Discovery and characterization of an acridine radical photoreductant.

Photoinduced electron transfer (PET) is a phenomenon whereby the absorption of light by a chemical species provides an energetic driving force for an electron-transfer reaction1-4. This mechanism is relevant in many areas of chemistry, including the study of natural and artificial photosynthesis, photovoltaics and photosensitive materials. In recent years, research in the area of photoredox catalysis has enabled the use of PET for the catalytic generation of both neutral and charged organic free-radical species. These technologies have enabled previously inaccessible chemical transformations and have been widely used in both academic and industrial settings. Such reactions are often catalysed by visible-light-absorbing organic molecules or transition-metal complexes of ruthenium, iridium, chromium or copper5,6. Although various closed-shell organic molecules have been shown to behave as competent electron-transfer catalysts in photoredox reactions, there are only limited reports of PET reactions involving neutral organic radicals as excited-state donors or acceptors. This is unsurprising because the lifetimes of doublet excited states of neutral organic radicals are typically several orders of magnitude shorter than the singlet lifetimes of known transition-metal photoredox catalysts7-11. Here we document the discovery, characterization and reactivity of a neutral acridine radical with a maximum excited-state oxidation potential of -3.36 volts versus a saturated calomel electrode, which is similarly reducing to elemental lithium, making this radical one of the most potent chemical reductants reported12. Spectroscopic, computational and chemical studies indicate that the formation of a twisted intramolecular charge-transfer species enables the population of higher-energy doublet excited states, leading to the observed potent photoreducing behaviour. We demonstrate that this catalytically generated PET catalyst facilitates several chemical reactions that typically require alkali metal reductants and can be used in other organic transformations that require dissolving metal reductants.

Regioselective Arene C-H Alkylation Enabled by Organic Photoredox Catalysis.

Expanding the toolbox of C-H functionalization reactions applicable to the late-stage modification of complex molecules is of interest in medicinal chemistry, wherein the preparation of structural variants of known pharmacophores is a key strategy for drug development. One manifold for the functionalization of aromatic molecules utilizes diazo compounds and a transition-metal catalyst to generate a metallocarbene species, which is capable of direct insertion into an aromatic C-H bond. However, these high-energy intermediates can often require directing groups or a large excess of substrate to achieve efficient and selective reactivity. Herein, we report that arene cation radicals generated by organic photoredox catalysis engage in formal C-H functionalization reactions with diazoacetate derivatives, furnishing sp2 -sp3 coupled products with moderate-to-good regioselectivity. In contrast to previous methods utilizing metallocarbene intermediates, this transformation does not proceed via a carbene intermediate, nor does it require the presence of a transition-metal catalyst.

Generation and Alkylation of α-Carbamyl Radicals via Organic Photoredox Catalysis.

Strategies for the direct C-H functionalization of amines are valuable as these compounds comprise a number of pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and natural products. This work describes a novel method for the C-H functionalization of carbamate-protected secondary amines via α-carbamyl radicals generated using photoredox catalysis. The use of the highly oxidizing, organic acridinium photoredox catalyst allows for direct oxidation of carbamate-protected amines with high redox potentials to give the corresponding carbamyl cation radical. Following deprotonation, the resultant open-shell species can be intercepted by a variety of Michael acceptors to give elaborate α-functionalized secondary amines. The reaction proceeds under mild conditions without the requirement of exogenous redox mediators or substrate prefunctionalization. Additionally, we were able to showcase the utility of this methodology through the enantioselective synthesis of the indolizidine alkaloid, (+)-monomorine I.

Anti-Markovnikov Hydroazidation of Activated Olefins via Organic Photoredox Catalysis.

Organic azides serve as synthetically useful surrogates for primary amines, a functional group which is ubiquitous in bioactive and medicinally relevant molecules. Historically, the formal hydroazidation of simple activated olefins and styrenes has proven difficult due to the inherent propensity of these compounds to oligomerize. Herein is disclosed a method for the anti-Markovnikov hydroazidation of activated olefins, catalyzed by an organic acridinium salt under irradiation from blue LEDs. This method is applicable to a variety of substituted and terminal styrenes and several vinyl ethers, yielding synthetically versatile hydroazidation products in moderate to excellent yield.

Site-Selective C-H Alkylation of Piperazine Substrates via Organic Photoredox Catalysis.

Piperazine-containing compounds serve as one of the most important classes of compounds throughout all fields of chemistry. Alas, current synthetic methods have fallen short of providing a general method for the synthesis of highly decorated piperazine fragments. Herein, we present a site-selective approach to the C-H functionalization of existing piperazine compounds using photoredox catalysis. This manifold relies on the predictable differentiation of electronically distinct nitrogen centers within the piperazine framework, granting access to novel C-alkylated variants of the starting piperazines.