Synthesis of α-keto esters by the rhodium-catalysed reaction of cyanoformate with arylboronic acids

Synthesis of Diverse γ-Lactams via Rh-Catalyzed C(sp2)-H Addition to Aliphatic Nitriles

We herein report an unprecedented pathway to access γ-lactams using acetonitrile analogues as coupling partners without oxidants, ligands, and Lewis acids. The reaction undergoes Rh-catalyzed C(sp²)-H addition to carbon-bound nitriles with the aid of an amide traceless auxiliary followed by an annulation sequence, featuring a broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, and excellent chemo/stereoselectivity. Scale-up reactions and late-stage derivatizations highlight the potential synthetic utility of this methodology. A plausible mechanism is proposed based on mechanistic investigations.

Metal-catalyzed reactions of organic nitriles and boronic acids to access diverse functionality

The nitrile or cyano (-CN) group is one of the most appreciated and effective functional groups in organic synthesis, having a polar unsaturated C-N triple bond. Despite sufficient stability and being intrinsically inert, the nitrile group can be easily transformed into many other functional groups, such as amines, carboxylic acids, ketones, etc. which makes it a vital group in organic synthesis. On the other hand, despite several boronic acids having a low level of genotoxicity, they have found wide applicability in the field of organic synthesis, especially in transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions. Recently, transition-metal-catalyzed cascade additions or addition/cyclization processes of boronic acids to the nitrile group open up exciting and useful strategies to prepare a variety of functional molecules through the formation of C-C, C-N and CO bonds. Boronic acids can be added to the cyano functionality through catalytic carbometallation or through a radical cascade process to provide newer pathways for the rapid construction of various important acyclic ketones or amides, carbamidines, carbocycles and N,O-heterocycles. The present review focuses on various transition-metal-catalyzed additions of boronic acids via carbometallation or radical cascade processes using the cyano group as an acceptor.

Copper on charcoal: Cu0 nanoparticle catalysed aerobic oxidation of α-diazo esters

By using a charcoal supported nano Cu⁰ catalyst (Cu/C), a highly efficient oxidation of α-diazo esters to α-ketoesters with molecular oxygen as the sole oxidant has been developed. In the presence of the Cu/C catalyst, 2-aryl-α-diazo esters with both electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups can be oxidized to the corresponding α-ketoesters efficiently. Furthermore, this Cu/C catalyst can catalyse the reaction of aryl α-diazo ester with water to form aryl ketoester, 2-aryl-2-hydroxyl acetate ester and 2-aryl acetate ester. In this case, water is split by α-diazo ester, and the diazo group is displaced by the oxygen or hydrogen atom in water. Mechanistic investigation showed that the reaction of α-diazo ester with oxygen proceeds through a radical pathway. In the presence of 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl piperidine nitrogen oxide, the reaction of α-diazo ester with oxygen is dramatically inhibited. Furthermore, the reaction of α-diazo ester with water is investigated by an isotopic tracer method, and GCMS detection showed that a disproportionation reaction occurred between α-diazo ester and water.

A palladium-catalyzed cascade process for spirooxindole: an alternative way for the synthesis of spiro(indoline-3,2'-quinazolin)-2-ones

A palladium-catalyzed cascade strategy has been developed for one-pot synthesis of functionalized spiro(indoline-3,2'-quinazolin)-2-one derivatives from readily available starting materials. The reaction proceeds via C-C and two C-N bond formations in a single reaction operation. This method offers an attractive pathway for the synthesis of a broad range of spiro(indoline-3,2'-quinazolin)-2-ones in good yields.

Transition-Metal-Catalyzed Addition/Cyclization Reactions of the C-N Multiple Bonds Containing Species

This article describes our research work for the past decade, which involves the transition-metal-catalyzed cyclization reactions of the C-N multiple bonds containing species and their synthetic applications to access various heterocyclic compounds. The concepts of reactions including four types of coupling with a subsequent cyclization are (1) the transition-metal performs as a Lewis acid to activate a nitrile and accelerate the nucleophilic addition, (2) the transition-metal-catalyzed 1,2-insertion reaction of nitrile, (3) the Cu-catalyzed C-N coupling reaction of imine, and (4) the Co-catalyzed addition/cyclization reaction of imine. These methods can be used to synthesize various N-containing aromatic heterocycles with higher efficiency, and can be applied to the synthesis of relevent natural alkaloids, their derivatives as well as biologically active compounds.

Palladium-catalyzed C-H activation of simple arenes and cascade reaction with nitriles: access to 2,4,5-trisubstituted oxazoles

An efficient and straightforward protocol for the assembly of the pharmaceutically and biologically valuable oxazole skeleton is achieved for the first time from readily available simple arenes and functionalized aliphatic nitriles. This transformation involves palladium-catalyzed C-H activation, carbopalladation and a tandem annulation sequence in one pot. Notably, the reaction proceeds efficiently under redox-neutral conditions, and exhibits high atom-economy. Deuterium-labeling experiments suggested that C-H bond cleavage of the simple arenes might be the rate-determining step.

"On water" palladium catalyzed diastereoselective boronic acid addition to structurally diverse cyclopropane nitriles

An efficient palladium catalyzed diastereoselective addition of arylboronic acids to complex spirocyclopropyl dinitriles is developed in the presence of a catalytic amount of 4-dodecylbenzenesulphonic acid (DBSA) as a Brønsted acid surfactant in aqueous media. The protocol is also found to be highly effective when different types of nitrile compounds and organo-boron compounds are used. The overall reaction has been found to be very cost efficient since it requires low catalyst loading, mild thermal energy and short reaction time. Wide substrate scope, operational simplicity, good to excellent product yield, and use of green solvents make the reaction a practical route to transform nitrile into a keto functionality in biorelevant heterocyclic scaffolds. The scale-up synthesis of the target scaffolds can also be achieved with ease which also signifies the practicability of this protocol.

Nickel(ii)-catalyzed C–C, N–C cascade coupling of ketonitriles into substituted pyrroles and pyridines

The first example of nickel complexes as effectively catalyst to C–C, N–C cascade coupling of ketonitriles with arylboronic acids, affording 2,5-diarylpyrroles and 2,6-diarylpyridines.

Copper catalyzed photoredox synthesis of α-keto esters, quinoxaline, and naphthoquinone: controlled oxidation of terminal alkynes to glyoxals

Controlled oxidation of the terminal C Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019 ]]> C triple bond using O₂ (1 atm) as an oxidant and reagent.

Herein, we report a facile visible light induced copper catalyzed controlled oxidation of terminal C Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019 ]]> C alkynes to α-keto esters and quinoxalines via formation of phenylglyoxals as stable intermediates, under mild conditions by using molecular O₂ as a sustainable oxidant. The current copper catalysed photoredox method is simple, highly functional group compatible with a broad range of electron rich and electron poor aromatic alkynes as well as aliphatic alcohols (1°, 2° and 3° alcohols), providing an efficient route for the preparation of α-keto esters (43 examples), quinoxaline and naphthoquinone with higher yields than those in the literature reported thermal processes. Furthermore, the synthetic utility of the products has been demonstrated in the synthesis of two biologically active molecules, an E. coli DHPS inhibitor and CFTR activator, using the current photoredox process. In addition, we applied this methodology to the one-pot synthesis of a heterocyclic compound (quinoxaline, an FLT3 inhibitor) by trapping the intermediate phenylglyoxal with O-phenylenediamine. The intermediate phenylglyoxal can also be isolated and further reacted with an internal alkyne to form naphthoquinone. This process can be readily scaled up to the gram scale.

Copper-Catalyzed Borylative Cyclization of in Situ Generated o-Allenylaryl Nitriles with Bis(pinacolato)diboron

A Cu-catalyzed cascade borylcupration/cyclization of in situ generated allene-nitriles with B₂pin₂ has been developed, which provides highly substituted 3-boryl-1-naphthylamines with excellent regioselectivity and wide functional group compatibility. It has been shown that, for the first time, the catalytically generated allylcopper species can be captured by a cyano group from a normal nitrile to furnish a carbocycle.

Nickel-catalyzed cyclization of alkyne-nitriles with organoboronic acids involving anti-carbometalation of alkynes

Nickel-catalyzed regioselective addition/cyclization of o-(cyano)phenyl propargyl ethers with arylboronic acids provides an efficient protocol for the synthesis of functionalized 1-naphthylamines.

A nickel-catalyzed regioselective addition/cyclization of o-(cyano)phenyl propargyl ethers with arylboronic acids has been developed, which provides an efficient protocol for the synthesis of highly functionalized 1-naphthylamines with wide structural diversity. The reaction is characterized by a regioselective and anti-addition of the arylboronic acids to the alkyne and subsequent facile nucleophilic addition of the resulting alkenylmetal to the tethered cyano group. Mechanistic studies reveal that a Ni(i) species might be involved in the catalytic process.

Palladium catalyzed decarboxylative acylation of arylboronic acid with ethyl cyanoacetate as a new acylating agent: synthesis of alkyl aryl ketones

The versatile, one-pot synthesis of a series of alkyl aryl ketones is described using ethyl cyanoacetate as a new acylating agent.

Copper-catalyzed cascade addition/cyclization: highly efficient access to phosphonylated quinoline-2,4(1H,3H)-diones

A novel Cu-catalyzed addition/cyclization cascade of o-cyanoarylacrylamide has been developed for the synthesis of various phosphonylated quinoline-2,4(1H,3H)-diones.

Palladium-catalyzed direct addition of arylboronic acids to 2-aminobenzonitrile derivatives: synthesis, biological evaluation and in silico analysis of 2-aminobenzophenones, 7-benzoyl-2-oxoindolines, and 7-benzoylindoles

A palladium-catalyzed direct addition of arylboronic acids to unprotected 2-aminobenzonitriles has been developed, leading to a wide range of 2-aminobenzophenones with moderate to excellent yields. The transformation has broad scope and high functional group tolerance. Moreover, 2-oxoindoline-7-carbonitrile and indole-7-carbonitrile were applicable to this process for the construction of 7-benzoyl-2-oxoindolines and 7-benzoylindoles, respectively. Among the compounds examined, compound 4e possessed the most potent anticancer activity against H446 and HGC-27 in vitro, with IC50 values of 0.02 μmol L(-1) and 0.09 μmol L(-1), respectively, while compound 4a showed the best potent anticancer activity against SGC-7901 with an IC50 value of 0.01 μmol L(-1). Furthermore, we also performed in silico molecular docking calculations to investigate the interaction mode and binding affinity between the examined compounds and their tubulin target.

Palladium-catalyzed tandem reaction of 2-hydroxyarylacetonitriles with sodium sulfinates: one-pot synthesis of 2-arylbenzofurans

Palladium-catalyzed desulfinative addition and intramolecular annulation tandem reactions of 2-hydroxyarylacetonitriles with sodium sulfinates for one-pot synthesis of 2-arylbenzofurans.

Palladium-Catalysed Addition of Potassium Phenyltrifluoroborate to Dinitriles: Synthesis of Diketone Compounds

Pd(OAc)2/1,10-phenanthroline-catalysed addition of potassium phenyltrifluoroborate to aliphatic dinitriles in 2-MeTHF has been developed, achieving diphenyl diones in moderate to excellent yields. The scope of the developed approach was successfully explored toward the addition of potassium phenyltrifluoroborate to aromatic dinitriles. Additionally, a plausible pathway for the formation of the diones has been proposed.

Phosphine ligand triggered oxidative decarbonylative homocoupling of aromatic aldehydes: selectively generating biaryls and diarylketones

A novel rhodium-catalyzed oxidative decarbonylative homocoupling of aromatic aldehydes to generate biaryls and diarylketones selectively and efficiently, triggered by the choice of different phosphine ligands.