Iridium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Ring-Opening of Oxabenzonorbornadienes with N-Substituted Piperazine Nucleophiles

Rhodium-Catalyzed Enantioselective Ring-Openings of Oxabicyclic Alkenes with Azole Nucleophiles

We report enantioselective ring-openings of oxabicyclic alkenes with azole nucleophiles, generating heterocycle-bearing dihydronaphthalene products. Pyrazoles, triazoles, tetrazoles, and benzo-fused derivatives participate in the ring-opening, with the level of regioselectivity depending on the type and substitution pattern of the heterocyclic partner. Electron-withdrawing azole substituents have a beneficial effect, suppressing the unproductive complexation of a nitrogen with the Rh(I)-bis(phosphine) catalyst.

Copper-Catalyzed Cycloaddition of Heterobicyclic Alkenes with Diaryl Disulfides to Synthesize Dihydrobenzo[b]thiophene Derivatives

A novel copper-catalyzed cycloaddition of diaryl disulfides to heterobicyclic alkenes has been developed. The C-S and C-C bonds can be formed simultaneously on the C═C bond of the olefins via a single-step cycloaddition to afford a series of 2,3-dihydrobenzo[b]thiophene derivatives. This reaction exhibits excellent diastereoselectivity and relatively broad substrate scope. Various functional groups attached to the substrates are tolerated in this protocol to give the corresponding exo adducts in moderate yields.

Enantioselective synthesis of indole derivatives by Rh/Pd relay catalysis and their anti-inflammatory evaluation

An efficient Rh/Pd relay catalyzed intermolecular and cascade intramolecular hydroamination for the synthesis of exclusive trans 1-indolyl dihydronaphthalenols (up to 88% yield, 99% ee) is described under mild conditions. Moreover, the in silico and in vitro screening showed that the novel 1-indolyl dihydronaphthalenol products are potent lead compounds for treating inflammation disease.

Catalytic asymmetric transformations of oxa- and azabicyclic alkenes

This review provides an overview of the fundamental concepts and recent developments in a wide range of enantioselective transformations involving oxa- and azabicyclic alkenes.

Copper-catalyzed diastereoselective hydrothioetherification of oxa(aza)benzonorbornadienes

A novel copper-catalyzed hydrothioetherification of oxa(aza)bicyclic alkenes with potassium thioacetate and aryl or alkyl iodides to synthesize unsymmetrical thioethers has been developed. Notably, the reaction with complete diastereoselectivity went through a syn-selective addition process to give exo-adducts. In addition, this protocol exhibited high efficiency and good functional group tolerance to afford the target thioethers in moderate to good yields. Based on the results of mechanistic investigations, a plausible mechanism was proposed.

Palladium-Catalyzed syn-Stereocontrolled Ring Opening of Oxabicyclic Alkenes with Arylsulfonyl Hydrazides

A novel palladium-catalyzed ring-opening reaction of oxabicyclic alkenes with arylsulfonyl hydrazides was first developed. In this work, we provide an efficient one-pot reaction to afford the corresponding cis-2-aryl-1,2-dihydronaphthalen-1-ols and 2-aryl-naphthalenes in moderate to excellent yields (up to 95%) under an open-air condition. Various types of functional groups attached to the substrates were tolerated well in this method. Among them, the cis-1,2-configuration of product 3ag was confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis. In addition, a plausible mechanism for ring opening was also proposed.

Nickel-catalyzed syn-stereocontrolled ring-opening of oxa- and azabicyclic alkenes with dialkylzinc reagents

A new efficient nickel-catalyzed syn-stereocontrolled ring-opening of oxa(aza)bicyclic alkenes with dialkylzinc reagents was developed.

Recent Advances in Transition Metal-Catalyzed Reactions of Oxabenzonorbornadiene

BACKGROUND

Oxabenzonorbornadiene (OBD) is a useful synthetic intermediate capable of undergoing multiple types of transformations due to three key structural features: a free alkene, a bridged oxygen atom, and a highly strained ring system. Most notably, ring-opening reactions of OBD using transition metal catalysts and nucleophiles produce multiple stereocenters in a single step. The resulting dihydronaphthalene framework is found in many natural products, which have been shown to be biologically active.

OBJECTIVE

This review will provide an overview of transition metal-catalyzed reactions from the past couple of years including cobalt, copper, iridium, nickel, palladium and rhodium- catalyzed reactions. In addition, the recent derivatization of OBD to cyclopropanated oxabenzonorbornadiene and its reactivity will be discussed.

CONCLUSION

It can be seen from the review, that the work done on this topic has employed the use of many different transition metal catalysts, with many different nucleophiles, to perform various transformations on the OBD molecule. Additionally, depending on the catalyst and ligand used, the stereo and regioselectivity of the product can be controlled, with proposed mechanisms to support the understanding of such reactions. The use of palladium has also generated a cyclopropanated OBD, with reactivity similar to that of OBD. An additional reactive site exists at the distal cyclopropane carbon, giving rise to three types of ring-opened products.

Platinum-catalyzed syn-stereocontrolled ring-opening of oxabicyclic alkenes with sodium arylsulfinates

A new efficient platinum-catalyzed ring-opening reaction of oxabicyclic alkenes with a wide range of sodium arylsulfinates was developed.

Iridium/Copper Co-catalyzed Anti-Stereoselective Ring Opening of Oxabenzonorbornadienes with Grignard Reagents

Cooperative catalysis has been widely considered as one of the most powerful strategies to improve synthetic efficiency. A new iridium/copper cocatalyst was developed for the ring-opening reaction of oxabenzonorbornadienes with a wide variety of Grignard reagents, which afforded the corresponding anti-2-substituted 1,2-dihydronaphthalen-1-ols in high yields (up to 99% yield) under mild conditions. The effects of catalyst loading, Lewis acid, Grignard reagent loading, and reaction temperature on the yield were investigated. To the best of our knowledge, it represents the first example of ring-opening reactions of oxabicyclic alkenes with Grignard reagent nucleophiles in a trans-stereoselective manner.