Nickel-catalysed couplings of aryl chlorides with secondary amines and piperazines

The Buchwald-Hartwig Amination After 25 Years

The Pd-catalyzed coupling of aryl (pseudo)halides and amines is one of the most powerful approaches for the formation of C(sp² )-N bonds. The pioneering reports from Migita and subsequently Buchwald and Hartwig on the coupling of aminostannanes and aryl bromides rapidly evolved into general and practical tin-free protocols with broad substrate scope, which led to the establishment of what is now known as the Buchwald-Hartwig amination. This Minireview summarizes the evolution of this cross-coupling reaction over the course of the past 25 years and illustrates some of the most recent applications of this well-established methodology.

Arylpyridines, arylpyrimidines and related compounds as potential modulator agents of the VEGF, hTERT and c-Myc oncogenes

Twenty-four derivatives structurally related to honokiol have been synthesized and biologically evaluated. IC₅₀ values were determined towards the HT-29, MCF-7 and HEK-293 cell lines. Some of these derivatives exhibited comparable or lower IC₅₀ values than honokiol towards the HT-29 and MCF-7 cell lines or else higher selectivity indexes than the natural product. Twelve selected derivatives were evaluated for their ability to inhibit the expression of the VEGFA, hTERT and c-Myc genes and also to inhibit the production of total c-Myc protein and the secretion of the VEGF protein. One of the most promising compounds, 3-(2,4-dimethoxyphenyl)pyridine, may be a good candidate for further studies as an anticancer agent as it is able to improve the effect shown by honokiol in downregulating all gene expression and protein production at a safe concentration for non-tumor cells.

Aryl amination using ligand-free Ni(II) salts and photoredox catalysis

Over the past two decades, there have been major developments in transition metal-catalyzed aminations of aryl halides to form anilines, a common structure found in drug agents, natural product isolates, and fine chemicals. Many of these approaches have enabled highly efficient and selective coupling through the design of specialized ligands, which facilitate reductive elimination from a destabilized metal center. We postulated that a general and complementary method for carbon-nitrogen bond formation could be developed through the destabilization of a metal amido complex via photoredox catalysis, thus providing an alternative approach to the use of structurally complex ligand systems. Here, we report the development of a distinct mechanistic paradigm for aryl amination using ligand-free nickel(II) salts, in which facile reductive elimination from the nickel metal center is induced via a photoredox-catalyzed electron-transfer event.

Transition-metal free umpolung carbon-nitrogen vs. carbon-chlorine bond formation

The formation of carbon-nitrogen (C-N) bonds via an umpolung substitution reaction has been achieved at -78 °C without the need for catalysts, ligands, or additives. The scope is limited to aryl Grignard reagents with N-chloroamines. The findings in this manuscript serve as a reference point for all C-N bond formation involving N-chloroamines and organometallic reagents. Knowing the yields of uncatalyzed reactions will be useful when determining the success of future catalytic methods.

Nickel-catalyzed amination of aryl chlorides with ammonia or ammonium salts

The nickel-catalyzed amination of aryl chlorides to form primary arylamines occurs with ammonia or ammonium sulfate and a well-defined single-component nickel(0) precatalyst containing a Josiphos ligand and an η(2)-bound benzonitrile ligand. This system also catalyzes the coupling of aryl chlorides with gaseous amines in the form of their hydrochloride salts.

Controlling first-row catalysts: amination of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides and bromides with primary aliphatic amines catalyzed by a BINAP-ligated single-component Ni(0) complex

First-row metal complexes often undergo undesirable one-electron redox processes during two-electron steps of catalytic cycles. We report the amination of aryl chlorides and bromides with primary aliphatic amines catalyzed by a well-defined, single-component nickel precursor (BINAP)Ni(η(2)-NC-Ph) (BINAP = 2,2'-bis(biphenylphosphino)-1,1'-binaphthalene) that minimizes the formation of Ni(I) species and (BINAP)2Ni. The scope of the reaction encompasses electronically varied aryl chlorides and nitrogen-containing heteroaryl chlorides, including pyridine, quinoline, and isoquinoline derivatives. Mechanistic studies support the catalytic cycle involving a Ni(0)/Ni(II) couple for this nickel-catalyzed amination and are inconsistent with a Ni(I) halide intermediate. Monitoring the reaction mixture by (31)P NMR spectroscopy identified (BINAP)Ni(η(2)-NC-Ph) as the resting state of the catalyst in the amination of both aryl chlorides and bromides. Kinetic studies showed that the amination of aryl chlorides and bromides is first order in both catalyst and aryl halide and zero order in base and amine. The reaction of a representative aryl chloride is inverse first order in PhCN, but the reaction of a representative aryl bromide is zero order in PhCN. This difference in the order of the reaction in PhCN indicates that the aryl chloride reacts with (BINAP)Ni(0), formed by dissociation PhCN from (BINAP)Ni(η(2)-NC-Ph), but the aryl bromide directly reacts with (BINAP)Ni(η(2)-NC-Ph). The overall kinetic behavior is consistent with turnover-limiting oxidative addition of the aryl halide to Ni(0). Several pathways for catalyst decomposition were identified, such as the formation of the catalytically inactive bis(amine)-ligated arylnickel(II) chloride, (BINAP)2Ni(0), and the Ni(I) species [(BINAP)Ni(μ-Cl)]2. By using a well-defined nickel complex as catalyst, the formation of (BINAP)2Ni(0) is avoided and the formation of the Ni(I) species [(BINAP)Ni(μ-Cl)]2 is minimized.

Development of an air-stable nickel precatalyst for the amination of aryl chlorides, sulfamates, mesylates, and triflates

A new air-stable nickel precatalyst for C-N cross-coupling is reported. The developed catalyst system displays a greatly improved substrate scope for C-N bond formation to include both a wide range of aryl and heteroaryl electrophiles and aryl, heteroaryl, and alkylamines. The catalyst system is also compatible with a weak base, allowing the amination of substrates containing base-sensitive functional groups.

A synthetic and mechanistic investigation into the cobalt(i) catalyzed amination of aryl halides

The Co(i) catalyzed amination of aryl halides with lithium hexamethyldisilazide is reported.

Nickel-mediated N-arylation with arylboronic acids: an avenue to Chan-Lam coupling

An efficient use of NiCl(2)·6H(2)O, for the cross-coupling of arylboronic acids with various N-nucleophiles, has been demonstrated. The method is practical and offers an alternative to the corresponding Cu-mediated Chan-Lam process for the construction of the C-N bond.

An efficient silane-promoted nickel-catalyzed amination of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides

A new silane-promoted nickel-catalyzed amination of aryl chlorides with 0.5 mol % of Ni(acac)2, 1 mol % of 3,5,6,8-tetrabromo-1,10-phenanthroline, and polymethylhydrosiloxane was developed. A broad range of aryl and heteroaryl chlorides can be coupled with secondary amines and anilines to give the desired (het)arylamines in good to excellent yields. The reaction is sensitive to the nature and amount of the silane promoter.

Ni(II)-(sigma-aryl) complex: a facile, efficient catalyst for nickel-catalyzed carbon-nitrogen coupling reactions

trans-Haloarylbis(triphenylphosphine)nickel(II), a type of air- and moisture-stable Ni(II)-(sigma-aryl) complex, was examined as catalyst precursor in the C-N coupling reaction. This type of Ni(II) pre-catalyst, associated with N-heterocyclic carbene ligands, is found to easily produce the catalytically active Ni(0) species in situ without the aid of external reductants and allows for the efficient amination of aryl chlorides with secondary cyclic amines and anilines under mild conditions.