Rh-Catalyzed Enantioselective Single-Carbon Insertion of Alkenes.

The interest in the discovery and development of skeletal editing processes that selectively insert, exchange, or delete an atom in organic molecules has significantly increased over the last few years. However, processes of this class that proceed through the creation of a chiral center with high asymmetric induction have been largely unexplored. Herein, we report an enantioselective single-carbon insertion in aryl- and alkyl-substituted alkenes mediated by a catalytically generated chiral Rh-carbynoid and phosphate nucleophiles that produce enantioenriched allylic phosphates (enantiomeric ratio (e.r.) = 89.5:10.5-99.5:0.5). The key to the process was a diastereo- and enantioselective cyclopropanation of the alkene with a chiral Rh-carbynoid and the formation of a transient cyclopropyl-I(III) intermediate. The addition of the phosphate nucleophile provided a cyclopropyl-I(III)-phosphate intermediate that undergoes disrotatory ring opening following the Woodward-Hoffmann-DePuy rules. This process led to a chiral intimate allyl cation-phosphate pair that evolved with excellent enantioretention. The evidence of an SN1-like SNi mechanism is provided by linear free-energy relationship studies, kinetic isotope effects, X-ray crystallography, and control experiments. We demonstrated the utility of the enantioenriched allylic phosphates in late-stage N-H allylations of natural products and drug molecules and in cross-coupling reactions that occurred with excellent enantiospecificity.

Alkoxy Diazomethylation of Alkenes by Photoredox-Catalyzed Oxidative Radical-Polar Crossover.

Herein, we present the discovery and development of the first photoredox-catalyzed alkoxy diazomethylation of alkenes with hypervalent iodine reagents and alcohols. This multicomponent process represents a new disconnection approach to diazo compounds and is featured by a broad scope, mild reaction conditions, and excellent selectivity. Key to the process was the generation of diazomethyl radicals, which engaged alkenes and alcohols in an inter- and intramolecular fashion by a photoredox-catalyzed oxidative radical-polar crossover leading to unexplored ß-alkoxydiazo compounds. The synthetic utility of such diazo compounds was demonstrated with a series of transformations involving C-H, N-H, and O-H insertions as well as in the construction of complex sp3-rich heterocycles.

A protein functionalization platform based on selective reactions at methionine residues.

Nature has a remarkable ability to carry out site-selective post-translational modification of proteins, therefore enabling a marked increase in their functional diversity1. Inspired by this, chemical tools have been developed for the synthetic manipulation of protein structure and function, and have become essential to the continued advancement of chemical biology, molecular biology and medicine. However, the number of chemical transformations that are suitable for effective protein functionalization is limited, because the stringent demands inherent to biological systems preclude the applicability of many potential processes2. These chemical transformations often need to be selective at a single site on a protein, proceed with very fast reaction rates, operate under biologically ambient conditions and should provide homogeneous products with near-perfect conversion2-7. Although many bioconjugation methods exist at cysteine, lysine and tyrosine, a method targeting a less-explored amino acid would considerably expand the protein functionalization toolbox. Here we report the development of a multifaceted approach to protein functionalization based on chemoselective labelling at methionine residues. By exploiting the electrophilic reactivity of a bespoke hypervalent iodine reagent, the S-Me group in the side chain of methionine can be targeted. The bioconjugation reaction is fast, selective, operates at low-micromolar concentrations and is complementary to existing bioconjugation strategies. Moreover, it produces a protein conjugate that is itself a high-energy intermediate with reactive properties and can serve as a platform for the development of secondary, visible-light-mediated bioorthogonal protein functionalization processes. The merger of these approaches provides a versatile platform for the development of distinct transformations that deliver information-rich protein conjugates directly from the native biomacromolecules.

Generating carbyne equivalents with photoredox catalysis.

Carbon has the unique ability to bind four atoms and form stable tetravalent structures that are prevalent in nature. The lack of one or two valences leads to a set of species-carbocations, carbanions, radicals and carbenes-that is fundamental to our understanding of chemical reactivity. In contrast, the carbyne-a monovalent carbon with three non-bonded electrons-is a relatively unexplored reactive intermediate; the design of reactions involving a carbyne is limited by challenges associated with controlling its extreme reactivity and the lack of efficient sources. Given the innate ability of carbynes to form three new covalent bonds sequentially, we anticipated that a catalytic method of generating carbynes or related stabilized species would allow what we term an 'assembly point' disconnection approach for the construction of chiral centres. Here we describe a catalytic strategy that generates diazomethyl radicals as direct equivalents of carbyne species using visible-light photoredox catalysis. The ability of these carbyne equivalents to induce site-selective carbon-hydrogen bond cleavage in aromatic rings enables a useful diazomethylation reaction, which underpins sequencing control for the late-stage assembly-point functionalization of medically relevant agents. Our strategy provides an efficient route to libraries of potentially bioactive molecules through the installation of tailored chiral centres at carbon-hydrogen bonds, while complementing current translational late-stage functionalization processes. Furthermore, we exploit the dual radical and carbene character of the generated carbyne equivalent in the direct transformation of abundant chemical feedstocks into valuable chiral molecules.

Generating Fischer-Type Rh-Carbenes with Rh-Carbynoids.

We describe the first catalytic generation of Fischer-type acyloxy Rh(II)-carbenes from carboxylic acids and Rh(II)-carbynoids. This novel class of transient donor/acceptor Rh(II)-carbenes evolved through a cyclopropanation process providing access to densely functionalized cyclopropyl-fused lactones with excellent diastereoselectivity. DFT calculations allowed the analysis of the properties of Rh(II)-carbynoids and acyloxy Rh(II)-carbenes as well as the characterization of the mechanism.

Late-Stage Aryl C-H Bond Cyclopropenylation with Cyclopropenium Cations.

Herein, we disclose the first regio-, site- and chemoselective late-stage (hetero)aryl C-H bond cyclopropenylation with cyclopropenium cations (CPCs). The process is fast, operationally simple and shows an excellent functional group tolerance in densely-functionalized drug molecules, natural products, agrochemicals and fluorescent dyes. Moreover, we discovered that the installation of the cyclopropene ring in drug molecules could not only be used to shield against metabolic instability but also as a synthetic tool to reach medicinally-relevant sp3 -rich scaffolds exploiting the highly-strained nature of the cyclopropene ring with known transformations.

Catalytic Synthesis of Cyclopropenium Cations with Rh-Carbynoids.

Herein, we report the first catalytic one-step synthesis of cyclopropenium cations (CPCs) with readily available alkynes and hypervalent iodine reagents as carbyne sources. Key to the process is the catalytic generation of a novel Rh-carbynoid that formally transfers monovalent cationic carbynes (:+C-R) to alkynes via an oxidative [2+1] cycloaddition. Our process is able to synthesize a new type of CPC substituted with an ester group that underpins the regioselective attack of a broad range of carbon and heteroatomic nucleophiles, thus providing a new platform for the synthesis of valuable cyclopropenes difficult or not possible to make by current methodologies.

ß-Diazocarbonyl Compounds: Synthesis and their Rh(II)-Catalyzed 1,3 C-H Insertions.

Herein, we describe the first electrophilic diazomethylation of ketone silyl enol ethers with diazomethyl-substituted hypervalent iodine reagents that gives access to unusual ß-diazocarbonyl compounds. The potential of this unexplored class of diazo compounds for the development of new reactions was demonstrated by the discovery of a rare Rh-catalyzed intramolecular 1,3 C-H carbene insertion that led to complex cyclopropanes with excellent stereocontrol.

Catalytic Cleavage of C(sp2)-C(sp2) Bonds with Rh-Carbynoids.

We report a catalytic strategy that generates rhodium-carbynoids by selective diazo activation of designed carbyne sources. We found that rhodium-carbynoid species provoke C(sp2)-C(sp2) bond scission in alkenes by inserting a monovalent carbon unit between both sp2-hybridized carbons. This skeletal remodeling process accesses synthetically useful allyl cation intermediates that conduct to valuable allylic building blocks upon nucleophile attack. Our results rely on the formation of cyclopropyl-I(III) intermediates able to undergo electrocyclic ring-opening, following the Woodward-Hoffmann-DePuy rules.

A Stereoconvergent Cyclopropanation Reaction of Styrenes.

The first stereoconvergent cyclopropanation reaction by means of photoredox catalysis using diiodomethane as the methylene source is described. This transformation exhibits broad functional group tolerance and it is characterized by an excellent stereocontrol en route to trans-cyclopropanes regardless of whether E- or Z-styrene substrates were utilized.

Cu-catalyzed cascades to carbocycles: union of diaryliodonium salts with alkenes or alkynes exploiting remote carbocations.

Copper-catalyzed cascade reactions between alkenes or alkynes and diaryliodonium salts form carbocyclic products in a single step. Arylation of the unsaturated functional group is proposed to form a carbocation intermediate that facilitates hydride shift pathways to translocate the positive charge to a remote position and enables ring formation via a Friedel-Crafts-type reaction.

Correction: Investing in entropy: the strategy of cucurbit[n]urils to accelerate the intramolecular Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction of tertiary furfuryl amines.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1039/D4SC01816H.].

Investing in entropy: the strategy of cucurbit[n]urils to accelerate the intramolecular Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction of tertiary furfuryl amines.

Cucurbit[n]urils, renowned for their host-guest chemistry, are becoming versatile biomimetic receptors. Herein, we report that cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) accelerates the intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) reaction for previously elusive and unreactive tertiary N-methyl-N-(homo)allyl-2-furfurylamines by up to 4 orders of magnitude under mild conditions. Using 1H NMR titrations and ITC experiments, we characterize the dissimilar thermodynamic and kinetic properties of the complexes. We also determine the activation parameters (ΔG ≠, ΔH ≠ and ΔS ≠) leading to the transition state of the IMDA reactions, both in the bulk and included in CB[7], to shed light on the key role of the receptor on the acceleration observed. CB[7] acts as an "entropy trap" utilizing guest binding to primarily pay the entropy penalty for reorganizing the substrate in a high-energy reactive conformation that resembles the geometry of the highly ordered transition state required for the IMDA reaction. This study underscores the potential of cucurbit[n]urils as artificial active sites, emulating specific aspects of enzymatic catalysis.

Copper-catalyzed carboarylation of alkynes via vinyl cations.

Copper-catalyzed arylation of electron rich alkynes reveals stabilized trisubstituted vinyl cation equivalents that react with pendant arene nucleophiles to form all carbon tetrasubstituted alkenes. The new process streamlines the synthesis of important medicinally relevant molecules.

Copper-catalyzed electrophilic carbofunctionalization of alkynes to highly functionalized tetrasubstituted alkenes.

Copper catalysts enable the electrophilic carbofunctionalization of alkynes with vinyl- and diaryliodonium triflates. The new process forms highly substituted alkenyl triflates from a range of alkynes via a pathway that is opposite to classical carbometalation. The alkenyl triflate products can be elaborated through cross-coupling reactions to generate synthetically useful tetrasubstituted alkenes.

Enantioselective multicomponent synthesis of fused 6-5 bicyclic 2-butenolides by a cascade heterobicyclisation process.

The successive coupling of an alkoxy(aryl/heteroaryl)carbene complex of chromium with either a ketone or an imide lithium enolate and then a 3-substituted (H, TMS, PhCH(2), PhCH(2)CH(2), Me) propargylic organomagnesium reagent has afforded novel hydroxy-substituted bicyclic [4.3.0]-γ-alkylidene-2-butenolides with three modular points that has allowed the efficient introduction of molecular complexity, including a homopropargylic alcohol core. The selective formation of these five- or six-component heterobicyclisation products is the result of the regioselective integration of the Grignard reagent as a propargyl fragment followed by a cascade CO/alkyne/CO insertion, ketene trapping and elimination sequence. By using lithium enolates of chiral N-acetyl-2-oxazolidinones and the corresponding propargylic organocerium reagents, both enantiomers of these bicyclic heterocycles were efficiently prepared with very high enantiomeric purity. Architecturally, these fused bicyclic butenolides are characterised by a highly unsaturated and oxygenated core and they exhibit strong blue fluorescence in solution.

Catalytic alkene skeletal modification for the construction of fluorinated tertiary stereocenters.

Herein we describe the first construction of fluorinated tertiary stereocenters based on an alkene C(sp2)-C(sp2) bond cleavage. The new process, that takes advantage of a Rh-catalyzed carbyne transfer, relies on a branched-selective fluorination of tertiary allyl cations and is distinguished by a wide scope including natural products and drug molecule derivatives as well as adaptability to radiofluorination.

5-Hy-droxy-7-phenyl-5-(prop-2-yn-1-yl)-5,6-dihydro-1-benzofuran-2(4H)-one monohydrate.

In the title compound, C(17)H(14)O(3)·H(2)O, the six-membered ring, which adopts a half-chair conformation, makes a dihedral angle of 24.3 (2)° with the phenyl ring. In the crystal, the components are linked by O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds involving the water mol-ecule, and the hy-droxy and carbonyl groups of the organic compound. These inter-actions form a square-like supra-molecular synthon unit which propagates as chains parallel to the crystallographic b axis. A C-H⋯O interaction also occurs.

On the mechanism of cyclization of 5-hexenylchromate intermediates in the reactions of Fischer carbene complexes with a lithium enolate and allylmagnesium bromide.

The mechanisms for the evolution of pentacarbonyl-5-hexenylchromate complexes, unsubstituted and methyl substituted at C2, formed from a pentacarbonyl(alkoxy)carbene complex of chromium, the corresponding ketone lithium enolate, and allylmagnesium bromide, were theoretically investigated by using DFT (Density Functional Theory) at the B3PW91/6-31G* level (LANL2DZ for Cr and Br) taking into account the effect of THF solvent through the PCM model (Polarizable Continuum Model). Methyl substitution at C2 provokes a shortening of about 5 degrees in the C1-C2-C3 angle that favors the formation of the pentacyclic product. Also, the presence of this methyl substituent at C2 sterically disfavors the formation of the hexacyclic product. Thus, our results yield the hexacyclic system as the most favored product for the evolution of the unsubstituted alkylpentacarbonylchromate complex, and the pentacyclic product in the case of the substituted system, in good agreement with the experimental findings. The stereochemistry of the products experimentally observed is determined at the transition state for the migration of the Cr(CO)(5) fragment from C1 to C6 and the conformational rearrangement of the C1-C6 skeleton. Amine molecules, present in the reaction medium, can play a catalytic role by assisting the 1,2-H migration in the last step for the formation of hexacyclic products.

(1RS,2RS,3RS)-1,2-Dimeth-oxy-3-methyl-2-phenyl-1-(2-thien-yl)cyclo-propane.

In the title compound, C(16)H(18)O(2)S, a new cis-1,2-dimethoxy-cyclo-propane, the two meth-oxy groups are in a cis configuration and in trans positions with respect to the H atom and the phenyl and thienyl rings on the cyclo-propyl group. The mol-ecular packing is dominated by weak inter-molecular C-H⋯O inter-actions, allowing the formation of zigzag chains propagating parallel to the c axis. The dihedral angle between the aromatic rings is 86.12 (8)°.