The Isolation and Characterization of a Rhodacycle Intermediate Implicated in Metal‐Catalyzed Reactions of Alkylidenecyclopropanes

The isolation and characterization of a rhodacycle intermediate implicated in rhodium‐catalyzed reactions of alkylidenecyclopropanes (ACPs) is described. The structure of the metallacycle was unambiguously determined by X‐ray crystallography and is catalytically competent in the rhodium‐catalyzed carbocyclization and ene‐cycloisomerization reactions of ACPs. This work represents a rare example of the isolation of a metallacycle in a metal‐catalyzed higher‐order carbocyclization reaction and thereby provides important insight into the ligand requirements for the insertion of π‐components. Furthermore, it serves as a convenient synthon for the development of challenging higher‐order carbocyclization reactions, as exemplified by the reaction with an activated allene.     

Palladium(II)‐Initiated Catellani‐Type Reactions

The Catellani reaction is known as a powerful strategy for the expeditious synthesis of highly substituted arenes and benzo‐fused rings, which are usually difficult to access through traditional cross‐coupling strategies. It utilizes the synergistic interplay of palladium and norbornene catalysis to facilitate sequential ortho C?H functionalization and ipso termination of aryl halides in a single operation. In classical Catellani‐type reactions, aryl halides are mainly used as the substrates, and a Pd⁰ catalyst is required to initiate the reaction. Nevertheless, recent advances showcase that Catellani‐type reactions can also be initiated by a Pd^II catalyst with different starting materials instead of aryl halides via different reaction mechanisms and under different conditions. This emerging concept of Pd^II/norbornene cooperative catalysis has significantly advanced Catellani‐type reactions, thus enabling future developments of this field. In this Minireview, Pd^II‐initiated Catellani‐type reactions and their application in the synthesis of bioactive molecules are summarized.     

Of the ortho effect in palladium/norbornene-catalyzed reactions: a theoretical investigation

Mechanistic questions concerning palladium and norbornene catalyzed aryl-aryl coupling reactions are treated in this paper: how aryl halides react with the intermediate palladacycles, formed by interaction of the two catalysts with an aryl halide, and what is the rational explanation of the "ortho effect" (caused by an ortho substituent in the starting aryl halide), which leads to aryl-aryl coupling with a second molecule of aryl halide rather than to aryl-norbornyl coupling. Two possible pathways have been proposed, one involving aryl halide oxidative addition to the palladacycle, the other passing through a palladium(II) transmetalation, also involving the palladacycle, as previously proposed by Cardenas and Echavarren. Our DFT calculations using M06 show that, in palladium-catalyzed reaction of aryl halides, not containing ortho substituents, and norbornene, the intermediate palladacycle formed has a good probability to undergo transmetalation, energetically favored over the oxidative addition leading to Pd(IV). The unselective sp(2)-sp(2) and sp(2)-sp(3) coupling, experimentally observed in this case, can be explained in the framework of the transmetalation pathway since the energetic difference between aryl attack onto the aryl or norbornyl carbon of the palladacycle intermediate is quite small. On the other hand, according to the experimentally observed "ortho effect", selective aryl-aryl coupling only occurs in the reactions of ortho-substituted metallacycles. The present work offers the first possible rationalization of this finding. These in situ formed palladacycles containing an ortho substituent could more easily undergo oxidative addition of an aryl halide rather than reductive elimination from the transmetalation intermediate as a result of a steric clash in the transition state of the latter. The now energetically accessible Pd(IV) intermediate, featuring a Y-distorted trigonal bipyramidal structure, can account for the reported selective aryl-aryl coupling through a reductive elimination which is easier than aryl-norbornyl coupling. Thus, the steric effect represents the main factor that dictates the energetic convenience of the system to follow the Pd(IV) or the transmetalation pathway. Ortho substituents cause a higher energy transition state for reductive elimination from the transmetalation intermediate than for oxidative addition to the metallacycle palladium(II) and the pathway based on the latter predominates.     

Dihalocarbene insertion reactions into C-H bonds of compounds containing small rings: mechanisms and regio- and stereoselectivities

Novel insertion reactions of dichloro- and dibromocarbene into carbon-hydrogen bonds adjacent to cyclopropane rings are reported. It is found that the predominant isomers formed in the reactions with bicyclo[4.1.0]heptane result from insertion into the endo carbon-hydrogen bonds alpha to the three-membered ring. In the reactions of bicyclo[3.1.0]hexane, however, the exo dihalocarbene insertion products are formed as the major isomers. In some compounds cyclopropane rings "activate" adjacent carbon-hydrogen bonds, whereas other systems containing three-membered rings do not. Moreover, the influence of various substituents (methyl, geminal dimethyl, phenyl, methoxy, and ethoxy) attached to bicyclo[3.1.0]hexane and bicyclo[4.1.0]heptane in dihalocarbene reactions has been studied. The findings can be explained by the concept of maximum orbital overlaps of Walsh orbitals of the cyclopropane rings and the alpha carbon-hydrogen bonds. In stark contrast, selective insertion into the tertiary carbon-hydrogen bonds of the cyclobutane ring in bicyclo[4.2.0]octane is observed.     

Diversity synthesis using the complimentary reactivity of rhodium(II)- and palladium(II)-catalyzed reactions

Rhodium(II)-catalyzed reactions of aryldiazoacetates can be conducted in the presence of iodide, triflate, organoboron, and organostannane functionality, resulting in the formation of a variety of cyclopropanes or C-H insertion products with high stereoselectivity. The combination of the rhodium(II)-catalyzed reaction with a subsequent palladium(II)-catalyzed Suzuki coupling offers a novel strategy for diversity synthesis.     

Biaryl formation from 5-(2-bromobenzyl)-substituted piperidin-2-ones via palladacycles

The reaction of piperdin-2-ones with a 2-bromobenzyl substituent in the 5-position in the presence of a palladium catalyst leads to biaryl compounds. Their formation can be explained via initial C-H insertion of the aryl palladium species into the allylic C-H bond of the piperidinone. This eventually leads to a metallacycle containing Pd(II) that inserts another aryl bromide, promoting the formation of the biaryl bond.     

A Cooperative Strategy for the Highly Selective Intermolecular Oxycarbonylation Reaction of Alkenes using a Palladium Catalyst

A novel method for intermolecular functionalization of terminal and internal alkenes has been designed. The electrophilic reagent, hypervalent iodine, plays a key role in this process by activating the alkene C=C bond for nucleophilic addition of the palladium catalyst. This process generates an iodonium‐containing palladium species which undergoes CO insertion. The new approach, intermolecular oxycarbonylaton reactions of alkenes, has been achieved and carried out under mild reaction conditions to produce the corresponding β‐oxycarbonylic acids with excellent efficiencies and levels of regio‐ and diastereoselectivity.     

Application of FT-Raman spectroscopy for the characterisation of new functionalised macromers

Fourier transform (FT)-Raman spectroscopy has been used extensively for the characterisation of polymers, especially polymers containing functional groups. New macromers with unsaturation have been synthesised using a living anionic polymerisation process. The reactions of living polystyryllithium with butadiene, followed by the capping reaction with mono or tri-functional chlorosilane norbornene were investigated. Characterisations by NMR and GPC have confirmed the formation of these macromers, but FT-Raman spectroscopy has revealed interesting information related to the isomerisation of the butadiene spacer in the polymer backbone.     

Stereoselective beta-hydroxy-alpha-amino acid synthesis via an ether-directed, palladium-catalysed aza-Claisen rearrangement

A highly diastereoselective synthesis of (2S,3S)-beta-hydroxy-alpha-amino acids has been developed from enantiopure alpha-hydroxy acids using a MOM-ether-directed, palladium(II)-catalysed, aza-Claisen rearrangement of allylic acetimidates to effect the key step. This highly stereoselective process gave allylic amides in diastereomeric ratios of up to 14 : 1. Problems associated with the isolation of 1,3-products (anti-Claisen) from sterically demanding substrates via an insitu palladium(0)-catalysed rearrangement process were overcome by the addition of a re-oxidant, p-benzoquinone, leading to cleaner reactions and improved yields of the 3,3-products (Claisen). The target beta-hydroxy-alpha-amino acids are an important class of natural products that are also components of more complex organic compounds with significant biological properties.     

C―H官能化构建硫醚

硫醚作为一类重要的含硫功能分子,广泛存在于天然产物、药物及有机发光材料中。鉴于硫醚类化合物的重要性,近年来化学家们发展了一系列高效构建硫醚的方法。与传统的有机卤化物/有机硼酸与硫醇交叉偶联的合成方法相比,C―H官能化直接构建硫醚的策略因其步骤经济性、原子经济性备受合成化学家们关注,并取得重要进展。本文根据不同过渡金属进行分类,系统阐述了近年来过渡金属催化/参与C―H官能化或无过渡金属催化C―H官能化构建硫醚这一方向研究进展。     

Highly Enantioselective Rhodium(I)‐Catalyzed Activation of Enantiotopic Cyclobutanone C?C Bonds

The selective functionalization of carbon–carbon σ bonds is a synthetic strategy that offers uncommon retrosynthetic disconnections. Despite progress in C C activation and its great importance, the development of asymmetric reactions lags behind. Rhodium(I)‐catalyzed selective oxidative additions into enantiotopic C C bonds in cyclobutanones are reported. Even operating at a reaction temperature of 130 °C, the process is characterized by outstanding enantioselectivity with the e.r. generally greater than 99.5:0.5. The intermediate rhodacycle is shown to react with a wide variety of tethered olefins to deliver complex bicyclic ketones in high yields.     

Highly Enantioselective Rhodium(I)‐Catalyzed Activation of Enantiotopic Cyclobutanone CC Bonds

The selective functionalization of carbon–carbon σ bonds is a synthetic strategy that offers uncommon retrosynthetic disconnections. Despite progress in C? C activation and its great importance, the development of asymmetric reactions lags behind. Rhodium(I)‐catalyzed selective oxidative additions into enantiotopic C? C bonds in cyclobutanones are reported. Even operating at a reaction temperature of 130 °C, the process is characterized by outstanding enantioselectivity with the e.r. generally greater than 99.5:0.5. The intermediate rhodacycle is shown to react with a wide variety of tethered olefins to deliver complex bicyclic ketones in high yields.     

A strategy for the synthesis of 2,3-disubstituted indoles starting from N-(o-halophenyl)allenamides

A strategy for the synthesis of 2,3-disubstituted indole derivatives based on an intramolecular carbopalladation-anion capture cascade has been developed, wherein construction of the pyrrole ring and functionalisation of the indole C2 and C3 positions were achieved by extensive use of palladium(0)-catalysed coupling reactions.     

多功能氧酰胺导向基在碳氢键活化反应中的研究进展

近年来,通过导向基团进行碳氢键活化构建C―C键及C―X键的方法得到了快速发展,已成为有机合成的重要手段之一。在碳氢键活化中,作为多功能导向基团之一的氧酰胺,由于其独特的性质,引起了科学家们的广泛关注。氧酰胺中O―N键的氧化性替代外部氧化剂,使反应处于氧化还原中性。加入化学计量的外部氧化剂,通常可以使O―N键得到保留。在不同的溶剂中,能够表现出不同的区域选择性和立体选择性;皆体现了氧酰胺作为导向基团的独特之处。本文综述了N-苯氧基酰胺作为底物进行碳氢键活化的研究进展,同时根据现有的实验和理论研究结果对不同反应的机理进行了探讨。     

On the mechanism of the palladium(II)-catalyzed decarboxylative olefination of arene carboxylic acids. Crystallographic characterization of non-phosphine palladium(II) intermediates and observation of their stepwise transformation in Heck-like processes

Mechanistic studies of a palladium-mediated decarboxylative olefination of arene carboxylic acids are presented, providing spectroscopic and, in two instances, crystallographic evidence for intermediates in a proposed stepwise process. Sequentially, the proposed pathway involves carboxyl exchange between palladium(II) bis(trifluoroacetate) and an arene carboxylic acid substrate, rate-determining decarboxylation to form an arylpalladium(II) trifluoroacetate intermediate (containing two trans-disposed S-bound dimethyl sulfoxide ligands in a crystallographically characterized form), then olefin insertion and beta-hydride elimination. Because of the unique mode of generation of the arylpalladium(II) trifluoroacetate intermediate, a species believed to be substantially electron-deficient relative to phosphine-containing arylpalladium(II) complexes previously studied, it has been possible to gain new insights into those steps that are common to the Heck reaction, namely, olefin insertion and beta-hydride elimination. The present results show that there are notable differences in reactivity between arylpalladium(II) intermediates generated by decarboxylative palladation and those produced in conventional Heck reactions. Specifically, we have found that more electron-rich alkenes react preferentially with an arylpalladium(II) trifluoroacetate intermediate formed by decarboxylative palladation, whereas an opposite trend is found in conventional Heck reactions. In addition, we have found that the aralkylpalladium(II) trifluoroacetate intermediates that are formed upon olefin insertion in the present study are stabilized with respect to beta-hydride elimination as compared to the corresponding phosphine-ligated aralkylpalladium(II) complexes. We have also crystallographically characterized an aralkylpalladium(II) trifluoroacetate intermediate derived from arylpalladium(II) insertion into norbornene, and this structure, too, contains an S-bound dimethyl sulfoxide ligand; the ipso-carbon of the transferred aryl group and trifluoroacetate function as the third and fourth ligands in the observed distorted square-planar palladium(II) complex.     

Reaction mechanism and structure-reactivity relationships in the stereospecific 1,4-polymerization of butadiene catalyzed by neutral dimeric allylnickel(II) halides [Ni(C3H5)X]2 (X- = Cl-, Br-, I-): a comprehensive density functional theory study

For the first time, a comprehensive and consistent picture of the catalytic cycle of 1,4-polymerization of butadiene with neutral dimeric allylnickel(II) halides [Ni(C3H5)X]2 (X = Cl- (I), Br- (II), and I- (III)) as single-site catalysts has been derived by means of quantum chemical calculations that employ a gradient-corrected density-functional method. All crucial reaction steps of the entire catalytic course have been scrutinized, taking into account butadiene pi complex formation, symmetrical and asymmetrical splitting of dimeric pi complexes, cis-butadiene insertion, and anti-syn isomerization. The present investigation examines, in terms of located structures, energies and activation barriers, the participation of postulated intermediates, in particular it aimed to clarify whether monomeric or dimeric species are the catalytically active species. Prior qualitative mechanistic assumptions are substituted by the presented theoretically well-founded and detailed analysis of both the thermodynamic and the kinetic aspects, that substantially improve the insight into the reaction course and enlarge them with novel mechanistic proposals. From a mechanistic point of view, all three catalysts exhibit common characteristics. First, chain propagation occurs by cis-butadiene insertion into the pi-butenylnickel(II) bond with nearly identical intrinsic free-energy activation barriers. Second, the reactivity of syn-butenyl forms is distinctly higher than that of anti forms. Third, the chain-propagation step is rate-determining in the entire polymerization process, and the pre-established anti-syn equilibrium can always be regarded as attained. Accordingly, neutral dimeric allylnickel(II) halides catalyze the formation of a stereo-regular trans-1,4-polymer under kinetic control following the k1t channel with butenyl(halide)(butadiene)NiII complexes being the catalytically active species. Production of a stereoregular cis-1,4-polymer with allylnickel chloride can only be explained by making the k2c channel accessible by the formation of polybutadienyl(butadiene) complexes, which is accompanied by the coordination of the next double bond in the growing chain to the NiII center.     

Reactivity of an anionic Pd(II) metallacycle with CH2X2 (X=Cl, Br, I): formal insertion of methylene into a Pd-C(aryl) bond

Whereas the reaction of the anionic palladium metallacycle [K[Pd(CH2CMe2-o-C6H4)(kappa2-Tp)]] with CH2Cl2 leads to the isolation of the stable Pd(IV) chloromethyl complex [Pd(CH2CMe2-o-C6H4)(kappa3-Tp)(CH2Cl)], the analogous reactions with CH2Br2 and CH2I2 give rise to the six membered metallacycles [Pd(CH2CMe2-o-C6H4(CH2))(kappa3-Tp)X](X = Br or I), as a result of the formal insertion of CH2 into the Pd-C(aryl) bond.     

Intermolecular C-H functionalization versus cyclopropanation of electron rich 1,1-disubstituted and trisubstituted alkenes

Rhodium(II)-catalyzed reactions of aryldiazoacetates with electron rich 1,1-disubstituted and trisubstituted alkenes were systematically studied. The regio-, diastereo- and enantioselectivity of the chemistry was profoundly influenced by the nature of the substrates and the catalyst. Conditions were developed for either selective cyclopropanation or C-H insertion. Both reactions can be achieved with high diastereo- and enantioselectivity (for C-H insertion: >90% de, up to 96% ee, for cyclopropanation: >94% de, up to 95% ee). For the 1,1-disubstituted vinyl ethers, cyclopropanation occurs with variable diastereoselectivity but in optimized systems the cyclopropane is formed in >94% de and up to 98% ee.     

Regioselective and diastereoselective synthesis of highly substituted cyclopentanes

Highly substituted cyclopentane rings are present in a wide range of targets, and the efficient synthesis of such compounds constitutes a continuing challenge to organic synthesis. We present two complementary approaches to the regio- and diastereoselective synthesis of highly substituted cyclopentane structures. In both cases, a non-symmetrically disposed norbornene is employed as a common intermediate. One strategy relies on the Lewis acid-catalyzed ring opening of an anhydride, while the other employs production of a bicyclic lactone followed by its selective functionalization.     

Hydrolysis of amide bond in histidine-containing peptides promoted by chelated amino acid palladium(II) complexes: dependence of hydrolytic pathway on the coordination modes of the peptides

Hydrolytic reactions between cis-[Pd( -Ala-N,O)Cl₂]⁻ and cis-[Pd( -Ala-N,O)(H₂O)₂]⁺, in which -Ala is alanine coordinated through N and O atoms, and N-acetylated peptides -histidylglycine (MeCO-His-Gly), glycyl- -histidine (MeCO-Gly-His), glycylglycyl- -histidine (MeCO-Gly-Gly-His) and glycyl- -histidylglycine (MeCO-Gly-His-Gly) were studied by ¹H NMR spectroscopy. All reactions were carried out in the pH range 2.0–2.5 and two different temperatures, 22 and 60°C. In the reactions of these two palladium(II) complexes with MeCO-His-Gly, complete hydrolysis of the amide bond involving carboxylic group of histidine occurs in less than 24 h. The cleavage is regioselective. With peptides containing free a carboxylic group of histidine, MeCO-Gly-His and MeCO-Gly-Gly-His, palladium(II) complex promote the cleavage of the MeCO–Gly and Gly–Gly amide bonds. No cleavage of the Gly–His amide bond was observed. The mechanism of these hydrolytic reactions involves release of -Ala ligand and aquation of the palladium(II) complex chelated to the substrate through the imidazole N-3 atom and deprotonated nitrogen atom of the amide bond involving amino group of histidine. This aqua complex represents a catalytically active form different from the initially added catalytically inactive complex. In the reactions of palladium(II) complexes with tripeptide MeCO-Gly-His-Gly, two amide bonds, MeCO–Gly and His–Gly, were cleaved. The mechanism of the cleavage of these amide bonds is correlated with two different palladium(II)–substrate catalytically active forms. These findings contribute to the better understanding of selective cleavage of peptides and proteins and must be taken into consideration in designing new reagents for this purpose.