Ionic Liquids in Metal, Photo-, Electro-, and (Bio) Catalysis

Ionic liquids (ILs) have unique physicochemical properties that make them advantageous for catalysis, such as low vapor pressure, non-flammability, high thermal and chemical stabilities, and the ability to enhance the activity and stability of (bio)catalysts. ILs can improve the efficiency, selectivity, and sustainability of bio(transformations) by acting as activators of enzymes, selectively dissolving substrates and products, and reducing toxicity. They can also be recycled and reused multiple times without losing their effectiveness. ILs based on imidazolium cation are preferred for structural organization aspects, with a semiorganized layer surrounding the catalyst. ILs act as a container, providing a confined space that allows modulation of electronic and geometric effects, miscibility of reactants and products, and residence time of species. ILs can stabilize ionic and radical species and control the catalytic activity of dynamic processes. Supported IL phase (SILP) derivatives and polymeric ILs (PILs) are good options for molecular engineering of greener catalytic processes. The major factors governing metal, photo-, electro-, and biocatalysts in ILs are discussed in detail based on the vast literature available over the past two and a half decades. Catalytic reactions, ranging from hydrogenation and cross-coupling to oxidations, promoted by homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts in both single and multiphase conditions, are extensively reviewed and discussed considering the knowledge accumulated until now.

Enzymatic Reactions using Ionic Liquids for Green Sustainable Chemical Process; Stabilization and Activation of Lipases

The enzymatic reaction is highly respected from an environmentally-friendly point-of-view. Optimization of the reaction media and supporting materials of enzymes must be investigated in parallel with the effort to develop new enzymes. Lipases are frequently used for organic syntheses as synthetic tools even industry because of their acceptance of having a broad range of substrates, stability, and availability. We have investigated the possibility of ILs as both a solvent and activating or stabilization agent of enzymes, in particular, lipase as a model enzyme. ILs allowed recyclable use of a lipase and significant acceleration of transesterification, and also enhanced the stability and reaction activity of a lipase by immobilization through a lyophilization process. We discuss how we enhanced the enzyme capability using the IL engineering focusing on lipase-catalyzed reactions, i. e., realization of the recyclable use of an enzyme, how ILs mediated the enhanced reaction rate, and improved the stability of the enzyme.

Evaluation of gem-Diacetates as Alternative Reagents for Enzymatic Regio- and Stereoselective Acylation of Alcohols

Geminal diacetates have been used as sustainable acyl donors for enzymatic acylation of chiral and nonchiral alcohols. Especially, it was revealed that geminal diacetates showed higher reactivity than vinyl acetate for hydrolases that are sensitive to acetaldehyde. Under optimized conditions for enzymatic acylation, several synthetically relevant saturated and unsaturated acetates of various primary alcohols were obtained in very high yields up to 98% without E/Z isomerization of the double bond. Subsequently, the acyl donor was recreated from the resulting aldehyde and reused constantly in acylation. Therefore, the developed process is characterized by high atomic efficiency. Moreover, it was shown that acylation using geminal diacetates resulted in remarkable regioselectivity by discriminating among the primary and secondary hydroxyl groups in 1-phenyl-1,3-propanediol providing exclusively 3-acetoxy-1-phenyl-propan-1-ol in good yield. Further, enzymatic kinetic resolution (EKR) and chemoenzymatic dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) protocols were developed using geminal diacetate as an acylating agent, resulting in chiral acetates in high yields up to 94% with enantiomeric excesses exceeding 99%.

Activation of Lipase-Catalyzed Reactions Using Ionic Liquids for Organic Synthesis

The use of ionic liquids to replace organic or aqueous solvents in biocatalysis processes has recently received great attention, and much progress has been made in this area; the lipase-catalyzed reactions are the most successful. Recent developments in the application of ionic liquids as solvents in lipase-catalyzed reactions for organic synthesis are reviewed, focusing on the ionic liquid mediated activation method of lipase-catalyzed reactions.

Investigation of Cytotoxic Activity of Mitoxantrone at the Individual Cell Level by Using Ionic-Liquid-Tag-Enhanced Mass Spectrometry

A novel mitoxantrone conjugate was synthesized by coupling mitoxantrone with ionic liquid tags, and cytotoxic behavior of the designed conjugate was studied in normal and cancer cell lines. The synthesized mitoxantrone conjugate was oil at physiological temperatures and demonstrated high aqueous solubility. Sensitivity of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) to the mitoxantrone conjugate was improved by an order of magnitude, in comparison with original mitoxantrone dihydrochloride. The observed ESI-MS signals were shifted to a "clearer" lower-mass region of the spectrum, which allowed investigation of the drug at the level of individual cells. The ionic liquid tags proposed in the present work consist of an easily available imidazolium salt residue and show a number of key advantages from the points of view of drug conjugate synthesis, drug delivery and analytic detection.

Enzymatic Kinetic Resolution of Secondary Alcohols Using an Ionic Anhydride Generated In Situ

We developed a method for the resolution of secondary alcohols using an ionic anhydride acylating agent prepared directly in the reaction medium containing the biocatalyst Candida antarctica lipase B (CALB). NMR studies showed that mixing all components at the same time does not interfere with the coupling reaction or the enzymatic activity. After optimization of the reaction conditions, the method allowed the resolution of a number of substrates in very high conversions (46-48 %) and enantiomeric ratios (E>170) along with an easy recovery of both enantiomers without the need for preparative chromatographic separation. Additionally, both the starting ionic acid and the biocatalyst could be recovered and reused up to nine cycles without significant loss of enantioselectivity.

A magnetic nanoparticle catalyzed eco-friendly synthesis of cyanohydrins in a deep eutectic solvent

A short and highly efficient synthesis of cyanohydrins in a recyclable and biodegradable magnetic deep eutectic solvent is described.

1,2,4-trisubstituted cyclopentanes as platforms for diversity

Despite their simplicity, relatively few examples of 1,2,4 (1,3,4)-amino-, azido-, and hydroxy-substituted cyclopentanes are reported in the literature. We found that cyclopent-3-en-1-ol can be transformed into a significant variety of compounds of this class by relatively common and efficient synthetic procedures. Stereochemical control of epoxidation of the cyclopentene double bond can be achieved by varying the substitutents at C4. The C4 substituent and epoxide functional group can be converted into a variety of intermediates with differential protection designed for use in applications requiring regiospecific control for further elaboration of the cyclopentane scaffold.