Remote Stereocontrol Mediated by a Sulfinyl Group: Synthesis of Allylic Alcohols via Chemoselective and Diastereoselective Reduction of γ-Methylene δ-Ketosulfoxides

Stereoselective Fluoroalkylacylation of Alkynes via Cooperative N-Heterocyclic Carbene/Palladium Catalysis

Herein, a cooperative N-heterocyclic carbene- and palladium-catalyzed three-component reaction of alkynes with aldehydes and fluoroalkyl iodides is developed. A series of biologically valuable CF2R-incorporated α-substituted enones was obtained in moderate to good yields. This mild catalytic method exhibits exclusive regio- and stereoselectivity, excellent functional group tolerance, and a broad substrate scope including terminal and internal alkynes. Mechanistic investigations disclose that this alkyne fluoroalkylacylation proceeds via a radical relay process in which vinyl iodides serve as putative reaction intermediates.

Synthesis of α-Branched Enones via Chloroacylation of Terminal Alkenes

Here, we show the conversion of unactivated alkenes into α-branched enones via regioselective chloroacylation with acyl chlorides. The method relies upon the initial in situ generation of chlorine radicals directly from the acyl chloride precursor under cooperative nickel/photoredox catalysis. Subsequent HCl elimination provides enones and α,β-unsaturated esters that are not accessible via the conventional acylation approaches that provide the other, linear constitutional isomer.

Lewis Acid-Driven Meyer-Schuster-Type Rearrangement of Yne-Dienone

Developed herein is a Cu(II)-catalyzed Meyer-Schuster-type rearrangement of alkyne-tethered cyclohexadienone for the construction of m-enone-substituted phenols. The reaction involves an uncommon 5-exo-trig 1,6-enyne cyclization of alkyne-tethered-cyclohexadienone, aromatization-triggered C-O bond cleavage, and an electrocyclic 4π-ring-opening of oxetene intermediate. This atom-efficient transformation provides access to a wide range of synthetically important α-(m-substituted phenol)-α,β-unsaturated ketones, featuring a broad scope with labile functional group tolerance. The gram-scale demonstration makes this transformation synthetically viable. The synthetic application of α,β-unsaturated ketones is also showcased.

Palladium-Catalyzed Carbonylative Synthesis of α-Branched Enones from Aryl Iodides and Arylallenes

In this communication, an interesting carbonylation protocol for the preparation of α-branched enones has been established. Starting from readily available aryl iodides and allenes, with formic acid as the CO source and reductant, moderate to good yields of the desired enones were isolated. Although it is a carbonylation methodology, the use of a CO source can avoid the manipulation of CO gas directly. Notably, this procedure also presents the first example on carbonylative synthesis of α-branched enones.

Synthetic Route Development for the Laboratory Preparation of Eupalinilide E

Following the discovery that the guaianolide natural product eupalinilide E promotes the expansion of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells; the development of a synthetic route to provide laboratory access to the natural product became a priority. Exploration of multiple synthetic routes yielded an approach that has permitted a scalable synthesis of the natural product. Two routes that failed to access eupalinilide E were triaged either as a result of providing an incorrect diastereomer or due to lack of synthetic efficiency. The successful strategy relied on late-stage allylic oxidations at two separate positions of the molecule, which significantly increased the breadth of reactions that could be used to this point. Subsequent to C-H bond oxidation, adaptations of existing chemical transformations were required to permit chemoselective reduction and oxidation reactions. These transformations included a modified Luche reduction and a selective homoallylic alcohol epoxidation.

Synthesis of Eupalinilide E, a Promoter of Human Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cell Expansion

Improving the ex vivo and in vivo production of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) has the potential to address the short supply of these cells that are used in the treatment of various blood diseases and disorders. Eupalinilide E promotes the expansion of human HSPCs and inhibits subsequent differentiation, leading to increased numbers of clinically useful cells. This natural product represents an important tool to uncover new methods to drive expansion while inhibiting differentiation. However, in the process of examining these effects, which occur through a novel mechanism, the natural product was consumed, which limited additional investigation. To provide renewed and improved access to eupalinilide E, a laboratory synthesis has been developed and is reported herein. The synthetic route can access >400 mg in a single batch, employing reactions conducted on useful scales in a single vessel. Key transformations enabling the approach include a diastereoselective borylative enyne cyclization and a late-stage double allylic C-H oxidation as well as adapted Luche reduction and aluminum-mediated epoxidation reactions to maximize the synthetic efficiency. Retesting of the synthetic eupalinilide E confirmed the compound's ability to expand HSPCs and inhibit differentiation.

Microwave-assisted expeditious and efficient synthesis of novel quinolin-4-ylmethoxychromen-2- and -4-ones catalyzed by YbCl3 under a solvent free one-pot three component domino reaction and their antimicrobial activity

MW assisted multicomponent A³ synthesis was developed for the synthesis of quinolin-4-ylmethoxychromen-2- and -4-ones in high yields with YbCl₃ and reused efficiently for four times.

Copper-catalysed oxidative Csp3–H methylenation to terminal olefins using DMF

A novel copper-catalysed direct oxidative Csp³–H methylenation to terminal olefins using DMF as one carbon source was developed. In this reaction, various functional groups were well tolerated, thus providing a simple way to construct arylvinylketones and arylvinylpyridines. The preliminary mechanistic investigations revealed that CH₂ was from DMF (N–CH₃).

Synthesis of β- and β,β-substituted Morita–Baylis–Hillman adducts using a two-step protocol

The synthesis of a large number of β- and β,β-substituted keto esters was successful by the use of the Knoevenagel condensation reaction. The stereoselectivity of these reactions was improved by alteration of various substituent groups. Although there were few examples of complete Z selectivity, the use of tert-butyl acetoacetate with either aromatic or aliphatic aldehydes afforded Z selectivity. The selective reductions of these substituted keto esters was successfully achieved by using a combination of NaBH4 and CeCl3·7H2O or Yb(OTf)3, which allowed a facile synthesis of a large number of stereochemically pure substituted Morita–Baylis–Hillman adducts, including β,β-substituted adducts.

Asymmetric synthesis of tertiary benzylic alcohols

Vinyl, aryl, and alkynyl organometallics add to ketones containing a stereogenic sulfoxide. Tertiary alcohols are generated in diastereomerically and enantiomerically pure form. Reductive lithiation converts the sulfoxide into a variety of useful functional groups.

Controlled oxidation of organic sulfides to sulfoxides under ambient conditions by a series of titanium isopropoxide complexes using environmentally benign H2O2 as an oxidant

Controlled oxidation of organic sulfides to sulfoxides under ambient conditions has been achieved by a series of titanium isopropoxide complexes that use environmentally benign H(2)O(2) as a primary oxidant. Specifically, the [N,N'-bis(2-oxo-3-R(1)-5-R(2)-phenylmethyl)-N,N'-bis(methylene-R(3))-ethylenediamine]Ti(O(i)Pr)(2) [R(1) = t-Bu, R(2) = Me, R(3) = C(7)H(5)O(2) (1b); R(1) = R(2) = t-Bu, R(3) = C(7)H(5)O(2) (2b); R(1) = R(2) = Cl, R(3) = C(7)H(5)O(2) (3b) and R(1) = R(2) = Cl, R(3) = C(6)H(5) (4b)] complexes efficiently catalyzed the sulfoxidation reactions of organic sulfides to sulfoxides at room temperature within 30 min of the reaction time using aqueous H(2)O(2) as an oxidant. A mechanistic pathway, modeled using density functional theory for a representative thioanisole substrate catalyzed by 4b, suggested that the reaction proceeds via a titanium peroxo intermediate 4c', which displays an activation barrier of 22.5 kcal mol(-1) (DeltaG(++)) for the overall catalytic cycle in undergoing an attack by the S atom of the thioanisole substrate at its sigma*-orbital of the peroxo moiety. The formation of the titanium peroxo intermediate was experimentally corroborated by a mild ionization atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) mass spectrometric technique.