Gold(I)-catalysed [3+3] cycloaddition of propargyl acetals and nitrones

Tunable Gold-catalyzed Reactions of Propargyl Alcohols and Aryl Nucleophiles

Gold‐catalyzed transformations of 1,3‐diarylpropargyl alcohols and various aryl nucleophiles were studied. Selective tunable synthetic methods were developed for 1,1,3‐triarylallenes, diaryl‐indenes and tetraaryl‐allyl target products by C3 nucleophilic substitution and subsequent intra‐ or intermolecular hydroarylation, respectively. The reactions were scoped with regards to gold(I)/(III) catalysts, solvent, temperature, and electronic and steric effects of both the diarylpropargyl alcohol and the aryl nucleophiles. High yields of triaryl‐allenes and diaryl‐indenes by gold(III) catalysis were observed. Depending on the choice of aryl nucleophile and control of reaction temperature, different product ratios have been obtained. Alternatively, tetraaryl‐allyl target products were formed by a sequential one‐pot tandem process from appropriate propargyl substrates and two different aryl nucleophiles. Corresponding halo‐arylation products (I and Br; up to 95 % 2‐halo‐diaryl‐indenes) were obtained in a one‐pot manner in the presence of the respective N‐halosuccinimides (NIS, NBS).

Au(I)-Catalyzed Pictet-Spengler Reactions All around the Indole Ring

Au(I) complexes catalyze iso-Pictet-Spengler reactions. Ethylamine or methylamine chains were introduced at C2, C4, or the nitrogen atom of the indole ring, and the corresponding substrates were reacted in the presence of aldehydes and catalytic amounts of Au(I) complexes, leading to a variety of polycyclic scaffolds. Selectivity could be achieved in the course of a double iso-Pictet-Spengler reaction involving two successive aldehydes, leading to highly complex molecules.

Studies on gold-nitrone systems

A series of novel Au(i)-nitrone complexes with specific catalytic properties were prepared. Furthermore, Au(i)- and Au(iii)-oxadiazole complexes were formed by a novel Au-generated nitrile-nitrone [3 + 2] cycloaddition, and the crystal structures of Au(i)-nitrones as well as the Au(i)- and Au(iii)-oxadiazole complexes were studied (X-ray). A useful one-pot Au(iii)-mediated cycloaddition method was developed for the formation of a number of dihydro-1,2,4-oxadiazoles, involving in situ formation of Au(iii)-oxadiazole complexes. The observed Au(i) and Au(iii) dual selective reactivity gives new understanding about the Au(i)- and Au(iii)-nitrone chemistry.

Computational study on the mechanism of transition metal-catalyzed formation of highly substituted furo [3,4-d] [1,2] oxazines

The mechanism of gold(III)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar [[Formula: see text]] cycloaddition reactions of 2-(1-alkynyl)-2-alken-1-ones with nitrones to afford highly-substituted furo [3,4-d] [1,2] oxazines, which are useful as structural skeletons in biologically active compounds and as synthetic building blocks in organic synthesis, have been studied computationally. The results show that the reaction proceeds via the formation of a [Formula: see text]-complex in which the gold moiety coordinates to the triple bond of the 2-(1-alkynyl)-2-alken-1-ones, resulting in an intramolecular cyclization of the gold intermediate to generate a carbocation intermediate which is trapped by the nucleophilic oxygen of the nitrone to form a furanyl–gold complex, which upon subsequent cyclization affords the furo [3,4-d] [1,2] oxazine as well as regenerates the gold catalyst. The highest activation barrier in the entire cycle is 19.5[Formula: see text]kcal/mol which accompanies the intramolecular cyclization step. The activation barriers for the reactions of 2-(1-alkynyl)2-alken-1-ones with electron-donating and cyclic substituents are generally lower compared to those of the parent 2-(1-alkynyl)2-alken-1-one while the reactions of 2-(1-alkynyl)2-alken-1-ones with electron-withdrawing substituents have higher activation barriers. Preliminary exploratory calculations on the possibility of replacing gold, an expensive and rare metal, with a copper-based catalyst for the reaction, show that for the key elementary steps, the Cu (III) catalyst is at least as active as the Au (III) complex, thus providing a cheaper route to furo [3,4-d] [1,2] oxazine.