Gold(I)-Catalyzed Angle Strain Controlled Strategy to Furopyran Derivatives from Propargyl Vinyl Ethers: Insight into the Regioselectivity of Cycloisomerization

Recent Advances in Gold(I)-Catalyzed Approaches to Three-Type Small-Molecule Scaffolds via Arylalkyne Activation

Gold catalysts possess the advantages of water and oxygen resistance, with the possibility of catalyzing many novel chemical transformations, especially in the syntheses of small-molecule skeletons, in addition to achieving the rapid construction of multiple chemical bonds and ring systems in one step. In this feature paper, we summarize recent advances in the construction of small-molecule scaffolds, such as benzene, cyclopentene, furan, and pyran, based on gold-catalyzed cyclization of arylalkyne derivatives within the last decade. We hope that this review will serve as a useful reference for chemists to apply gold-catalyzed strategies to the syntheses of related natural products and active molecules, hopefully providing useful guidance for the exploration of additional novel gold-catalyzed approaches.

Recent advances in the synthesis of naturally occurring tetronic acids

During the last decades the interest towards natural products containing the tetronic acid moiety augmented significantly, due to their challenging structures and to the wide range of biological activities they display. This increasing enthusiasm has led to noteworthy advances in the development of innovative methodologies for the construction of the butenolide nucleus. This review provides an overview of the progress in the synthesis of tetronic acid as a structural key motif of natural compounds, covering the last 15 years. Herein, the most representative synthetic pathways towards structurally diverse natural tetronic acids are grouped according to the strategy followed. The first part describes the functionalization of a preformed tetronic acid core by intermolecular reactions (cross-coupling reactions, nucleophilic substitution, multicomponent reactions) whereas the second part deals with intramolecular approaches (Dieckmann, cycloaddition or ring expansion reactions) to construct the heterocyclic core. This rational subcategorization allowed us to make some considerations about the best approaches for the synthesis of specific substrates, including modern intriguing methodologies such as microwave irradiation, solid phase anchoring, bio-transformations and continuous flow processes.

Iodine-Catalyzed Synthesis of Substituted Furans and Pyrans: Reaction Scope and Mechanistic Insights

Substituted pyrans and furans are core structures found in a wide variety of natural products and biologically active compounds. Herein, we report a practical and mild catalytic method for the synthesis of substituted pyrans and furans using molecular iodine, a simple and inexpensive catalyst. The method described is performed under solvent-free conditions at an ambient temperature and atmosphere, thus offering a facile and practical alternative to currently available reaction protocols. A combination of experimental studies and density functional theory calculations revealed interesting mechanistic insights into this seemingly simple reaction.

Strategies for the synthesis of furo-pyranones and their application in the total synthesis of related natural products

The furo-pyranone framework is widely present in the molecular structure of various biologically potent natural products and un-natural small molecules, and it represents a valuable target in synthetic organic chemistry and medicinal chemistry.

Solvent Effect in Gold(I)-Catalyzed Domino Reaction: Access to Furopyrans

We report an efficient synthesis of furopyrans through a gold(I)-catalyzed domino reaction. By starting from the same source and changing the solvent of the reaction, two classes of furopyrans are accessible. During this one-step process, which takes place in DMF, two bonds and two heterocycles are formed. DFT calculations furnish the mechanistic understanding of this transformation. The sequence includes a 5-endo-dig cyclization, a regioselective 8-endo-dig cyclization, and a retro 8π and a 6π electrocyclization.

Gold(I)-Catalyzed Cascade Cyclization of Anilines with Diynes: Controllable Formation of Eight-Membered Ring-Fused Indoles and Propellane-Type Indolines

Heterocycle-fused indoles or indolines are distributed widely in a variety of natural products, bioactive agents, and pharmaceuticals. Herein, we describe the development of gold-catalyzed cascade reactions of anilines with diynes to form eight-membered ring-fused indoles and propellane-type indolines, both of which proceed through an intramolecular 5-endo-dig hydroamination followed by an 8-endo-dig cycloisomerization. Controllable formation of eight-membered ring-fused indoles and propellane-type indolines was achieved through selection of the ligands and/or solvents. Protic solvents such as alcohols or IPr ligand favored the formation of eight-membered ring-fused indoles, whereas the use of Buchwald's type ligands and/or nonpolar solvents gave propellane-type indoline predominantly. This reaction provides rapid access to two types of fused nitrogen heterocycles from simple aniline derivatives.

Nucleophile-assisted cyclization of β-propargylamino acrylic compounds catalyzed by gold(i): a rapid construction of multisubstituted tetrahydropyridines and their fused derivatives

A variety of medicinally important multisubstituted tetrahydropyridines, 4-aryl piperidines, isoquinolines and fused pyridines were prepared in 1–3 step sequences via nucleophile-assisted Au(i)-catalyzed cyclizations of easily available azaenynes.

Metal-catalyzed alkyne oxidation/CH functionalization: Effects of oxidant, temperature, and metal catalyst on chemoselectivity

Gold-catalyzed intermolecular alkyne oxidation has attracted much synthetic attention, but mostly suffering undesired over-oxidation. Recent experiments demonstrated that over-oxidation could be dramatically suppressed in zinc(II)-catalyzed intermolecular alkyne oxidation/CH functionalization. By means of first-principle density functional theory calculations, we explored the mechanism of the M-catalyzed intermolecular alkyne oxidations (M = Zn(OTf)₂ and Au⁺ PR₃ ) as well as the effects of oxidants, temperature, and metal catalysts on chemoselectivity, in an effort to disclose the origin of the extraordinary chemoselectivity pertaining to zinc catalysis. Our calculations indicate that the Zn-catalyzed intermolecular alkyne oxidation/CH functionalization proceeds by a Friedel-Crafts alkylation mechanism rather than metal carbene insertion mechanism. The chemoselectivity of CH functionalization against over-oxidation in Zn catalysis, in comparison with gold catalysis, can be jointly controlled by four factors: (1) the use of less nucleophilic N-oxide, (2) the enhanced electrophilicity and carbocationic nature of the carbenic site in the α-oxo metal carbenoid intermediate, (3) enhanced steric repulsion to incoming oxidant exerted by bulky ancillary ligand in the close nearby of the carbenic site to disfavor intermolecular over-oxidation and (4) the large negative value of activation entropy in the intermolecular over-oxidation pathway, that jointly give rise to lower activation free energy for the intramolecular cyclization/CH functionalization pathway than for the intermolecular over-oxidation pathway. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Gold-Catalyzed Vinyl Ether Hydroalkynylation: An Alternative Pathway for the Gold-Catalyzed Intermolecular Reaction of Alkenes and Alkynes

In this report, the gold-catalyzed intermolecular reaction of vinyl ethers and terminal alkynes is investigated. Utilizing a triazole gold catalyst lessens gold decomposition in the presence of the vinyl ether and affords an alkynylation product instead of the [2 + 2] product. This protocol has been expanded to include glycal substrates, which undergo a one-pot alkynylation-Ferrier reaction to produce functionalized sugars in moderate to excellent yields with high diastereoselectivity.

Synthesis of Allenes through Triazole Gold(III) Catalysed Rearrangement of Propargyl Vinyl Ethers

An efficient and simple method to the synthesis of allene derivatives was developed through pyridyltriazole gold(III) catalysed rearrangement of propargyl vinyl ethers with moderate to good yields. It was found that the pyridyltriazole gold(III) complex is a good chemoselective catalyst in selective activation of alkynes and allenes. Compared to gold(I) catalysts, the pyridyltriazole gold(III) shows much better substrate tolerance and much higher air and moisture stability.

A gold(i)-catalyzed substituent-controlled cycloisomerization of propargyl vinyl ethers to multi-substituted furofuran and furopyran derivatives

A gold(i)-catalyzed substituent-controlled strategy for the stereoselective synthesis of bicyclic furan and pyran derivatives has been developed.

A Au(i)-catalyzed hydrogen bond-directed tandem strategy to synthesize indeno-chromen-4-one and indeno-quinolin-4-one derivatives

A gold-catalyzed hydrogen bond-directed tandem cyclization strategy to synthesize indeno-chromen-4-one and indeno-quinolin-4-one derivatives has been developed.

Ligand-controlled gold-catalyzed cycloisomerization of 1,n-enyne esters toward synthesis of dihydronaphthalene

We describe herein a gold-catalyzed rearrangement of propargyl esters followed by allene–ene cyclization to afford substituted bicyclic [4.4.0] dihydronaphthalene compounds.