Oxy- and Chloroarylation Pathways in Gold-Mediated Cyclization of 2-Aminoaryl-3-arylpropargyl-benzenesulfonamides.

A one-pot diazotization/gold-mediated cyclization of 2-aminoaryl-3-arylpropargyl-benzenesulfonamides is described. After diazotization, Me2 SAuCl triggers an oxy- and/or chloroarylation of the alkyne moiety, resulting in the formation of 3-acylindoles and/or Z-3-(chloromethylene)indolines. Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations show the significant energetic preference of both processes over an insertion pathway. Notably, a Z-3-(chloromethylene)indoline crystallized with [Cl-Au-Cl],- exhibiting Au⋅⋅⋅H-C short contacts.

Insights into the Mechanism of Gold(I) Oxidation with Aryldiazonium Salts.

In the last decade, aryldiazonium salts have attracted interest as coupling partners in cross-coupling reactions mediated by gold. Initially, the presence of a photocatalyst and a light source was needed to achieve gold oxidation with these electrophiles. However, recently, it has been shown that in some instances just heating, light irradiation, or the addition of certain bases and/or nucleophiles is enough. In this review, the transformations developed so far using aryldiazonium salts as electrophiles are summarized with special emphasis on mechanistic studies. The information gained by different authors, indicates that the specific steps of gold oxidation with aryldiazonium salts depends upon the activation mode of the diazonium salt.

Ascorbic Acid as an Aryl Radical Inducer in the Gold-Mediated Arylation of Indoles with Aryldiazonium Chlorides.

In recent years interest in the development of protocols that facilitate the oxidative addition of gold to access mild cross-coupling processes mediated by this metal has increased. In this context, we report herein that ascorbic acid, a natural and readily accessible antioxidant, can be used to accelerate the oxidative addition of aryldiazonium chlorides onto AuI . The aryl-AuIII species generated in this way, has been used to prepare 3-arylindoles in a one-pot protocol starting from anilines and para-, meta-, and ortho- substituted aryldiazonium chlorides. The mechanism underlying the oxidative addition has been examined in detail based on EPR analyses, cyclic voltammetry, and DFT calculations. Interestingly, we have found that in this protocol, the chloride atom induces the AuII /AuIII oxidation step.