Chan–Lam coupling reactions: synthesis of heterocycles

Precisive Incorporation of Multiple Nitrogen Sources into Benzoxazoles via an Iodine-Mediated Electrochemical Four-Component Reaction

An iodine-mediated electrochemical four-component reaction was developed to construct aromatic C-N bonds by making use of a simple nitrogen source, such as NH4+ and formamide. By virtue of this reaction, a variety of benzoxazoles bearing different substituents can be selectively modulated by using different bases. This protocol features a broad substrate scope and good scalability, is transition metal-free and chemical oxidant-free, and exhibits controlled product distribution. Additionally, it also enables a versatile platform for various isotope-labeled (15N and CD3) benzoxazoles.

Discovery and Preclinical Characterization of Fulacimstat (BAY 1142524), a Potent and Selective Chymase Inhibitor As a New Profibrinolytic Approach for Safe Thrombus Resolution

Chymase is a serine-protease produced by mast cells. In the past few decades, its role in fibrotic diseases triggered the search for orally available chymase inhibitors. Aiming at reducing adverse cardiac remodeling after myocardial infarction, our research efforts resulted in the discovery of fulacimstat (BAY 1142524). While clinical trials did not demonstrate efficacy in this indication, the recent discovery of a new unexpected biological role of chymase spurred a revival of interest in chymase inhibition: chymase was shown to inactivate plasmin within fibrin-rich clots. Chymase inhibitors are now considered as potential profibrinolytic drugs with low bleeding risk and therefore exceptional safety for the treatment of acute thrombosis settings such as stroke, pulmonary embolism, or venous thrombosis. This article describes the chemical optimization journey from a screening hit to the discovery of fulacimstat (BAY 1142524), a selective chymase inhibitor with a good safety profile, as well as its preclinical in vitro and in vivo characterization.

Visible-Light Driven Synthesis of Vinyl Amines without Photocatalyst

We developed a visible-light-induced vinyl amination of activated alkenes using TMSN3 and CsF through EDA complex formation under an oxygen atmosphere. Without light, the EDA complex forms between activated alkene, CsF, and oxygen. Upon exposure to light, oxygen in the complex gets excited, initiating the HAT process. This method efficiently synthesizes vinyl-amine derivatives via a radical pathway, demonstrating good functional group tolerance and high yields in a short time. Further, the late-stage functionalization enables the synthesis of biologically active heterocycles.

C-H amination chemistry mediated by trinuclear Cu(I) sites supported by a ligand scaffold featuring an arene platform and tetramethylguanidinyl residues

Tripodal ligands that can encapsulate single or multiple metal sites in C3-symmetric geometric configurations constitute valuable targets for novel catalysts. Of particular interest in ligand development are efforts toward incorporating apical elements that exhibit little if any electron donicity, to enhance the electrophilic nature of a trans positioned active oxidant (e.g., metal-oxo, -nitrene). The tripodal ligand TMG3trphen-Arene has been synthesized, featuring an arene platform 1,3,5-substituted with phenylene arms possessing tetramethylguanidinyl (TMG) residues. Compound [(TMG3trphen-Arene)Cu3(μ-Cl)3] has been subsequently synthesized by extracting a Cu3(μ-Cl)3 cluster from anhydrous CuCl and shown to encapsulate a crown-shaped Cu3(μ-Cl)3 fragment, supported by Cu-NTMG bonds and modest Cu3⋯arene long-range contacts. Energy decomposition analysis (EDA) indicates that electrostatic contributions to the total interaction energy far exceed those due to orbital interactions. The latter involve orbital pairings largely associated with the NTMG stabilization of the Cu3(μ-Cl)3 cluster. The independent gradient model based on the Hirshfeld partition (IGMH) corroborates that contacts between the arene platform and the Cu3 triangle are noncovalent in nature. Catalyst [(TMG3trphen-Arene)Cu3(μ-Cl)3] enables amination of sec-benzylic and tert-C-H bonds of a panel of substrates by pre-synthesized PhINTces in solvent matrices that incorporate small amounts of HFIP. The involvement of an electrophilic aminating agent is evidenced by the better yields obtained for electron-rich benzylic sites and is further supported by Hammett analysis that reveals the development of a small positive charge during C-H bond activation. A rather modest KIE effect (2.1) is obtained from intramolecular H(D) competition in the amination of ethylbenzene, at the borderline of reported values for concerted and stepwise C-H amination systems. DFT analysis of the putative copper-nitrene oxidant indicates that the nitrene N atom is bridging between two copper sites in closely spaced triplet (ground state) and broken-symmetry singlet electronic configurations.

Synthesis of Diarylamines via Nitrosonium-Initiated C-N Bond Formation

Electron-rich diarylamines, exemplified by anisole-derived amines, play pivotal roles in process chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and materials. In this study, homo-diarylamines were synthesized directly from the C-H activation of electron-rich arenes by sodium nitrate/trifluoroacetic acid and the successive treatment of iron powder. Mechanistic investigations reveal that nitrosoarene serves as the reaction intermediate, and the formation of the second C-N bond between the resulting nitrosoarene and electron-rich arene is catalyzed by the nitrosonium ion (NO+). Thus, hetero-diarylamines were synthesized using preformed nitrosoarenes and various electron-rich arenes. This reaction complements a range of cross-coupling reactions catalyzed by transition metal catalysts.

Exploiting the Marcus inverted region for first-row transition metal-based photoredox catalysis

Second- and third-row transition metal complexes are widely employed in photocatalysis, whereas earth-abundant first-row transition metals have found only limited use because of the prohibitively fast decay of their excited states. We report an unforeseen reactivity mode for productive photocatalysis that uses cobalt polypyridyl complexes as photocatalysts by exploiting Marcus inverted region behavior that couples increases in excited-state energies with increased excited-state lifetimes. These cobalt (III) complexes can engage in bimolecular reactivity by virtue of their strong redox potentials and sufficiently long excited-state lifetimes, catalyzing oxidative C(sp2)-N coupling of aryl amides with challenging sterically hindered aryl boronic acids. More generally, the results imply that chromophores can be designed to increase excited-state lifetimes while simultaneously increasing excited-state energies, providing a pathway for the use of relatively abundant metals as photoredox catalysts.

Radical approaches to C-S bonds

Organosulfur functionalities are ubiquitous in nature, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, materials and flavourants. Historically, these moieties were introduced almost exclusively using ionic chemistry; however, radical-based methods for the installation of sulfur-based functional groups have recently come to the fore. These radical methods have enabled their late-stage introduction into complex molecules, avoiding the need to preserve labile organosulfur moieties through multistep synthetic sequences. Here, we discuss homolytic C-S bond-forming processes, with a particular emphasis on radical substitution approaches to sulfide, disulfide and sulfinyl products, and the use of sulfur dioxide and its surrogates to build sulfonyl products. We also highlight the mechanistic considerations that we hope will guide further development of radical-based strategies compatible with the various organosulfur moieties that feature in modern chemistry.

Copper-promoted dehydrosulfurative carbon-nitrogen cross-coupling with concomitant aromatization for synthesis of 2-aminopyrimidines

Copper-promoted dehydrosulfurative C-N cross-coupling of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-1H-2-thione with amine accompanied by concomitant aromatization to generate 2-aryl(alkyl)aminopyrimidine derivatives is described. The reaction proceeded well with a wide range of thiono substrates and aryl/aliphatic amines as the coupling partners, offering efficient access to biologically and pharmacologically valuable 2-aryl(alkyl)aminopyrimidines with rapid diversification.

Cu-Catalyzed Chan-Evans-Lam Coupling reactions of 2-Nitroimidazole with Aryl boronic acids: An effort toward new bioactive agents against S. pneumoniae

The coupling of phenylboronic acids with poorly-activated imidazoles is studied as a model system to explore the use of copper-catalyzed Chan-Evans-Lam (CEL) coupling for targeted C-N bond forming reactions. Optimized CEL reaction conditions are reported for four phenanthroline-based ligand systems, where the ligand 4,5-diazafluoren-9-one (dafo, L2 ) with 1 molar equivalent of potassium carbonate yielded the highest reactivity. The substrate 2-Nitroimidazole (also known as azomycin) has documented antimicrobial activity against a range of microbes. Here N-arylation of 2-nitroimidazole with a range of aryl boronic acids has been successfully developed by copper(II)-catalyzed CEL reactions. Azomycin and a range of newly arylated azomycin derivatives were screened against S. pneumoniae , where 1-(4-(benzyloxy)phenyl)-2-nitro-1H-imidazole ( 3d ) was demonstrated to have a minimal inhibition concentration value of 3.3 μg/mL.

Light-Promoted Low-Valent-Tungsten-Catalyzed Ambient Temperature Amination of Boronic Acids with Nitroaromatics

Triggering C-N bond formation with nitroaromatics and boronic acids at mild conditions is highly desirable, since most prior works were carried out under harsh conditions and sometimes suffered from poor chemo- or regioselectivity. Herein, a low-valent-tungsten-catalyzed reaction that enables the ambient temperature amination of boronic acids with nitroaromatics is disclosed. With readily available W(CO)₆ as a precatalyst under external-photosensitizer-free conditions, nitroaromatics smoothly undergo C-N coupling reactions with their boronic acid partners, delivering structurally diverse secondary amines in good yields (>50 examples, yields up to 96%). This methodology is both scalable and highly chemoselective and engages both aliphatic and aromatic boronic acid partners. The catalysis is initiated by the deoxygenation of nitroaromatics by a trans-[W(CO)₄(PPh₃)₂] (trans-W, PPh₃ = triphenylphosphine) complex, which forms in situ via ligand replacement.

Rh(III)-Catalyzed C-H Diamidation and Diamidation/Intramolecular Cyclization of N-Iminopyridinium Ylides with Dioxazolones

A highly efficient Rh(III)-catalyzed C-H diamidation and diamidation/intramolecular cyclization of N-iminopyridinium ylides with dioxazolones has been developed, providing diamidated products and benzoxazinone products in good to excellent yields. Notably, the tunable selectivity of this reaction can be controlled by simply switching the solvent and the temperature. This reaction features operational simplicity, a broad substrate scope, and a good functional group tolerance.

Iron-catalyzed one-pot cyclization and amination of 2-alkynylthioanisoles using nitrosobenzenes as the amine source

A direct strategy for the synthesis of 3-phenylaminobenzothiophene via iron-catalyzed cyclization of 2-alkynylthioanisoles and nitrosoarenes is presented in this work.

Siloxane-containing derivatives of benzoic acid: chemical transformation of the carboxyl group

This research presents a scalable method for chemical transformation of Si-containing derivatives of benzoic acid to a wide range of corresponding esters, thioesters, amides, etc. Some of them form HOF-like structures in the crystalline state.

Synthesis of Azacarbolines via PhIO2-Promoted Intramolecular Oxidative Cyclization of α-Indolylhydrazones

An unprecedented synthesis of polysubstituted indole-fused pyridazines (azacarbolines) from α-indolylhydrazones under oxidative conditions using a combination of iodylbenzene (PhIO₂) and trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) has been developed. This transformation is conducted without the need for transition metals, harsh conditions, or an inert atmosphere.

Catalytic Reductive Alcohol Etherifications with Carbonyl-Based Compounds or CO2 and Related Transformations for the Synthesis of Ether Derivatives

Ether derivatives have myriad applications in several areas of chemical industry and academia. Hence, the development of more effective and sustainable protocols for their production is highly desired. Among the different methodologies reported for ether synthesis, catalytic reductive alcohol etherifications with carbonyl-based moieties (aldehydes/ketones and carboxylic acid derivatives) have emerged in the last years as a potential tool. These processes constitute appealing routes for the selective production of both symmetrical and asymmetrical ethers (including O-heterocycles) with an increased molecular complexity. Likewise, ester-to-ether catalytic reductions and hydrogenative alcohol etherifications with CO2 to dialkoxymethanes and other acetals, albeit in less extent, have undergone important advances, too. In this Review, an update of the recent progresses in the area of catalytic reductive alcohol etherifications using carbonyl-based compounds and CO2 have been described with a special focus on organic synthetic applications and catalyst design. Complementarily, recent progress made in catalytic acetal/ketal-to-ether or ester-to-ether reductions and other related transformations have been also summarized.

Recent developments in decarboxylative C(aryl)-X bond formation from (hetero)aryl carboxylic acids

Decarboxylative coupling reactions using readily available (hetero)aryl carboxylic acids are a highly efficient approach for the formation of new C-C and C-X bonds. These decarboxylative coupling reactions eliminate CO2 as a by-product, resulting in a greener and environmentally more benign approach than conventional coupling reactions. In this review, we summarize the recent developments in ipso-decarboxylative C-X (X = O/N/halo/S/Se/P/CN) bond formations using (hetero)aryl carboxylic acids. Furthermore, we highlight the current limitations and future research opportunities of aryl-decarboxylative coupling reactions.

Copper-mediated radioiodination reaction through aryl boronic acid or ester precursor and its application to direct radiolabeling of a cyclic peptide

A copper-mediated radioiodination using aryl boronic precursors is attracting attention as a solution to oxidative iododestannylation and nickel-mediated radioiodination drawbacks. The copper-mediated radiolabeling method allows radioiodination at room temperature with stable aryl boronic precursors without preparing complex starting materials or reagents and can be performed in a reaction vessel exposed to air. This method has good potential in radiochemistry; however, studies on the scope of copper-mediated radioiodination through boronic precursors are insufficient. In particular, few reports have demonstrated the effect of protecting groups on radiolabeling efficiency. Therefore, the effect of the protecting group of aryl boronic acids on the copper-mediated radioiodination was investigated. In addition, this method, which does not require heating, is expected to be useful for direct radiolabeling of peptides. Thus, we attempted direct radioiodination of c(RGDyk) as an example. The resulting radioiodination method was well tolerated in various substrates and was unaffected by the pinacol ester-type protecting group. Also, c(RGDyk) was labeled with 125 I via copper-mediated radioiodination using an aryl boronic acid precursor. The reaction time and yield were improved, compared with the indirect method. Furthermore, the large difference in polarity between the boronic acid precursor and the radiolabeled compound facilitated purification.

Recent developments in selective N-arylation of azoles

Transition-metal based carbon-heteroatom (C-X) bond formation has attracted the attention of synthetic chemists over the past few years because the resultant aryl/heteroaryl motifs are important substructures in many natural products, pharmaceuticals, etc. Several efficient protocols such as Buchwald-Hartwig amination, Ullmann coupling, Chan-Lam coupling and metal-free approaches have proved beneficial in C-X bond formation. Selective arylation of one hetero-centre over other centres without protection/deprotection thus allowing minimum synthetic manipulation has been achieved for several substrates using these protocols. Azoles are one such novel five-membered heterocyclic core with huge pharmaceutical applications. Though N-arylation on azole-bearing analogues has been extensively practised, selective N-arylation either on one N-centre or the exocyclic N-site of the azole ring in competition with other hetero-centres in the framework has been recently explored for azole-carrying systems. Thus, this review would focus on recent advances in chemo- and regio-selective N-arylation (either on one N-centre or the exocyclic N-site of the azole ring) on azole-containing frameworks.

Mediator-Enabled Electrocatalysis with Ligandless Copper for Anaerobic Chan-Lam Coupling Reactions

Simple copper salts serve as catalysts to effect C-X bond-forming reactions in some of the most utilized transformations in synthesis, including the oxidative coupling of aryl boronic acids and amines. However, these Chan-Lam coupling reactions have historically relied on chemical oxidants that limit their applicability beyond small-scale synthesis. Despite the success of replacing strong chemical oxidants with electrochemistry for a variety of metal-catalyzed processes, electrooxidative reactions with ligandless copper catalysts are plagued by slow electron-transfer kinetics, irreversible copper plating, and competitive substrate oxidation. Herein, we report the implementation of substoichiometric quantities of redox mediators to address limitations to Cu-catalyzed electrosynthesis. Mechanistic studies reveal that mediators serve multiple roles by (i) rapidly oxidizing low-valent Cu intermediates, (ii) stripping Cu metal from the cathode to regenerate the catalyst and reveal the active Pt surface for proton reduction, and (iii) providing anodic overcharge protection to prevent substrate oxidation. This strategy is applied to Chan-Lam coupling of aryl-, heteroaryl-, and alkylamines with arylboronic acids in the absence of chemical oxidants. Couplings under these electrochemical conditions occur with higher yields and shorter reaction times than conventional reactions in air and provide complementary substrate reactivity.

Transition-metal-free C-S, C-Se, and C-Te Bond Formation from Organoboron Compounds

The present review describes the successful application of organoboron compounds in transition-metal-free C-S, C-Se, and C-Te bond formations. We presented studies regarding these C-Chalcogen bond formations using organoboron reagents, such as boronic acids, boronic esters, borate anions, and several sources of chalcogen atoms/moieties. Moreover, a broad range of transition-metal-free approaches to synthesize sulfides, selenides, and tellurides were described using conventional heating methods, which are sometimes green since they use green solvents, safe reagents, among others. Furthermore, protocols using alternative energy sources, including ultrasound, microwave irradiation, photocatalysis, and electrolytic processes, were also shown to be suitable. These protocols were applied to prepare a broad scope of functionalized chalcogenides with high molecular diversity. These studies and their proposed mechanisms were also reported herein in addition to the reuse of reaction promoters.

Ruthenium-catalysed chemoselective alkylation of nitroarenes with alkanols

The alkylation of nitroarenes with akanols catalysed by the phosphinesulfonate ruthenium complex was reported. It displays different reactivity and chemoselectivity depending on the acid–base conditions, delivering diverse anilines from nitroarenes.

Chan-Evans-Lam N1-(het)arylation and N1-alkеnylation of 4-fluoroalkylpyrimidin-2(1H)-ones

The Chan–Evans–Lam reaction of 1-unsubstituted 4-fluoroalkylpyrimidin-2(1Н)-ones with arylboronic acids is reported as a facile synthetic route to hitherto unavailable N1-(het)aryl and N1-alkenyl derivatives of the corresponding pyrimidines. An efficient C–N bond-forming process is also observed by using boronic acid pinacol esters as coupling partners in the presence of Cu(II) acetate and boric acid. The 4-fluoroalkyl group on the pyrimidine ring significantly assists in the formation of the target N1-substituted products, in contrast to the 4-methyl and 4-unsubstituted substrates which do not undergo N1-arylation under similar reaction conditions.

Exploring the behavior of the NFSI reagent as a nitrogen source

The diverse biological activities of nitrogen-containing compounds make the construction of the C-N bond of great importance. As N-fluorobenzenesulfonimide, one of the most abundant chemical feedstock, has a dual behaviour, i.e. as an electrophilic fluorination and amidation source, it attracts the attention of synthetic chemists for exploitation. This review comprehensively summarizes the significant progress of the efficient and mild amidation reactions, with an emphasis on approaches for the generation of nitrogen-centered intermediates, related mechanisms and new synthetic chemistry methods that offer opportunities to overcome obstacles in pharmaceutical applications. In this perspective, we discuss the developments in the amidation reaction using NFSI in the past decade. We discuss the recent progress, challenges and future outcomes in the area of amidation chemistry using commercially available NFSI.

Dearomatization–Rearomatization Strategy for Palladium-Catalyzed C–N Cross-Coupling Reactions

Substituted aromatic compounds play important roles in materials, biological agents, dyes, etc. Thus, the synthesis of substituted aromatic compounds has been a hot topic throughout the history of organic chemistry. Traditionally, the Friedel–Crafts reaction was a powerful tool for synthesizing substituted aromatic compounds. In recent decades, metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions were well developed via carbon–heteroatom bond cleavage, however, having difficulties towards some strong bonds, such as C(Ar)–OH. To overcome such challenges, newer strategies are needed. In this review, we summarize the recent efforts in the development of dearomatization–rearomatization strategy for cross-coupling reactions via C(Ar)–O bond cleavage.

1 Introduction

2 Dearomatization–Rearomatization Strategy for Cross-Coupling of Phenols

3 Dearomatization–Rearomatization Strategy for Cross-Coupling of Biphenols

4 Dearomatization–Rearomatization Strategy for Cross-Coupling of Diphenyl Ethers

5 Dearomatization–Rearomatization Strategy for Cross-Coupling of Indoles

6 Summary

Anion influences on the structures of pyridyl-iminosulfonate copper(II) complexes and their reactivity in Chan–Lam couplings

Reaction of pyridylcarbaldehyde with taurine or orthanilic acid in the presence of copper salts provided copper complexes (PyC(H)N-CxHy-SO3)CuX with X = chloride, nitrate, acetate, or triflate and CxHy = o-C6H4 or C2H4. All complexes were characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction and formed either mononuclear water adducts, dimeric complexes, or one-dimensional coordination polymers. Activities in the Chan–Lam coupling of aniline with phenylboronic acid varied by less than a factor of two between catalysts with various anions, supporting previous mechanistic claims that the anion does not participate in the formation of copper–boron intermediates. There is no difference in the performance of a catalyst with an alkyl backbone, indicating that sulfonate dissociation is not part of the catalytic cycle.

Copper-Catalyzed Electrophilic Etherification of Arylboronic Esters with Isoxazolidines

A copper-catalyzed electrophilic etherification of arylboronic esters is reported. Isoxazolidines are utilized as easily available and stable [RO]⁺ surrogates to give 1,3-amino aryl ethers. The O-selective arylation of isoxazolidines takes place without causing competitive N-arylation. In contrast to previously reported anionic conditions, our copper-catalyzed conditions are mild enough to achieve high functional group tolerance. Preliminary mechanistic studies and DFT calculations support that the reaction proceeds via a transmetalation/oxidative addition pathway, followed by a Lewis acid-promoted reductive elimination to induce the crucial O-selectivity.

Copper(ii)-catalyzed synthesis of multisubstituted indoles through sequential Chan–Lam and cross-dehydrogenative coupling reactions

Starting from arylboronic acids and ester (Z)-3-aminoacrylates, one-pot syntheses of diverse indole-3-carboxylic esters have been described through copper(ii)-catalyzed sequential Chan–Lam N-arylation and cross-dehydrogenative coupling (CDC) reactions. The initial Chan–Lam arylation can proceed in DMF at 100 °C for 24 h to give ester (Z)-3-(arylamino)acrylate intermediates in the presence of Cu(OAc)₂/tri-tert-butylphosphine tetrafluoroborate, a catalytic amount of myristic acid as the additive, KMnO₄ and KHCO₃. Sequentially, these in situ arylated intermediates can undergo an intramolecular oxidative cross-dehydrogenative coupling process in mixed solvents (DMF/DMSO = 2 : 1) at 130 °C to give C3-functionalized multi-substituted indole derivatives.

One-pot syntheses of diverse indole-3-carboxylic esters have been described through copper(ii)-catalyzed sequential oxidative Chan–Lam N-arylation and cross-dehydrogenative coupling (CDC) reaction.

Advances in Cu and Ni-catalyzed Chan–Lam-type coupling: synthesis of diarylchalcogenides, Ar2–X (X = S, Se, Te)

Advances in the Cu and Ni-catalyzed Chan–Lam-type coupling of aryl/heteroarylboronic acids with various chalcogen sources for diarylsulfide, diarylselenide and diaryltelluride synthesis are covered in this review.