present method, was also achieved.

Unusual dual-emissive heteroleptic iridium complexes incorporating TADF cyclometalating ligands

Five new neutral heteroleptic iridium(iii) complexes IrL₂(pic) (2–6) based on the archetypical blue emitter FIrpic have been synthesised.

Three-Component Olefin Dicarbofunctionalization Enabled by Nickel/Photoredox Dual Catalysis

An intermolecular, photocatalytic dicarbofunctionalization (DCF) of olefins enabled by the merger of Giese-type addition with Ni/photoredox dual catalysis has been realized. Capitalizing on the rapid addition of 3° radicals to alkenes and their reluctance toward single electron metalation to Ni complexes, regioselective alkylation and arylation of olefins is possible. This dual catalytic method not only permits elaborate species to be assembled from commodity materials, but also allows quaternary and tertiary centers to be installed in a singular, chemoselective olefin difunctionalization. This multicomponent process occurs under exceptionally mild conditions, compatible with a diverse range of functional groups and synthetic handles such as pinacolboronate esters. This technology was directly applied to the synthesis of an intermediate to a preclinical candidate (TK-666) and its derivatives.

Orthogonal Nanoparticle Catalysis with Organogermanes

Although nanoparticles are widely used as catalysts, little is known about their potential ability to trigger privileged transformations as compared to homogeneous molecular or bulk heterogeneous catalysts. We herein demonstrate (and rationalize) that nanoparticles display orthogonal reactivity to molecular catalysts in the cross-coupling of aryl halides with aryl germanes. While the aryl germanes are unreactive in Ln Pd0 /Ln PdII catalysis and allow selective functionalization of established coupling partners in their presence, they display superior reactivity under Pd nanoparticle conditions, outcompeting established coupling partners (such as ArBPin and ArBMIDA) and allowing air-tolerant, base-free, and orthogonal access to valuable and challenging biaryl motifs. As opposed to the notoriously unstable polyfluoroaryl- and 2-pyridylboronic acids, the corresponding germanes are highly stable and readily coupled. Our mechanistic and computational studies provide unambiguous support of nanoparticle catalysis and suggest that owing to the electron richness of aryl germanes, they preferentially react by electrophilic aromatic substitution, and in turn are preferentially activated by the more electrophilic nanoparticles.

Structure-Activity Relationships of 7-Substituted Dimethyltyrosine-Tetrahydroisoquinoline Opioid Peptidomimetics

The opioid receptors modulate a variety of biological functions, including pain, mood, and reward. As a result, opioid ligands are being explored as potential therapeutics for a variety of indications. Multifunctional opioid ligands, which act simultaneously at more than one type of opioid receptor, show promise for use in the treatment of addiction, pain, and other conditions. Previously, we reported the creation of bifunctional kappa opioid receptor (KOR) agonist/mu opioid receptor (MOR) partial agonist ligands from the classically delta opioid receptor (DOR) antagonist selective dimethyltyrosine-tetrahydroisoquinoline (Dmt-Tiq) scaffold through the addition of a 7-benzyl pendant on the tetrahydroisoquinoline ring. This study further explores the structure–activity relationships surrounding 7-position pendants on the Dmt-Tiq scaffold. Some analogues maintain a KOR agonist/MOR partial agonist profile, which is being explored in the development of a treatment for cocaine addiction. Others display a MOR agonist/DOR antagonist profile, which has potential to be used in the creation of a less addictive pain medication. Ultimately, we report the synthesis and in vitro evaluation of novel opioid ligands with a variety of multifunctional profiles.

Synthesis of Tridentate [1,2,4] Triazinyl-Pyridin-2-yl Indole Lewis Basic Complexants via Pd-Catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura Cross-Coupling

Full closure of the nuclear fuel cycle is predicated, in part, on defining efficient separations processes for the effective speciation of the neutron-absorbing lanthanides from the minor actinides post-PUREX. Pursuant to the aforementioned, a class of tridentate, Lewis basic procomplexants have been prepared leveraging a Pd-catalyzed Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling between 6-bromo-[1,2,4]-triazinylpyridine derivatives and various protected indole-boronic acids to afford functionalized 2-[6-(5,6-diphenyl-[1,2,4]triazin-3-yl)-pyridin-2-yl]-1H-indoles. A highly active catalyst/ligand system with low loadings was employed rapidly affording 26 examples in yields as high as 85%. Method optimization, substrate and indole scope, comparative analysis between coupling reagents, and a scale-up experiment are reported.

Diversity-Oriented Synthesis of α-Functionalized Acylborons and Borylated Heteroarenes by Nucleophilic Ring Opening of α-Chloroepoxyboronates

The ring-opening reactions of N-methyliminodiacetyl (MIDA) α-chloroepoxyboronates with different nucleophiles allow the modular synthesis of a diverse array of organoboronates. These include seven types of α-functionalized acylboronates and seven types of borylated heteroarenes, some of which are difficult-to-access products using alternative methods. The common synthons, α-chloroepoxyboronates, could be viably synthesized by a two-step procedure from the corresponding alkenyl MIDA boronates. Mild reaction conditions, good functional-group tolerance, and generally good efficiency were observed. The utility of the products was also demonstrated.