The Thionium/N-Acyliminium Ion Cyclization Cascade as a Strategy for the Synthesis of Azapolycyclic Ring Systems

Interrogating the thionium hydrogen bond as a noncovalent stereocontrolling interaction in chiral phosphate catalysis

CH⋯O bonds are a privileged noncovalent interaction determining the energies and geometries of a large number of structures. In catalytic settings, these are invoked as a decisive feature controlling many asymmetric transformations involving aldehydes. However, little is known about their stereochemical role when the interaction involves other substrate types. We report the results of computations that show for the first time thionium hydrogen bonds to be an important noncovalent interaction in asymmetric catalysis. As a validating case study, we explored an asymmetric Pummerer rearrangement involving thionium intermediates to yield enantioenriched N,S-acetals under BINOL-derived chiral phosphate catalysis. DFT and QM/MM hybrid calculations showed that the lowest energy pathway corresponded to a transition state involving two hydrogen bonding interactions from the thionium intermediate to the catalyst. However, the enantiomer resulting from this process differed from the originally published absolute configuration. Experimental determination of the absolute configuration resolved this conflict in favor of our calculations. The reaction features required for enantioselectivity were further interrogated by statistical modeling analysis that utilized bespoke featurization techniques to enable the translation of enantioselectivity trends from intermolecular reactions to those proceeding intramolecularly. Through this suite of computational modeling techniques, a new model is revealed that provides a different explanation for the product outcome and enabled reassignment of the absolute product configuration.

FeCl2/TBAC efficiently catalyzes domino coupling reactions for constructing indoline-fused tetrahydroisoquinolines

FeCl2/TBAC has been found to be highly active for the construction of indoline-fused tetrahydroisoquinolines using aryltetrahydroisoquinolines and active methylene as simple reactants via two coupling reactions in a single step.

An efficient lactamisation/N-acyliminium Pictet–Spengler domino strategy for the diasteroselective synthesis of polyhydroxylated quinoxalinone, β-carboline and quinazolinone derivatives

A novel Pictet–Spengler cascade sequence has been developed. It involves a lactamisation/N-acyliminium key step and gives a diverse set of sugar-derived fused polycyclic heterocycles diastereoselectively and efficiently.

Molecular iodine induced/1,3-dipolar cycloaddition/oxidative aromatization sequence: an efficient strategy to construct 2-substituted benzo[f]isoindole-1,3-dicarboxylates

A useful method for a molecular iodine induced 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition/oxidative aromatization sequence to construct 2-substituted-benzo[f]isoindole-1,3-dicarboxylates is reported.

Synthetic use of the primary kinetic isotope effect in hydrogen atom transfer 2: generation of captodatively stabilised radicals

Using C-3 di-deuterated morpholin-2-ones bearing N-2-iodobenzyl and N-3-bromobut-3-enyl radical generating groups, only products derived from the more stabilised C-3, rather than the less stabilised C-5 translocated radicals, were formed after intramolecular 1,5-hydrogen atom transfer, suggesting that any kinetic isotope effect present was not sufficient to offset captodative stabilisation.

The Domino Way to Heterocycles

Sequential transformations enable the facile synthesis of complex target molecules from simple building blocks in a single preparative step. Their value is amplified if they also create multiple stereogenic centers. In the ongoing search for new domino processes, emphasis is usually placed on sequential reactions which occur cleanly and without forming by-products. As a prerequisite for an ideally proceeding one-pot sequential transformation, the reactivity pattern of all participating components has to be such that each building block gets involved in a reaction only when it is supposed to do so. The development of sequences that combine transformations of fundamentally different mechanisms broadens the scope of such procedures in synthetic chemistry. This mini review contains a representative sampling from the last 15 years on the kinds of reactions that have been sequenced into cascades to produce heterocyclic molecules.

An Easy-To-Use, Regioselective, and Robust Bis(amidate) Titanium Hydroamination Precatalyst: Mechanistic and Synthetic Investigations toward the Preparation of Tetrahydroisoquinolines and Benzoquinolizine Alkaloids

Amidate-supported titanium amido complexes are efficient and regioselective precatalysts for intermolecular hydroamination of terminal alkynes with primary amines. The synthesis and characterization of the first bis(amidate)-supported titanium-imido complex is reported. Its role as the active catalytic species is suggested in the course of product distribution studies using deuterated substrates. The bis(amidate)-supported precatalysts exhibit good functional-group tolerance, even performing hydroaminations in the presence of ester and amide groups. This functional-group tolerance was exploited in the synthesis of a variety of 1-substituted tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids and a one-pot hydroaminative procedure for the high yielding preparation of the benzo[a]quinolizine skeleton.

Acid-catalysed formation of tricyclic N,S-acetals in imidazolinone series based on the use of the unprecedented N-acyliminium ion cascade reaction involving transposition, heterocyclisation and π-cyclisation

4-Hydroxy-5,5-dimethylimidazolines tethered at N-1 to an aryl sulfide undergo an unprecedented acid-catalysed domino reaction, involving double methyl transposition, heterocyclisation, isomerisation of thiazetidinium ion and, finally, pi-cyclisation. In this way a one-pot synthesis of original tricyclic N,S-acetals was developed. The same triheterocyclic products can be prepared also starting from the corresponding 5-hydroxy isomers (in this case the cascade of reactions does not involve methyl transposition).

Stereoselective tetrapyrido[2,1-a]isoindolone synthesis via carbanionic and radical intermediates: a model study for the Tacaman alkaloid D/E ring fusion

Cyclization under both radical and carbanionic conditions of N-substituted 3-phenylsulfanylisoindolin-1-one 14 containing a chiral N-tether incorporating an enoate ester as the acceptor leads to tetrahydropyrido[2,1-a]isoindolones stereoselectively. The major product 17 from carbanionic cyclization was stereoselectively desulfurized with nickel boride allowing correlation of cyclization products from both methodologies. The cyclization stereoselectivities have been rationalised using a transition-state model in which the acceptor grouping adopts a pseudoaxial configuration. This contrasts with other 6-exo-trig processes in which a pseudoequatorial configuration is normally adopted, and has been attributed to the steric influence imposed by the bulky tert-butyldiphenylsilyloxy chiral auxiliary allylic to the enoate ester. The product stereochemistries provide models for the required cis-stereochemistry of the D/E ring fusion of the Tacaman alkaloid skeleton via the relatively unexplored C-3-C-14 bond disconnection.