Synthetic cinnamylphenol derivatives as cancer chemopreventive agents

Perspectives on medicinal properties of natural phenolic monoterpenoids and their hybrids

Carvacrol, thymol and eugenol belong to a class of naturally presenting phenols with a ten-carbon unit, which are present in essential oils of many plants. These versatile molecules are incorporated as useful ingredients in many food products and find applications in agricultural, pharmaceutical, fragrance, cosmetic, flavor and other industries. They are wide ranging of biological and pharmaceutical activities: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, analgesic, anticancer and antioxidant. This review summarizes pharmacological and medicinal activities of these phytochemicals and their synthetic hybrids.

Cobalt-Catalyzed Reductive Cross-Coupling Between Styryl and Benzyl Halides

A simple and efficient protocol for the direct reductive cross-coupling between alkenyl and benzyl halides using a Co/Mn system has been developed. This reaction proceeds smoothly in the presence of [CoBr₂ (PPh₃ )₂ ] as the catalyst, with NaI as an additive in acetonitrile with a broad scope of functionalized alkenyl and benzyl halides. Different functional groups are tolerated on both coupling partners, thus, significantly extending the general scope of transition-metal-catalyzed benzylation of alkenyl halides. Moderate to excellent yields were also obtained. From a mechanistic point of view, a radical chain mechanism was proposed. This reaction is stereospecific and some studies suggest the retention of the double-bond configuration.

Hydrazone-palladium-catalyzed allylic arylation of cinnamyloxyphenylboronic acid pinacol esters

Allylic arylation of cinnamyloxyphenylboronic acid pinacol esters 3, which have arylboronic acid moiety and allylic ether moiety, using a hydrazone 1d-Pd(OAc)2 system proceeded and gave the corresponding 1,3-diarylpropene derivatives 4 with a phenolic hydroxyl group via a selective coupling reaction of the π-allyl intermediate to the boron-substituted position of the leaving group.

Direct olefination of benzaldehydes into 1,3-diarylpropenes via a copper-catalyzed heterodomino Knoevenagel-decarboxylation-Csp3-H activation sequence

Copper-catalyzed direct olefination of benzaldehydes into unsymmetrical 1,3-diarylpropenes by a novel domino Knoevenagel-decarboxylation-Csp³-H activation sequence using simpler substrates like benzaldehydes.