Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of α,β-disubstituted α,γ-diaminophosphonic acid precursors by Michael addition of α-substituted nitrophosphonates to nitroolefins

DNDMH-mediated direct nitration of aryl alkenes

N-nitro type reagents have been demonstrated as mild nitration tools in recent years. This work presents an exploration of direct nitration of aryl alkenes mediated by DNDMH, a novel N-nitro type reagent developed in our previous study. It exhibits herein a new property of DNDMH as an effective direct nitration reagent for aryl alkenes, through probably the delivery of nitro radicals with the aid of TEMPO and Cu(OAc)2.

Cinchona Alkaloid-Inspired Urea-Containing Autophagy Inhibitor Shows Single-Agent Anticancer Efficacy

Autophagy is upregulated in response to metabolic stress, a hypoxic tumor microenvironment, and therapeutic stress in various cancers and mediates tumor progression and resistance to cancer therapy. Herein, we identified a cinchona alkaloid derivative containing urea (C1), which exhibited potential cytotoxicity and inhibited autophagy in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. We showed that C1 not only induced apoptosis but also blocked autophagy in HCC cells, as indicated by the increased expression of LC3-II and p62, inhibition of autophagosome-lysosome fusion, and suppression of the Akt/mTOR/S6k pathway in the HCC cells. Finally, to improve its solubility and efficacy, we encapsulated C1 into PEGylated lipid-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoscale drug carriers. Systemic administration of nanoscale C1 significantly suppressed primary tumor growth and prevented distant metastasis while maintaining a desirable safety profile. Our findings demonstrate that C1 combines autophagy modulation and apoptosis induction in a single molecule, making it a promising therapeutic option for HCC.

Recent Advances in the Nitration of Olefins

Nitroolefins are important synthetic intermediates in the field of organic synthesis as well as in medicinal chemistry. The high reactivity of nitroalkenes due to the polarized double bond which enables them to act as Michael acceptor in conjugate addition reactions, or as a dienophile in cycloaddition makes it an essential synthetic handle for accessing complex molecules. The classical method to prepare nitroolefins is indeed the Henry nitroaldol reaction, where a carbonyl compound and nitroalkane are condensed in presence of base. Direct nitration of olefin, on the other hand, serves as a useful alternative as olefins are abundant, have broad commercial availability and easy to manipulate. In this context, numerous methods have been developed over the last few decades, focusing on direct nitration of styrene and aliphatic olefins. Furthermore, thorough literature search revealed that implementation of this class of reactions are gaining momentum as a preferred pathway to access nitroolefins, despite the presence of a powerful technique such as Henry reaction. In this review, we aim to cover recent advances in direct olefin nitration and their importance in accessing biorelevant molecules, total synthesis targets and future outlook in this specific research area.

Asymmetric Synthesis of Tetrasubstituted α-Aminophosphonic Acid Derivatives

Due to their structural similarity with natural α-amino acids, α-aminophosphonic acid derivatives are known biologically active molecules. In view of the relevance of tetrasubstituted carbons in nature and medicine and the strong dependence of the biological activity of chiral molecules into their absolute configuration, the synthesis of α-aminophosphonates bearing tetrasubstituted carbons in an asymmetric fashion has grown in interest in the past few decades. In the following lines, the existing literatures for the synthesis of optically active tetrasubstituted α-aminophosphonates are summarized, comprising diastereoselective and enantioselective approaches.

ADMET Polymerization of Dimeric Cinchona Squaramides for the Preparation of a Highly Enantioselective Polymeric Organocatalyst

Under the acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) reaction condition, the C3-vinyl groups of cinchona alkaloids readily react with each other to form a C-C bond. A novel type of cinchona alkaloid polymers was synthesized from dimeric cinchona squaramides using the Hoveyda-Grubbs’ second-generation catalysts (HG2) by means of ADMET reaction. The chiral polymers, containing cinchona squaramide moieties in their main chains, were subsequently employed as catalysts for the enantioselective Michael reaction to give the corresponding chiral adducts in high yields with excellent enantioselectivity and diastereoselectivity. Both enantiomers from the asymmetric Michael reaction were distinctively prepared while using the polymeric catalysts, possessing pseudoenantiomeric structures. The catalysts were readily recovered from the reaction mixture and recycled several times due to the insolubility of the cinchona-based squaramide polymers.

A novel chiral DMAP–thiourea bifunctional catalyst catalyzed enantioselective Steglich and Black rearrangement reactions

A novel chiral DMAP–thiourea bifunctional catalyst has been prepared and applied in the highly enantioselective Steglich and Black rearrangement reactions.

Carbene-Catalyzed [4 + 2] Cycloadditions of Vinyl Enolate and (in Situ Generated) Imines for Enantioselective Synthesis of Quaternary α-Amino Phosphonates

A carbene-catalyzed enantioselective addition of enals to five-membered cyclic imines is developed. The reaction gives chiral quaternary α-amino phosphonates bearing tetrasubstituted carbon centers with excellent enantioselectivities. The imine substrates can be generated in situ from the corresponding amines under an oxidative condition that is compatible with the carbene catalysis. Thus, a one-pot cross-dehydrogenative-coupling (CDC) reaction between enals and amines is also realized with high enantioselectivity remaining. The method provides quick enantioselective access to amino phosphonates with potential applications in medicines and pesticides.

Access to C5-Alkylated Indolines/Indoles via Michael-Type Friedel-Crafts Alkylation Using Aryl-Nitroolefins

A straightforward synthetic route toward C5-alkylated indolines/indoles has been developed. The strategy is composed of Zn(OTf)₂-catalyzed Friedel-Crafts alkylation of N-benzylindolines with nitroolefins, and a series of diverse indolines was first obtained in up to 99% yield. This reaction provides a direct and practical route to a variety of the C5-alkylated indolines which were also utilized for accessing corresponding indoles. Indoline derivatives with free NH groups could be obtained through an N-deprotection reaction. Moreover, the primary alkyl nitro groups in both indolines and indoles are amenable to further synthetic elaborations, thereby broadening the diversity of the products.

Cinchona Squaramide-Based Chiral Polymers as Highly Efficient Catalysts in Asymmetric Michael Addition Reaction

We have synthesized novel chiral polymers containing a cinchona-based squaramide in the main chain. We designed a novel cinchona squaramide dimer that contains two cinchona squaramide units connected by diamines. The olefinic double bonds in the cinchona squaramide dimer were used for Mizoroki-Heck (MH) polymerization with aromatic diiodides. The MH polymerization of the cinchona squaramide dimer and aromatic diiodide proceeded well to give the corresponding chiral polymers in good yields. The catalytic activity of the chiral polymers was investigated for asymmetric Michael addition reactions. The effect of the squaramide structure of the polymeric catalyst on the catalytic performance is discussed in detail. We have surveyed the influence of the chiral polymer structure on the catalytic activity and enantioselectivity of the asymmetric reaction. The asymmetric Michael addition of β-ketoesters to nitroolefins was successfully catalyzed by polymeric cinchona squaramide organocatalysts to obtain the corresponding Michael adducts in good yields with excellent enantio- and diastereoselectivities. The polymeric catalysts were insoluble in commonly used organic solvents and easily recovered from the reaction mixture and reused several times without the loss of catalytic activity.

Enantioselective access to multi-cyclic α-amino phosphonates via carbene-catalyzed cycloaddition reactions between enals and six-membered cyclic imines

A carbene-catalyzed enantioselective [4 + 2] cycloaddition reaction is developed and quarternary α-amino phosphonates are afforded with encouraging anti-bacterial activities.

Organocatalytic Asymmetric Tamura Cycloaddition with α- Branched Nitroolefins: Synthesis of Functionalized 1-Tetralones

A new catalytic asymmetric Tamura cycloaddition with nitroolefins was developed. This demonstration of the reaction of α-branched nitroolefins with homophthalic anhydrides delivers highly functionalized 1-tetralone compounds. With bifunctional squaramide catalyst, the desired tetralone products are obtained with high enantioselectivity and good diastereoselectivity.

Enantioselective dearomatization of isoquinolines by anion-binding catalysis en route to cyclic α-aminophosphonates

An enantioselective dearomatization of isoquinolines has been developed using chiral anion-binding catalysis. This transformation makes use of silyl phosphite as a nucleophile and generates cyclic α-aminophosphonates.

An enantioselective dearomatization of isoquinolines has been developed using chiral anion-binding catalysis. This transformation, catalyzed by a simple and easy to prepare tert-leucine-based thiourea derivative, makes use of silyl phosphite as a nucleophile and generates cyclic α-aminophosphonates. This is the first time asymmetric anion-binding catalysis has been applied to the synthesis of α-aminophosphonates.

Synthesis of cinchona alkaloid sulfonamide polymers as sustainable catalysts for the enantioselective desymmetrization of cyclic anhydrides

Mizoroki–Heck polymerization of cinchona sulfonamide gave chiral polymers, which are active catalysts for enantioselective desymmetrization of cyclic anhydrides to give chiral hemiesters in high yield with high enantioselectivities.

Cinchona alkaloid and di-tert-butyldicarbonate–DMAP promoted efficient synthesis of (E)-nitroolefins

A simple and efficient metal-free methodology for the synthesis of β-nitroolefins has been developed from arylidinemalononitrile using bifunctional cinchona alkaloid along with di-tert-butyldicarbonate–DMAP in high yields with total selectivity.

Quinine-derived thiourea and squaramide catalyzed conjugate addition of α-nitrophosphonates to enones: asymmetric synthesis of quaternary α-aminophosphonates

Conjugate addition of α-nitrophosphonates to enones was carried out in the presence of two sets of organocatalysts, viz. a quinine-thiourea and a quinine-squaramide. The quinine-thiourea provided the products possessing an α-quaternary chiral center in high enantioselectivities only in the case of electron rich enones. On the other hand, the quinine-squaramide was more efficient in that a wide variety of electron rich and electron poor enones underwent Michael addition of nitrophosphonates to afford the quaternary α-nitrophosphonates in excellent yields and enantioselectivities. The hydrogen bonding donor ability of the bifunctional catalyst, as shown in the proposed transition states, appears primarily responsible for the observed selectivity. However, a favorable π-stacking between the aryl groups of thiourea/squaramide and aryl vinyl ketone also appeared favorable. The reaction was amenable to scale up, and the enantioenriched quaternary α-nitrophosphonates could be easily transformed to synthetically and biologically useful quaternary α-aminophosphonates and other multifunctional molecules.

An organocatalytic biomimetic approach to α-aminophosphonates

A novel biomimetic approach to optically active α-aminophosphonates from readily available acylphosphonates employing chiral base catalysis.

Catalytic MBH reaction of β-substituted nitroalkenes with azodicarboxylates

An unprecedented N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) catalyzed Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) reaction of β-substituted nitroalkenes and azodicarboxylates has been developed. Both β-aryl and β-alkyl nitroalkenes worked well for the reaction using 5 mol% of NHC catalyst, giving the desired α-hydrazino-α,β-unsaturated nitroalkenes in good to excellent yields.

Catalytic asymmetric 1,2-addition of α-isothiocyanato phosphonates: synthesis of chiral β-hydroxy- or β-amino-substituted α-amino phosphonic acid derivatives

α-Amino phosphonic acid derivatives are considered to be the most important structural analogues of α-amino acids and have a very wide range of applications. However, approaches for the catalytic asymmetric synthesis of such useful compounds are very limited. In this work, simple, efficient, and versatile organocatalytic asymmetric 1,2-addition reactions of α-isothiocyanato phosphonate were developed. Through these processes, derivatives of β-hydroxy-α-amino phosphonic acid and α,β-diamino phosphonic acid, as well as highly functionalized phosphonate-substituted spirooxindole, can be efficiently constructed (up to 99 % yield, d.r. >20:1, and >99 % ee). This novel method provides a new route for the enantioselective functionalization of α-phosphonic acid derivatives.

Recent advances in the synthesis of nitroolefin compounds

This review focuses on recent achievements in nitroolefin synthesis and the mechanisms of the reactions are also discussed.

Cu-catalyzed asymmetric allylic alkylation of phosphonates and phosphine oxides with Grignard reagents

An efficient and highly enantioselective copper-catalyzed allylic alkylation of phosphonates and phosphine oxides with Grignard reagents and Taniaphos or phosphoramidites as chiral ligands is reported. Transformation of these products leads to a variety of new phosphorus-containing chiral intermediates.