Iron(II)-Catalyzed Activation of Si-N and Si-O Bonds Using Hydroboranes.

We report the activation and functionalization of Si-N bonds with pinacol borane catalyzed by a three-coordinate iron(II) ß-diketiminate complex. The reactions proceed via the mild activation of silazanes to yield useful hydrosilanes and aminoboranes. The reaction is studied by kinetic analysis, along with a detailed investigation of decomposition pathways using catecholborane as an analogue of the pinacol borane used in catalysis. We have extended the methodology to develop a polycarbosilazane depolymerization strategy, which generates hydrosilane quantitatively along with complete conversion to the Bpin-protected diamine. The analogous Si-O bond cleavage can also be achieved with heating, using silyl ether starting materials to generate hydrosilane and alkoxyborane products. Depolymerization of poly(silyl ether)s using our strategy successfully converts the polymer to 90% Bpin-protected alcohols.

Metallohelices that kill Gram-negative pathogens using intracellular antimicrobial peptide pathways.

A range of new water-compatible optically pure metallohelices - made by self-assembly of simple non-peptidic organic components around Fe ions - exhibit similar architecture to some natural cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAMPs) and are found to have high, structure-dependent activity against bacteria, including clinically problematic Gram-negative pathogens. A key compound is shown to freely enter rapidly dividing E. coli cells without significant membrane disruption, and localise in distinct foci near the poles. Several related observations of CAMP-like mechanisms are made via biophysical measurements, whole genome sequencing of tolerance mutants and transcriptomic analysis. These include: high selectivity for binding of G-quadruplex DNA over double stranded DNA; inhibition of both DNA gyrase and topoisomerase I in vitro; curing of a plasmid that contributes to the very high virulence of the E. coli strain used; activation of various two-component sensor/regulator and acid response pathways; and subsequent attempts by the cell to lower the net negative charge of the surface. This impact of the compound on multiple structures and pathways corresponds with our inability to isolate fully resistant mutant strains, and supports the idea that CAMP-inspired chemical scaffolds are a realistic approach for antimicrobial drug discovery, without the practical barriers to development that are associated with natural CAMPS.

Markovnikov versus anti-Markovnikov Hydrophosphination: Divergent Reactivity Using an Iron(II) ß-Diketiminate Pre-Catalyst.

The ability to tune between different regioselectivities using a common pre-catalyst is an unusual yet highly desirable process. Here, we report the use of an iron(II) pre-catalyst that can be used to synthesize vinyl phosphines in a Markovnikov-selective manner in benzene, whereas a simple change to dichloromethane as the reaction solvent leads to the Z-selective anti-Markovnikov product. Preliminary mechanistic studies are reported that suggest Markovnikov selectivity is a radical-mediated process, whereas the anti-Markovnikov selectivity is not radical in nature but is due to a change in oxidation state.

Facile, Catalytic Dehydrocoupling of Phosphines Using ß-Diketiminate Iron(II) Complexes.

Catalytic dehydrocoupling of primary and secondary phosphines has been achieved for the first time using an iron pre-catalyst. The reaction proceeds under mild reaction conditions and is successful with a range of diarylphosphines. A proton acceptor is not needed for the transformation to take place, but addition of 1-hexene does allow for turnover at 50 °C. The catalytic system developed also facilitates the dehydrocoupling of phenylphosphane and dicyclohexylphosphane. A change in solvent switches off dehydrocoupling to allow hydrophosphination of alkenes.