Synthesis of α-aminonitriles via a FeSO4-mediated oxidative cyanation of tertiary amines with benzoyl cyanide and molecular oxygen or TBHP

Electron transport chain-inspired coordination polymers for macroscopic spatiotemporal scales of charge separation and transport in photocatalysis

Classic homogeneous photocatalysis is limited by the temporal transience and the spatial proximity of photoinduced charge separation and transport. The electron transfer chain (ETC) in cellular respiration can mediate unidirectional and long-range electron transfer to isolate the oxidation and reduction centres. Inspired by this, we modified electron-accepting (A) viologen with π-extending thiazolothiazole and electron-donating (D) phenyl carboxylate into a D-A-π-A-D-type ligand and assembled segregated dye stacking in coordination polymer Cd-TzBDP for breaking the spatiotemporal limitation of single-molecule photocatalysis. The offset characteristics of D-A segregated stacking not only allowed the photoinduced-2e- transfer from the D-type carboxylate terminal to the spatially adjacent A-type viologen motif within 1 ps but also permitted the following delocalization of e- and h+ along stacked columns. These advantages endowed Cd-TzBDP with long-lived photochromic visualization of intermittent aerobic photooxidation steps, which enabled the bioinspired ETC-mediated aerobic respiration of mitochondria, achieving the continuous photocatalytic α-C(sp3)-H functionalization of tertiary amines with pharmaceutical interest. Enlightened by ETC-mediated electron leak in hypoxia, the coordination polymer was further employed in a photocatalytic membrane reactor, which visually illustrated the photo-driven cross-membrane long-range transfers of multiple electrons and protons from the hypoxic compartment to normoxic one, benefiting the distal photooxidation and photoreduction with biomimetic compartment selectivity.

Electrochemically promoted oxidative α-cyanation of tertiary and secondary amines using cheap AIBN

The electrochemical α-cyanation of tertiary and secondary amines has been developed by using a cheap cyanide reagent, azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN). The CN radical, generated through n-Bu₄NBr-meidated electrochemical oxidation, participates in a novel α-cyanation reaction under exogenous oxidant-free conditions.

Iron-Catalyzed α-C-H Cyanation of Simple and Complex Tertiary Amines

This manuscript details the development of a general and mild protocol for the α-C-H cyanation of tertiary amines and its application in late-stage functionalization. Suitable substrates include tertiary aliphatic, benzylic, and aniline-type substrates and complex substrates. Functional groups tolerated under the reaction conditions include various heterocycles and ketones, amides, olefins, and alkynes. This broad substrate scope is remarkable, as comparable reaction protocols for α-C-H cyanation frequently occur via free radical mechanisms and are thus fundamentally limited in their functional group tolerance. In contrast, the presented catalyst system tolerates functional groups that typically react with free radicals, suggesting an alternative reaction pathway. All components of the described catalyst system are readily available, allowing implementation of the presented methodology without the need for lengthy catalyst synthesis.

Morpholine As a Scaffold in Medicinal Chemistry: An Update on Synthetic Strategies

Morpholine is a frequently used heterocycle in medicinal chemistry and a privileged structural component of bioactive molecules. This is mainly due to its contribution to a plethora of biological activities as well as to an improved pharmacokinetic profile of such bioactive molecules. The synthesis of morpholines is a subject of much study due to their biological and pharmacological importance, with the last such review being published in 2013. Here, an overview of the main approaches toward morpholine synthesis or functionalization is presented, emphasizing on novel work which has not been reviewed so far. This review is an update on synthetic strategies leading to easily accessible libraries of bioactives which are of interest for drug discovery projects.

Oxidative cyanation of N-aryltetrahydroisoquinoline induced by visible light for the synthesis of α-aminonitrile using potassium thiocyanate as a “CN” agent

A novel method for the synthesis of α-aminonitrile, through visible-light-induced oxidative cyanation of N-aryltetrahydroisoquinoline with potassium thiocyanate, has been developed.

Oxidative C-H activation of amines using protuberant lychee-like goethite

Goethite with protuberant lychee morphology has been synthesized that accomplishes C-H activation of N-methylanilines to generate α-aminonitriles; the catalyst takes oxygen from air and uses it as a co-oxidant in the process.

Visible light catalyzed Mannich reaction between tert-amines and silyl diazoenolates

The present work documents the α-C–H functionalization of tertiary amines via the visible light catalyzed Mannich reaction with silyl diazoenolates.