Palladium-catalyzed α-arylation of benzylic phosphonates

Base-Promoted Nucleophilic Phosphorylation of Benzyl Fluorides via C(sp3)-F Cleavage

Herein, a transition-metal-free phosphorylation of benzyl fluorides with P(O)-H compounds is disclosed. In the presence of tBuOK, various benzyl fluorides react with P(O)-H compounds to produce the corresponding benzyl phosphine oxides, phosphinates, and phosphonates in good to high yields. This base-promoted phosphorylation reaction offers a facile and general strategy for the construction of a C(sp3)-P bond.

Lewis-acid-catalyzed phosphorylation of alcohols

An efficient method has been developed for reacting dialkyl H-phosphonates or diarylphosphine oxides with alcohols for constructing C-P bonds. This reaction was catalyzed by Lewis acid and involved nucleophilic substitution. A series of diphenylphosphonates and diphenylphosphine oxides were obtained, from the phosphorylation of alcohols, with good-to-excellent yields.

Tandem addition of nucleophilic and electrophilic reagents to vinyl phosphinates: the stereoselective formation of organophosphorus compounds with congested tertiary carbons

Carbon anions formed via the addition of Grignard reagents to SP-vinyl phosphinates were modified with electrophilic reagents to afford organophosphorus compounds with diverse carbon skeletons. The electrophiles included acids, aldehydes, epoxy groups, chalcogens and alkyl halides. When alkyl halides were used, bis-alkylated products were afforded. Substitution reactions or polymerization occurred when the reaction was applied to vinyl phosphine oxides.

Pseudo-Tris(heteroleptic) Red Phosphorescent Iridium(III) Complexes Bearing a Dianionic C,N,C',N'-Tetradentate Ligand

1-Phenyl-3-(1-phenyl-1-(pyridin-2-yl)ethyl)isoquinoline (H₂MeL) has been prepared by Pd(N-XantPhos)-catalyzed “deprotonative cross-coupling processes” to synthesize new phosphorescent red iridium(III) emitters (601–732 nm), including the carbonyl derivative Ir(κ⁴-cis-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL)Cl(CO) and the acetylacetonate compound Ir(κ⁴-cis-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL)(acac). The tetradentate 6e-donor ligand (6tt′) of these complexes is formed by two different bidentate units, namely, an orthometalated 2-phenylisoquinoline and an orthometalated 2-benzylpyridine. The link between the bidentate units reduces the number of possible stereoisomers of the structures [6tt′ + 3b] (3b = bidentate 3e-donor ligand), with respect to a [3b + 3b′ + 3b″] emitter containing three free bidentate units, and it permits a noticeable stereocontrol. Thus, the isomers fac-Ir(κ⁴-cis-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL){κ²-C,N-(C₆H₄-py)}, mer-Ir(κ⁴-cis-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL){κ²-C,N-(C₆H₃R-py)}, and mer-Ir(κ⁴-trans-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL){κ²-C,N-(C₆HR-py)} (R = H, Me) have also been selectively obtained. The new emitters display short lifetimes (0.7–4.6 μs) and quantum yields in a doped poly(methyl methacrylate) film at 5 wt % and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran at room temperature between 0.08 and 0.58. The acetylacetonate complex Ir(κ⁴-cis-C,C′-cis-N,N′-MeL)(acac) has been used as a dopant for a red PhOLED device with an electroluminescence λ_max of 672 nm and an external quantum efficiency of 3.4% at 10 mA/cm².

The proligand 1-phenyl-3-(1-phenyl-1-(pyridine-2-yl)ethyl)isoquinoline is used to generate a new family of neutral phosphorescent red iridium(III) emitters containing a tetradentate ligand, formed by two different bidentate units, and a third bidentate ligand with a good stereocontrol of the resulting [6tt′ + 3b] products. One of the new emitters has been used in the fabrication of an OLED device.

Simple Synthesis of Dimethyl Nitrobenzhydrylphosphonates and Heteroarylnitroarylacetonitriles via Vicarious Nucleophilic Substitution (VNS) Reaction

Acetals of dimethyl phenyl- and heteroaryl-α-hydroxymethanephosphonates were deprotonated to generate carbanions, which enter the vicarious nucleophilic substitution (VNS) of hydrogen in aromatic nitro compounds to form 4-nitrobenzhydrylphosphonates and α-heteroaryl-4-nitrobenzylphosphonates. Similarly acetals of cyano­hydrins of heteroaromatic aldehydes (furfural and 2-formylthiophene) react to form heteroaryl 4-nitroarylacetonitriles. The anion of the hemiacetal of acetaldehyde is an efficient leaving group in the base-induced β-elimination step – the crucial step in the VNS reaction. The reaction selectively occurred at the para-position to the nitro group.

Synthetic Methodologies for Perfluoroaryl-Substituted (Diaryl)methylphosphonates, -Phosphinates via SNAr Reaction

The new synthetic methodologies for perfluoroaryl-substituted (diaryl)methylphosphonates, -phosphinates via nucleophilic aromatic substitution (S_NAr) were developed. Benzylphosphonate and α-fluorobenzylphosphonate reacted with a wide variety of perfluoroarenes via S_NAr reaction. The reaction took place quickly and gave perfluoroarylated phosphonates in high yields. Highly diastereoselective S_NAr reaction with binaphthyl-based chiral phosphinates was further carried out.

New 2,6-diaminopyridines containing a sterically hindered benzylphosphonate moiety in the aromatic core as potential antioxidant and anti-cancer drugs

A series of 2,6-diaminopyridines was synthesized for the first time, containing phosphoryl sterically hindered phenolic fragments in the aromatic core. The antioxidant activity of these compounds was investigated, 2,6-diaminopyridine derivatives were shown to exhibit higher activity in comparison with their structural analogues. For dialkyl/diphenyl [(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) (2,6-diaminopyridin-3-yl) methyl] phosphonates, their structural analogues based on meta-phenylenediamine, phosphorus-containing sterically hindered phenols and the corresponding cyclohexadienones cytotoxicity against tumor lines of epithelioid carcinoma of the cervix uteri (M-Hela) and breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7) has been studied in vitro, as well as on normal human Chang liver cell lines. Diphenyl [(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) (2,6-diaminopyridin-3-yl) methyl] phosphonate was shown to be the most active against the epithelioid line M-Hela - IC₅₀ comprises 7.4 μM. It was shown that apoptosis induced by the lead compound proceeds along the internal pathway of caspase-9 activation. It was established that all studied compounds do not possess hemolytic activity.

Catalyst- and reagent-free 1,6-hydrophosphonylation of p-quinone methides: a practical approach for the synthesis of diarylmethyl phosphine oxides

We developed a catalyst-, reagent-, and additive-free protocol with 100% atom economy for the synthesis of diarylmethyl phosphine oxides via 1,6-hydrophosphonylation of p-quinone methides using water as a green solvent. The reaction showed broad scope with excellent functional group tolerance. The practicability of this method was demonstrated by carrying out the reaction on the gram scale whereby product was obtained in high yield by the filtration technique avoiding chromatographic purification.

One-Pot, Three-Component Approach to Diarylmethylphosphonates: A Direct Entry to Polycyclic Aromatic Systems

A new type of three-component reaction was developed consisting of aldehydes, electron-rich (hetero)arenes, and trialkyl phosphite, which provided facile access to a wide range of diarylmethylphosphonates under mild reaction conditions. Simple one- or two-step synthetic manipulation of the resulting compounds enabled us to reach several polycyclic (hetero)aromatic systems efficiently.

Cyclopentyl Methyl Ether: An Elective Ecofriendly Ethereal Solvent in Classical and Modern Organic Chemistry

Solvents represent one of the major contributions to the environmental impact of fine-chemical synthesis. As a result, the use of environmentally friendly solvents in widely employed reactions is a challenge of vast real interest in contemporary organic chemistry. Within this Review, a great variety of examples showing how cyclopentyl methyl ether has been established as particularly useful for this purpose are reported. Indeed, its low toxicity, high boiling point, low melting point, hydrophobicity, chemical stability towards a wide range of conditions, exceptional stability towards the abstraction of hydrogen atoms, relatively low latent heat of vaporization, and the ease with which it can be recovered and recycled enable its successful employment as a solvent in a wide range of synthetic applications, including organometallic chemistry, catalysis, biphasic reactions, oxidations, and radical reactions.

Palladium-Catalyzed Benzylic Phosphorylation of Diarylmethyl Carbonates

A palladium-catalyzed benzylic substitution of tert-butyl diarylmethyl carbonates with a pinacol-derived H-phosphonate proceeds to deliver the corresponding benzylic phosphorylated products in good yields. Moreover, the asymmetric synthesis is possible via a Pd/( R_p, R'_p)-( S)-Mandyphos-catalyzed kinetic resolution-DYKAT (dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation) sequence, and optically active α-chiral diarylmethylphosphonates are obtained with synthetically useful yields and enantiomeric ratios (up to 50% and 92:8 er).

Tandem C(sp3)-H Arylation/Oxidation and Arylation/Allylic Substitution of Isoindolinones

Isoindolinones comprise an important class of medicinally active compounds. Herein we report a straightforward functionalization of the isoindolinones with aryl bromides (22 examples) using a Pd(OAc)2/NIXANTPHOS-based catalyst system. Additionally 3-aryl 3-hydroxy isoindolinone derivatives, which exhibit anti-tumor activity, can be accessed via a tandem reaction. Thus, when the arylation product is exposed to air under basic conditions, in situ oxidation takes place to install the 3-hydroxyl group. Furthermore, a tandem arylation/allylic substitution reaction is advanced in which both the arylation and allylic substitution are catalyzed by the same palladium catalyst. Finally, a tandem arylation/alkylation procedure is presented. These tandem reactions enable the synthesis of a variety of structurally diverse isoindolinone derivatives from common starting materials.

Palladium-Catalyzed α-Arylation of Methyl Sulfonamides with Aryl Chlorides

A Palladium-catalyzed α-arylation of sulfonamides with aryl chlorides is presented. A Buchwald type precatalyst formed with Kwong's indole-based ligand enabled this transformation to be compatible with a large variety of methyl sulfonamides and aryl chlorides in good to excellent yields. Importantly, under the optimized reaction conditions, only mono-arylated products were observed. This method has been applied to the efficient synthesis of sumatriptan, which is used to treat migraines.

Palladium-Catalyzed Benzylic Arylation of Pyridylmethyl Silyl Ethers: One-Pot Synthesis of Aryl(pyridyl)methanols

An efficient palladium-catalyzed direct arylation of pyridylmethyl silyl ethers with aryl bromides is described. A Pd(OAc)2/NIXANTPHOS-based catalyst provides aryl(pyridyl)methyl alcohol derivatives in good to excellent yields (33 examples, 57-100% yield). This protocol is compatible with different silyl ether protecting groups, affording either the protected or the free alcohols in an effective one-pot process. The scalability of the reaction is demonstrated.

Chemoselective Palladium-Catalyzed Deprotonative Arylation/[1,2]-Wittig Rearrangement of Pyridylmethyl Ethers

Control of chemoselectivity is one of the most challenging problems facing chemists and is particularly important in the synthesis of bioactive compounds and medications. Herein, the first highly chemoselective tandem C(sp3)-H arylation/[1,2]-Wittig rearrangement of pyridylmethyl ethers is presented. The efficient and operationally simple protocols enable generation of either arylation products or tandem arylation/[1,2]-Wittig rearrangement products with remarkable selectivity and good to excellent yields (60-99%). Choice of base, solvent, and reaction temperature play a pivotal role in tuning the reactivity of intermediates and controlling the relative rates of competing processes. The novel arylation step is catalyzed by a Pd(OAc)2/NIXANTPHOS-based system via a deprotonative cross-coupling process. The method provides rapid access to skeletally diverse aryl(pyridyl)methanol core structures, which are central components of several medications.

N-Heterocyclic carbene catalysed 1,6-hydrophosphonylation of p-quinone methides and fuchsones: an atom economical route to unsymmetrical diaryl- and triarylmethyl phosphonates

A direct method for the synthesis of diaryl- and triarylmethyl phosphonates through 1,6-hydrophosphonylation ofp-quinone methides and fuchsones using NHC as a Brønsted base catalyst is described.

Palladium-Catalyzed Benzylic C-H Arylation of Azaarylmethylamines

A direct C-H functionalization approach to produce aryl(azaaryl)methylamines from azaarylmethylamines without directing groups is described. Under conditions where the azaarylmethylamines' C-H is reversibly deprotonated, a Pd(OAc)(2)/NIXANTPHOS-based catalyst couples the resulting carbanions with various aryl halides to provide aryl(azaaryl)methylamines. This umpolung strategy directly provides tertiary amines without protecting or activating groups.

Route to α-Aryl Phosphonoacetates: Useful Synthetic Precursors in the Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons Olefination

A versatile and general catalytic strategy has been developed for the α-arylation of phosphonoacetates utilizing parallel microscale experimentation. These α-substituted phosphonoacetates are widely useful, notably as substrates in the Horner–Wadsworth–Emmons-type olefinations. However, the current routes to these products involve harsh conditions, limiting the variety of functionality. The reported method can be used with a variety of aryl chlorides and aryl bromides, including several heterocyclic examples.

Palladium-catalyzed α-arylation of aryl acetic acid derivatives via dienolate intermediates with aryl chlorides and bromides

To date, examples of α-arylation of carboxylic acids remain scarce. Using a deprotonative cross-coupling process (DCCP), a method for palladium-catalyzed γ-arylation of aryl acetic acids with aryl halides has been developed. This protocol is applicable to a wide range of aryl bromides and chlorides. A procedure for the palladium-catalyzed α-arylation of styryl acetic acids is also described.

Assembly of 3-allyl-3-ethynyl-oxindole motifs via palladium(ii)-catalyzed quaternary allylation of 3-ethynyl-3-OBoc-oxindoles

A simple and efficient strategy for the synthesis of 3-allyl-3-ethynyl-oxindoles using Pd(ii) catalyst has been developed. Applications of these intermediates were realized by synthesizing structurally diverse carbocyclic spirooxindoles.

Reversed-Polarity Synthesis of Diaryl Ketones through Palladium-Catalyzed Direct Arylation of 2-Aryl-1,3-dithianes

An umpolung approach to the synthesis of diaryl ketones has been developed based on in situ generation of acyl anion equivalents and their catalytic arylation. This method entails the base promoted palladium catalyzed direct C-H arylation of 2 The resulting 2,2-diaryl-1,3-dithianes with aryl bromides. Use of MN(SiMe3)2 (M=Li, Na) base results in reversible deprotonation of the weakly acidic dithiane. In the presence of a Pd(NiXantphos)-based catalyst and aryl bromide, cross-coupling of the metallated 2-aryl-1,3-dithiane takes place under mild conditions (2 h at rt) with yields as high as 96%. The resulting 2,2-diaryl-1,3-dithianes were converted into diaryl ketones by either molecular iodine, N-bromo succinimide (NBS) or Selectfluor in the presence of water. The dithiane arylation/hydrolysis can be performed in a one-pot procedure to yield a good to excellent yields. This method is suitable for rapid and large-scale synthesis of diaryl ketones. A one-pot preparation of anti-cholesterol drug fenofibrate (TriCor®) has been achieved on 10.0 mmol scale in 86% yield.

Room-temperature palladium-catalyzed direct 2-arylation of benzoxazoles with aryl and heteroaryl bromides

An efficient room-temperature palladium-catalyzed direct 2-arylation of benzoxazoles with aryl bromides is presented. The Pd(OAc)2/NiXantphos-based catalyst enables the introduction of various aryl and heteroaryl groups, via a deprotonative cross-coupling process (DCCP) in good to excellent yields (60-99%).

NiXantphos: a deprotonatable ligand for room-temperature palladium-catalyzed cross-couplings of aryl chlorides

Although the past 15 years have witnessed the development of sterically bulky and electron-rich alkylphosphine ligands for palladium-catalyzed cross-couplings with aryl chlorides, examples of palladium catalysts based on either triarylphosphine or bidentate phosphine ligands for efficient room temperature cross-coupling reactions with unactivated aryl chlorides are rare. Herein we report a palladium catalyst based on NiXantphos, a deprotonatable chelating aryldiphosphine ligand, to oxidatively add unactivated aryl chlorides at room temperature. Surprisingly, comparison of an extensive array of ligands revealed that under the basic reaction conditions the resultant heterobimetallic Pd–NiXantphos catalyst system outperformed all the other mono- and bidentate ligands in a deprotonative cross-coupling process (DCCP) with aryl chlorides. The DCCP with aryl chlorides affords a variety of triarylmethane products, a class of compounds with various applications and interesting biological activity. Additionally, the DCCP exhibits remarkable chemoselectivity in the presence of aryl chloride substrates bearing heteroaryl groups and sensitive functional groups that are known to undergo 1,2-addition, aldol reaction, and O-, N-, enolate-α-, and C(sp²)–H arylations. The advantages and importance of the Pd–NiXantphos catalyst system outlined herein make it a valuable contribution for applications in Pd-catalyzed arylation reactions with aryl chlorides.