C?H Activation: A Complementary Tool in the Total Synthesis of Complex Natural Products

The recent advent of transition‐metal mediated C? H activation is revolutionizing the synthetic field and gradually infusing a “C? H activation mind‐set” in both students and practitioners of organic synthesis. As a powerful testament of this emerging synthetic tool, applications of C? H activation in the context of total synthesis of complex natural products are beginning to blossom. Herein, recently completed total syntheses showcasing creative and ingenious incorporation of C? H activation as a strategic manoeuver are compared with their “non‐C? H activation” counterparts, illuminating a new paradigm in strategic synthetic design.     

Manganese(I)‐Catalyzed C−H Activation: The Key Role of a 7‐Membered Manganacycle in H‐Transfer and Reductive Elimination

Manganese‐catalyzed C?H bond activation chemistry is emerging as a powerful and complementary method for molecular functionalization. A highly reactive seven‐membered Mn^I intermediate is detected and characterized that is effective for H‐transfer or reductive elimination to deliver alkenylated or pyridinium products, respectively. The two pathways are determined at Mn^I by judicious choice of an electron‐deficient 2‐pyrone substrate containing a 2‐pyridyl directing group, which undergoes regioselective C?H bond activation, serving as a valuable system for probing the mechanistic features of Mn C?H bond activation chemistry.     

Asymmetric Total Syntheses of Di‐ and Sesquiterpenoids by Catalytic C−C Activation of Cyclopentanones

To show the synthetic utility of the catalytic C?C activation of less strained substrates, described here are the collective and concise syntheses of the natural products (?)‐microthecaline A, (?)‐leubehanol, (+)‐pseudopteroxazole, (+)‐seco‐pseudopteroxazole, pseudopterosin A–F and G—J aglycones, and (+)‐heritonin. The key step in these syntheses involve a Rh‐catalyzed C?C/C?H activation cascade of 3‐arylcyclopentanones, which provides a rapid and enantioselective route to access the polysubstituted tetrahydronaphthalene cores presented in these natural products. Other important features include 1) the direct C?H amination of the tetralone substrate in the synthesis of (?)‐microthecaline A, 2) the use of phosphoric acid to enhance efficiency and regioselectivity for problematic cyclopentanone substrates in the C?C activation reactions, and 3) the direct conversion of serrulatane into amphilectane diterpenes by an allylic cyclodehydrogenation coupling.     

Chiral Counteranion Strategy for Asymmetric Oxidative C(sp3)H/C(sp3)H Coupling: Enantioselective α‐Allylation of Aldehydes with Terminal Alkenes

The first enantioselective α‐allylation of aldehydes with terminal alkenes has been realized by combining asymmetric counteranion catalysis and palladium‐catalyzed allylic C? H activation. This method can tolerate a wide scope of α‐branched aromatic aldehydes and terminal alkenes, thus affording allylation products in high yields and with good to excellent levels of enantioselectivity. Importantly, the findings suggest a new strategy for the future creation of enantioselective C? H/C? H coupling reactions.     

Alkenylidenes in Organic Synthesis

Alkenylidenes R₂C?C: (= alkylidene carbenes) undergo regio- and stereoselective intramolecular C? H insertion reactions that are excellently suited for the synthesis of cyclopentenes. The 1, 2-shifts occurring with R?H and R?Ar are useful for the preparation of alkynes. Alkenylidenes are efficiently generated from carbonyl compounds by diazomethylation, from vinyl halides by α-elimination, from alkynyliodonium salts by addition of nucleophiles, and from alkynes by retro-1, 2-shifts. Specific applications of the various methods, particularly in the synthesis of natural products, are discussed.     

Nickel,Cobalt and Palladium Catalysed C−H Functionalization of Un‐Activated C(sp3)−H Bond

This review represents nickel, cobalt and palladium catalyzed C?H activation of sp³ carbon, with special emphasis on methyl C?H activation. The importance of directing group assistance and effect of ligand on β‐ or γ‐ C(sp³)?H activation is summarized in this review. The mechanistic study for Ni, Co and Pd catalyzed sp³ C?H bond functionalization also discussed in detail.     

Copper‐Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidative Inert CC and CN Bond Cleavage: A New Strategy for the Synthesis of Tertiary Amides

A copper‐catalyzed aerobic oxidative amidation reaction of inert C?C bonds with tertiary amines has been developed for the synthesis of tertiary amides, which are significant units in many natural products, pharmaceuticals, and fine chemicals. This method combines C?C bond activation, C?N bond cleavage, and C?H bond oxygenation in a one‐pot protocol, using molecular oxygen as the sole oxidant without any additional ligands.     

Ligand‐Enabled Catalytic CH Arylation of Aliphatic Amines by a Four‐Membered‐Ring Cyclopalladation Pathway

A palladium‐catalyzed C? H arylation of aliphatic amines with arylboronic esters is described, proceeding through a four‐membered‐ring cyclopalladation pathway. Crucial to the successful outcome of this reaction is the action of an amino‐acid‐derived ligand. A range of hindered secondary amines and arylboronic esters are compatible with this process and the products of the arylation can be advanced to complex polycyclic molecules by sequential C? H activation reactions.     

Cobalt‐Catalyzed Tandem C−H Activation/C−C Cleavage/C−H Cyclization of Aromatic Amides with Alkylidenecyclopropanes

A cobalt‐catalyzed chelation‐assisted tandem C?H activation/C?C cleavage/C?H cyclization of aromatic amides with alkylidenecyclopropanes is reported. This process allows the sequential formation of two C?C bonds, which is in sharp contrast to previous reports on using rhodium catalysts for the formation of C?N bonds. Here the inexpensive catalyst system exhibits good functional‐group compatibility and relatively broad substrate scope. The desired products can be easily transformed into polycyclic lactones with m‐CPBA. Mechanistic studies revealed that the tandem reaction proceeds through a C?H cobaltation, β‐carbon elimination, and intramolecular C?H cobaltation sequence.     

Reversible Double C?H Bond Activation of Linear and Cyclic Ethers To Form Iridium Carbenes

The double C? H bond activation of a series of linear and cyclic ethers by the iridium complex [Tp^tol′Ir(C₆H₅)(N₂)] ( 2? N₂), which features a cyclometalated hydrotris(3‐p‐tolylpyrazol‐1‐yl)borate ligand (Tp^tol′) coordinated in a κ⁴‐N,N′,N′′,C manner, has been studied. Two methyl ethers, namely, Me₂O and MeOtBu, along with diethyl ether and the cyclic ethers tetrahydrofuran, tetrahydropyran (THP), and 1,4‐dioxane have been investigated with formation in every case of the corresponding hydride carbene complexes 3 – 8 , which are stabilized by κ⁴‐coordination of the ancillary Tp^tol′ ligand. Five of the compounds have been structurally authenticated by X‐ray crystallography. A remarkable feature of these rearrangements is the reversibility of the double C? H bond activation of Me₂O, MeOtBu, Et₂O, and THP. This has permitted catalytic deuterium incorporation into the methyl groups of the two methyl ethers, although in a rather inefficient manner (for synthetic purposes). Although possible in all cases, C? C coupling by migratory insertion of the carbene into the Ir? C σ bond of the metalated linkage has only been observed for complex 8 that contains a cyclic carbene that results from α,α‐C? H activation of 1,4‐dioxane. Computational studies on the formation of iridium carbenes are also reported, which show a role for metalated Tp ligands in the double C? H activation and account for the reversibility of the reaction in terms of the relative stability of the reagents and the products of the reaction.     

Electrochemical Access to Aza‐Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons: Rhoda‐Electrocatalyzed Domino Alkyne Annulations

Nitrogen‐doped polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (aza‐PAHs) have found broad applications in material sciences. Herein, a modular electrochemical synthesis of aza‐PAHs was developed via a rhodium‐catalyzed cascade C?H activation and alkyne annulation. A multifunctional O‐methylamidoxime enabled the high chemo‐ and regioselectivity. The isolation of two key rhodacyclic intermediates made it possible to delineate the exact order of three C?H activation steps. In addition, the metalla‐electrocatalyzed multiple C?H transformation is characterized by unique functional group tolerance, including highly reactive iodo and azido groups.     

Hindered rotation of the dimethylamino and dimethylthioamide groups in two ortho substituted N,N-dimethylthiobenzamides

Hindered rotation in two o-substituted N,N-dimethylthiobenzamides was investigated by variable temperature ¹H NMR spectroscopy. For one compound, the enthalpies and entropies of activation for (i) thioamide group rotation around the Ar? C bond and (ii) dimethylamino group rotation around the C? N bond were obtained by full line shape analysis; a possible coupling between the two processes is discussed. A new simple method has also been applied to the analysis of dimethylamino exchange and results are in complete agreement with the full line shape analysis with somewhat better precision.     

Catalytic Functionalization of C(sp2)?H and C(sp3)?H Bonds by Using Bidentate Directing Groups

C? H bonds are ubiquitous in organic compounds. It would, therefore, appear that direct functionalization of substrates by activation of C? H bonds would eliminate the multiple steps and limitations associated with the preparation of functionalized starting materials. Regioselectivity is an important issue because organic molecules can contain a wide variety of C? H bonds. The use of a directing group can largely overcome the issue of regiocontrol by allowing the catalyst to come into proximity with the targeted C? H bonds. A wide variety of functional groups have been evaluated for use as directing groups in the transformation of C? H bonds. In 2005, Daugulis reported the arylation of unactivated C(sp³)? H bonds by using 8‐aminoquinoline and picolinamide as bidentate directing groups, with Pd(OAc)₂ as the catalyst. Encouraged by these promising results, a number of transformations of C? H bonds have since been developed by using systems based on bidentate directing groups. In this Review, recent advances in this area are discussed.     

Reaction mechanism of methanol decomposition on Pt‐based model catalysts: A theoretical study

The decomposition mechanisms of methanol on five different Pt surfaces, the flat surface of Pt(111), Pt‐defect, Pt‐step, Pt(110)(1 × 1), and Pt(110)(2 × 1), have been studied with the DFT‐GGA method using the repeated slab model. The adsorption energies under the most stable configuration of the possible species and the activation energy barriers of the possible elementary reactions involved are obtained in this work. Through systematic calculations for the reaction mechanism of methanol decomposition on these surfaces, we found that such a reaction shows the same reaction mechanism on these Pt‐based model catalysts, that is, the final products are all H (H_ads) and CO (CO_ads) via O? H bond breaking in methanol and C? H bond scission in methoxy. These results are in general agreement with the previous experimental observations. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2010.     

Palladium–N‐Heterocyclic Carbene (NHC)‐Catalyzed Asymmetric Synthesis of Indolines through Regiodivergent C(sp3)H Activation: Scope and DFT Study

Two bulky, chiral, monodentate N‐heterocyclic carbene ligands were applied to palladium‐catalyzed asymmetric C?H arylation to incorporate C(sp³)?H bond activation. Racemic mixtures of the carbamate starting materials underwent regiodivergent reactions to afford different trans‐2,3‐substituted indolines. Although this C_Ar?C_alkyl coupling requires high temperatures (140–160 °C), chiral induction is high. This regiodivergent reaction, when carried out with enantiopure starting materials, can lead to single structurally different enantiopure products, depending on the catalyst chirality. The C?H activation at a tertiary center was realized only in the case of a cyclopropyl group. No C?H activation takes place alpha to a tertiary center. A detailed DFT study is included and analyses of methyl versus methylene versus methine C?H activation is used to rationalize experimentally observed regio‐ and enantioselectivities.     

Beyond Directing Groups: Transition‐Metal‐Catalyzed C?H Activation of Simple Arenes

The use of coordinating moieties as directing groups for the functionalization of aromatic C? H bonds has become an established tool to enhance reactivity and induce regioselectivity. Nevertheless, with regard to the synthetic applicability of C? H activation, there is a growing interest in transformations in which the directing group can be fully abandoned, thus allowing the direct functionalization of simple benzene derivatives. However, this approach requires the disclosure of new strategies to achieve reactivity and to control selectivity. In this review, recent advances in the emerging field of non‐chelate‐assisted C? H activation are discussed, highlighting some of the most intriguing and inspiring examples of induction of reactivity and selectivity.     

Synthesis of Dibenzo[c,e]oxepin‐5(7H)‐ones from Benzyl Thioethers and Carboxylic Acids: Rhodium‐Catalyzed Double CH Activation Controlled by Different Directing Groups

A rhodium(III)‐catalyzed cross‐coupling of benzyl thioethers and aryl carboxylic acids through the two directing groups is reported. Useful structures with diverse substituents were efficiently synthesized in one step with the cleavage of four bonds (C? H, C? S, O? H) and the formation of two bonds (C? C, C? O). The formed structure is the privileged core in natural products and bioactive molecules. This work highlights the power of using two different directing groups to enhance the selectivity of a double C? H activation, the first of such examples in cross‐oxidative coupling.     

Enantioselective C−H Olefination of α‐Hydroxy and α‐Amino Phenylacetic Acids by Kinetic Resolution

Significant progress has been made in the past decade regarding the development of enantioselective C?H activation reactions by desymmetrization. However, the requirement for the presence of two chemically identical prochiral C?H bonds represents an inherent limitation in scope. Reported is the first example of kinetic resolution by a palladium(II)‐catalyzed enantioselective C?H activation and C?C bond formation, thus significantly expanding the scope of enantioselective C?H activation reactions.     

Iridium‐Catalyzed Synthesis of Diaryl Ethers by Means of Chemoselective CF Bond Activation and the Formation of BF Bonds

Transition‐metal‐catalyzed C? F activation, in comparison with C? H activation, is more difficult to achieve and therefore less fully understood, mainly because carbon–fluorine bonds are the strongest known single bonds to carbon and have been very difficult to cleave. Transition‐metal complexes are often more effective at cleaving stronger bonds, such as C(sp²)? X versus C(sp³)? X. Here, the iridium‐catalyzed C? F activation of fluorarenes was achieved through the use of bis(pinacolato)diboron with the formation of the B? F bond and self‐coupling. This strategy provides a convenient method with which to convert fluoride aromatic compounds into symmetrical diaryl ether compounds. Moreover, the chemoselective products of the C? F bond cleavage were obtained at high yields with the C? Br and C? Cl bonds remaining.     

Rhodium(III)‐Catalyzed Selective ortho‐Olefinations of N‐Acyl and N‐Aroyl Sulfoximines by CH Bond Activation

Two new rhodium‐catalyzed oxidative couplings between sulfoximine derivatives and alkenes by regioselective C?H activation, affording ortho‐olefinated (Heck‐type) products, are reported. A synthetic application of the ortho‐alkenylated products into the corresponding cyclic derivatives has been demonstrated, and a mechanistic rational for the rhodium catalysis is presented.