Bodipy-Based Metal-Organic Frameworks Transformed in Solid States from 1D Chains to 2D Layer Structures as Efficient Visible Light Heterogeneous Photocatalysts for Forging C-B and C-C Bonds

Boron dipyrromethene (also known as bodipy), as a class of versatile and robust fluorophores and a structural analogue of porphyrins, has received a great deal of interests in the field of light-harvesting and energy-transfer processes. However, the fabrication of bodipy monomers into metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and the exploitation of their potential still lags behind the porphyrin MOFs. In this work, two bodipy-based MOFs, BMOF 1D with 1D chain structure and BMOF 2D with 2D layer structure, were assembled by using dicarboxyl-functionalized bodipy ligands. BMOF 1D can also be converted to BMOF 2D by inserting additional ligands into BMOF 1D to cross-link the adjacent chains into the rhombic grid layer. During this process, spontaneous exfoliation occurred simultaneously and resulted in the formation of several hundred nanometer thickness BMOF 2D (nBMOF 2D), which can be further exfoliated into one-layer MOF nanosheets (BMON 2D) by using the ultrasonic liquid exfoliation method in a high yield. Featuring the distinct bodipy scaffolds in the porous frameworks, both BMOF 2D and BMON 2D displayed high reactivity and recyclability in the photocatalytic inverse hydroboration and cross-dehydrogenative coupling reactions to afford α-amino organoborons and α-amino amides in moderate to high yields. This work not only highlights the cascade utilization of ligand installation and ultrasonic liquid exfoliation methods to provide the single-layer MOF sheets in high yields but also advances the bodipy-based MOFs as a new type of heterogeneous photocatalysts in the forging of C-B and C-C bonds driven by visible light.

Organic photoredox catalyzed dealkylation/acylation of tertiary amines to access amides

A mild metal-free C-N bond activation strategy for the direct conversion of inert tertiary amines with acyl chlorides into tertiary amides via organic photoredox catalysis is presented. In this protocol, a novel organic photocatalyst (Cz-NI-Ph) that showed excellent catalytic performance during C-N bond cleavage is developed. Moreover, this reaction features green and mild conditions, broad substrate scope, and readily available raw materials.

Tris(4-bromophenyl)aminium Hexachloroantimonate as a "Waste-Utilized"-Type Initiator-Promoted C-H Chlorination via C-H Activation Relay: Synthesis of Chlorinated Pyrroles

Using tris(4-bromophenyl)aminium hexachloroantimonate as a "waste-utilized"-type initiator, the aerobic oxidation of the sp³ C-H bond of proline esters was realized via C-H activation relay, giving a series of halogenated pyrroles in high yields. The mechanistic study revealed that the counterion, SbCl₆^-, was involved in the radical chlorination process, which provides a new way to understand the role of the counterions.

Borane-catalyzed cascade Friedel–Crafts alkylation/[1,5]-hydride transfer/Mannich cyclization to afford tetrahydroquinolines

We report a redox-neutral annulation reaction of tertiary amines with electron-deficient alkynes under metal-free and oxidant-free conditions.

Visible light organic photoredox catalytic cascade reactions

Over the past years, impressive progress has been made in the development of organic photoredox catalytic cascade reactions without the participation of expensive and toxic transition metals under visible light irradiation. These transformations highly depend on the in situ generation of various radical species in the photoredox catalytic cycles. Numerous chemically and biomedically valuable building blocks have been synthesized through this efficient and sustainable protocol. In this review, we highlight the recent progress in this blooming area by presenting a series of new catalytic cascade reactions mediated by organic photoredox catalysts and describe their mechanisms and applications which have appeared in the recent literature.

Dehydrogenation/(3+2) Cycloaddition of Saturated Aza-Heterocycles via Merging Organic Photoredox and Lewis Acid Catalysis

Herein, we report a photoinduced dehydrogenation/(3+2) cycloaddition reaction by merging organic photoredox and Lewis acid catalysis, providing a straightforward and efficient approach for directly installing a benzofuran skeleton on the saturated aza-heterocycles. In this protocol, we also describe a novel organic photocatalyst (t-Bu-DCQ) with the advantages of a wider redox potential, easy synthesis, and a low price. Furthermore, the stepwise activation mechanism of dual C(sp³)-H bonds was demonstrated by a series of experimental and computational studies.

Synergistic promoting effect of ball milling and Fe(ii) catalysis for cross-dehydrogenative-coupling of 1,4-benzoxazinones with indoles

In this work, a novel C(sp3)–C(sp2) cross-dehydrogenative-coupling method is developed to react benzoxazin-2-one derivatives with various indoles. As a result, combined use of ball milling and Fe(ii) catalysis leads to rapid coupling of 1,4-benzoxazinones with derivatives of indole. Under the conditions, derivatives of 1 couple with various indoles at room temperature to produce good yields of the desired compounds within 0.5–2 h time period. Thus, derivatives of both starting materials couple smoothly under relatively mild conditions to give good yields of 3.

Oxidation of the inert sp3 C-H bonds of tetrahydroisoquinolines through C-H activation relay (CHAR): construction of functionalized isoquinolin-1-ones

A TBN/O₂-initiated oxidation of the relatively inert 3,4-C-H bonds of THIQs was accomplished, in which the existence of an α-phosphoric ester group is crucial to enable dioxygen trapping and intramolecular HAT (C-H activation relay, CHAR), realizing the synthesis of a series of isoquinolin-1-ones in high yields. The mechanistic study confirmed that the formation of the 3,4-double bond is mediated by the CHAR process. This work provides a new strategy to achieve remote C-H bond activation.

Visible-Light-Driven Stereoselective Annulation of Alkyl Anilines and Dibenzoylethylenes via Electron Donor-Acceptor Complexes

A catalyst-free, stereoselective visible-light-driven annulation reaction between alkenes and N,N-substituted dialkyl anilines for the synthesis of substituted tetrahydroquinolines is presented. The reaction is driven by the photoexcitation of an electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complex, and the resulting products are obtained in good to high yields with complete diastereoselectivity. Mechanistic rationale and photochemical characterization of the EDA-complex are provided.

Hydrogen-bonding-assisted redox-neutral construction of tetrahydroquinolines via hydride transfer

The hydrogen-bonding-assisted construction of tetrahydroquinolines decorated with structurally diverse 3,3'-difunctional groups has been realized via a hydride transfer-involved three-step cascade reaction in the presence of morpholine. This protocol solves the limitation of acyclic 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds by one-pot synthesis of tetrahydroquinolines, featuring operational simplicity, broadly applicable substrates, and metal- and acid-free conditions with EtOH as a hydrogen-bonding donor.

The dual alkylation of the C(sp3)–H bond of cyclic α-methyl-N-sulfonyl imines via the sequential condensation/hydride transfer/cyclization process

The dual alkylation of the C(sp³)–H bond of the cyclic α-methyl-N-sulfonyl imine has been achieved through the piperidine-promoted cascade condensation/[1,5]-hydride transfer/cyclization from cyclic α-methyl-N-sulfonyl imine and o-aminobenzaldehyde in trifluoroethanol.

Visible Light Photoredox-Catalyzed α-Alkylation of Cyclic Tertiary Arylamines

An efficient method was successfully developed to obtain cyclic β-amino ketones via visible-light photoredox catalysis. With this catalytic system, vinyl azides and N-Ph pyrrolidines react to form cyclic β-amino ketones by α-amino radical addition. This method provides a simple, mild, straightforward, and novel paradigm to prepare important β-amino ketones.

Progress in the Chemistry of Tetrahydroquinolines

Tetrahydroquinoline is one of the most important simple nitrogen heterocycles, being widespread in nature and present in a broad variety of pharmacologically active compounds. This Review summarizes the progress achieved in the chemistry of tetrahydroquinolines, with emphasis on their synthesis, during the period from mid-2010 to early 2018.

Dual Catalytic Switchable Divergent Synthesis: An Asymmetric Visible-Light Photocatalytic Approach to Fluorine-Containing γ-Keto Acid Frameworks

Herein, we describe a novel and efficient method for constructing a series of fluorine-containing γ-keto acid derivatives through combining visible-light photoredox catalysis and chiral Lewis acid catalysis. With this dual catalytic strategy, a variety of chiral γ-keto amides containing a gem-difluoroalkyl group and a series of fluorine-containing α,β-unsaturated-γ-keto esters were successfully constructed with high stereoselectivities, respectively. A series of experiments showed that the chemoselectivity of this process was highly dependent on the fluorine reagents besides the Lewis acid catalysts. This approach facilitates rapid access to γ-keto acid derivatives, an important class of precursors for pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, and various other additives.

Construction of N-Heterocycles through Cyclization of Tertiary Amines

N-Heterocycles have been found in a large number of natural products, drug molecules, and bioactive compounds, and they thereby play a vital role in diverse research disciplines including drug discovery, organic synthesis, chemical biology, and material science. To this end, the development of new methods and strategies for the construction of N-heterocyclic frameworks is arguably one of the most dynamic and significant research areas in organic synthesis. One of these powerful approaches to the synthesis of N-heterocycles is to establish cyclization reactions based on the transformation of tertiary amines, which has emerged as an attractive research topic. In this Minireview, the significant achievements in the construction of N-heterocycles through cyclization of tertiary amines are highlighted and a comprehensive overview of the rational design, development, and application of these synthetic methods is presented.

Transition-Metal-Free Selective C-H Benzylation of Tertiary Arylamines by a Dearomatization-Aromatization Sequence

Due to the significance of hybrid systems in drug discovery, there is an urgent need to assemble multiple biologically active ingredients into a single molecule. Here, we report a general transition-metal-free selective C-H benzylation of tertiary arylamines in good to excellent yields with a broad substrate scope and high functional-group tolerance under mild conditions. Besides arylamines, some other benzene derivatives also readily furnished the corresponding diaryl methane derivatives with this protocol. A series of control experiments and theoretical calculations indicated that this transition-metal-free reaction is a dearomatization-aromatization process.

Oxidative Asymmetric Formal Aza-Diels⁻Alder Reactions of Tetrahydro-β-carboline with Enones in the Synthesis of Indoloquinolizidine-2-ones

Ru-catalyzed tandem amine oxidative dehydrogenation/formal aza-Diels⁻Alder reaction for enantio- and diastereoselective synthesis of indoloquinolizidine-2-ones from tetrahydro-β-carbolines and α,β-unsaturated ketones is described. The reaction proceeds via tandem ruthenium-catalyzed amine dehydrogenation using tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) as the oxidant and a chiral thiourea-catalyzed formal aza-[4 + 2] cycloaddition, providing a step-economical strategy for the synthesis of these valuable heterocyclic products.

Photoredox-Induced Intramolecular 1,5-H Transfer Reaction of Aryl Iodides for the Synthesis of Spirocyclic γ-Lactams

This work develops a photocatalysis method for the synthesis of γ-spirolactams through a tandem intramolecular 1,5-HAT reaction-cyclization process. A variety of novel γ-spirolactams are prepared in good to excellent yields with this method. This transformation features mild reaction conditions and exceptional functional group tolerance. Additionally, γ-terpinene is applied to this transformation as a hydrogen atom donor for the first time.

Dual C(sp3 )-H Bond Functionalization of N-Heterocycles through Sequential Visible-Light Photocatalyzed Dehydrogenation/[2+2] Cycloaddition Reactions

Herein we describe a mild method for the dual C(sp³ )-H bond functionalization of saturated nitrogen-containing heterocycles through a sequential visible-light photocatalyzed dehydrogenation/[2+2] cycloaddition procedure. As a complementary approach to the well-established use of iminium ion and α-amino radical intermediates, the elusive cyclic enamine intermediates were effectively generated by photoredox catalysis under mild conditions and efficiently captured by acetylene esters to form a wide array of bicyclic amino acid derivatives, thus enabling the simultaneous functionalization of two vicinal C(sp³ )-H bonds.

Visible light-induced aerobic oxidative cross-coupling of glycine derivatives with indoles: a facile access to 3,3′ bisindolylmethanes

A rapid synthesis of 3,3′-bisindolylmethanes is achieved via a photocatalyzed double Friedel–Crafts alkylation reaction between glycine derivatives and indoles.

Metal-free photocatalyzed aerobic oxidative Csp3–H functionalization of glycine derivatives: one-step generation of quinoline-fused lactones

This reaction provides facile access to a series of valuable quinoline-fused lactones at room temperature under an air atmosphere.

Alkene functionalization for the stereospecific synthesis of substituted aziridines by visible-light photoredox catalysis

A novel strategy involving visible-light-induced functionalization of alkenes for the stereospecific synthesis of substituted aziridines was developed.

Catalytic dehydrogenative dual functionalization of ethers: dealkylation–oxidation–bromination accompanied by C–O bond cleavage via aerobic oxidation of bromide

Catalytic dehydrogenative dual functionalization (DDF) of ethers via oxidation, dealkylation, and α-bromination by the aerobic oxidation of bromide was developed to obtain the corresponding α-bromo ketones in high yields.

A dual removable activating group enabled the Povarov reaction of N-arylalanine esters: synthesis of quinoline-4-carboxylate esters

A dual removable activating group enabled Povarov reaction of N-arylalanine esters was reported.

Rh(iii)-Catalyzed bilateral cyclization of aldehydes with nitrosos toward unsymmetrical acridines proceeding with C–H functionalization enabled by a transient directing group

A Rh(iii)-catalyzed bilateral cyclization was developed for the efficient construction of acridines proceeding with C–H functionalization byin situformation and removal of a transient directing group.

Catalytic Enantioselective α-Fluorination of 2-Acyl Imidazoles via Iridium Complexes

The first highly enantioselective α-fluorination of 2-acyl imidazoles utilizing iridium catalysis has been accomplished. This transformation features mild conditions and a remarkably broad substrate scope, providing an efficient and highly enantioselective approach to obtain a wide range of fluorine-containing 2-acyl imidazoles which are found in a variety of bioactive compounds and prodrugs. A large scale synthesis has also been tested to demonstrate the potential utility of this fluorination method.