Electrooxidation Enables Selective Dehydrogenative [4+2] Annulation between Indole Derivatives

Dearomative annulation of indoles has emerged as a powerful tool for the preparation of polycyclic indoline‐based alkaloids. Compared with well‐established methods towards five‐membered‐ring‐fused indolines, the six‐membered‐ring‐fused indolines are rarely accessed under thermal conditions. Herein, a dearomative [4+2] annulation between different indoles is developed through an electrochemical pathway. This transformation offers a remarkably regio‐ and stereoselective route to highly functionalized pyrimido[5,4‐b]indoles under oxidant‐ and metal‐free conditions. Notably, this electrochemical approach maintains excellent functional‐group tolerance and can be extended as a modification tactic for pharmaceutical research. Preliminary mechanism studies indicate that the electrooxidation annulation proceeds through radical–radical cross‐coupling between an indole radical cation and an N‐centered radical generated in situ.     

Radical‐Mediated 1,2‐Formyl/Carbonyl Functionalization of Alkenes and Application to the Construction of Medium‐Sized Rings

A novel radical 1,2‐formylfunctionalization of alkenes involving 1,2(4,5)‐formyl migration triggered by addition of various carbon‐ and heteroatom‐centered radicals to alkenes has been developed for the first time, thus providing straightforward access to diverse β‐functionalized aldehydes with good efficiency, remarkable selectivity, and excellent functional group tolerance. Analogous transformations mediated by a keto‐carbonyl migration have also been effected under similar conditions. This method was used to access ring systems including various benzannulated nine‐, ten‐, and eleven‐membered rings, complex 6‐5(6,7)‐6(5) fused rings, and bridged rings with diverse functionalities.     

A Concise and Versatile Synthesis of Alkaloids from Kopsia tenuis: Total Synthesis of (±)‐Lundurine A and B

A total synthesis of (±)‐lundurines A and B is described. These natural products have a unique hexacyclic skeleton which includes a cyclopropane‐fused indoline. A stereospecific construction of the pentasubstituted cyclopropane core was achieved, by radical cyclization using SmI₂, with perfect stereoselectivity. Cyclizations to give seven‐ and five‐membered heterocycles, under palladium and ruthenium catalysis, respectively, accomplished the total syntheses. The late‐stage construction of the F ring by ring‐closing metathesis enabled access to the title compounds from a spiroindoline intermediate which is a common structure of other kopsia alkaloids.     

Total Synthesis of Talatisamine

Talatisamine ( 1 ) is a member of the C₁₉‐diterpenoid alkaloid family, and exhibits K⁺ channel inhibitory and antiarrhythmic activities. The formidable synthetic challenge that 1 presents is due to its highly oxidized and intricately fused hexacyclic 6/7/5/6/6/5‐membered‐ring structure (ABCDEF‐ring) with 12 contiguous stereocenters. Here we report an efficient synthetic route to 1 by the assembly of two structurally simple fragments, chiral 6/6‐membered AE‐ring 7 and aromatic 6‐membered D‐ring 6 . AE‐ring 7 was constructed from 2‐cyclohexenone ( 8 ) through fusing an N‐ethylpiperidine ring by a double Mannich reaction. After coupling 6 with 7 , an oxidative dearomatization/Diels–Alder reaction sequence generated fused pentacycle 4 b . The newly formed 6/6‐membered ring system was then stereospecifically reorganized into the 7/5‐membered BC‐ring of 3 via a Wagner–Meerwein rearrangement. Finally, Hg(OAc)₂ induced an oxidative aza‐Prins cyclization of 2 , thereby forging the remaining 5‐membered F‐ring. The total synthesis of 1 was thus accomplished by optimizing and orchestrating 33 transformations from 8 .     

Base‐Selective Five‐ versus Six‐Membered Ring Annulation in Palladium‐Catalyzed C–C Coupling Cascade Reactions: New Access to Electron‐Poor Polycyclic Aromatic Dicarboximides

Palladium‐catalyzed base‐selective annulation of dibromonaphthalimide to different aryl boronate esters by combined Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling and direct C−H arylation afforded a series of new five‐ and six‐membered ring annulated electron‐poor polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Cesium carbonate (Cs₂CO₃) as auxiliary base in these C−C coupling cascade reactions led exclusively to six‐membered ring annulation, while the use of organic base diazabicycloundecene (DBU) afforded the corresponding five‐membered ring annulated products. This base‐dependent selective mode of annulation is attributed to different mechanistic pathways directed by the applied base. The selective annulation was revealed by single crystal X‐ray analysis of the respective five‐ and six‐membered ring annulated products. The optical and redox properties of the new polycyclic aromatic dicarboximides were characterized by UV/Vis absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry.     

Three New C19‐Diterpenoid Alkaloids from Aconitum transsectum

Three new C₁₉‐diterpenoid alkaloids, named aconitramines A ( 1 ), B ( 2 ), and C ( 3 ), were isolated from Aconitum transsectum. By UV, IR, 1D‐ and 2D‐NMR, and MS analyses, their structures were elucidated as 18‐methoxyvilmoraconitine, 18‐demethoxydolichotine A, and 18‐demethoxydolichotine B. Compound 1 is the second known C₁₉‐diterpenoid alkaloid with a three‐membered ring formed by C(8), C(9), and C(10).     

Stereoselective Synthesis of Highly Functionalized Indanes and Dibenzocycloheptadienes through Complex Radical Cascade Reactions

Two highly stereoselective radical‐mediated syntheses of densely functionalized indanes and dibenzocycloheptadienes from ortho‐vinyl‐ and ortho‐vinylaryl‐substituted N‐(arylsulfonyl)‐acrylamides, respectively, are presented here. The chemoselective addition of in situ generated radicals (X^.) onto the styrene moieties triggers an unprecedented reaction cascade, resulting in the formation of one new C? X bond and two new C? C bonds, a formal 1,4‐aryl migration, and the extrusion of SO₂ to generate an amidyl radical intermediate. This intermediate, upon H abstraction, leads to the observed 5‐ and 7‐membered ring carbocyclic products, respectively, in a highly efficient manner.     

Asymmetric Synthesis of Densely Functionalized Medium‐Ring Carbocycles and Lactones through Modular Assembly and Ring‐Closing Metathesis of Sulfoximine‐Substituted Trienes and Dienynes

An asymmetric synthesis of densely functionalized 7–11‐membered carbocycles and 9–11‐membered lactones has been developed. Its key steps are a modular assembly of sulfoximine‐substituted C‐ and O‐tethered trienes and C‐tethered dienynes and their Ru‐catalyzed ring‐closing diene and enyne metathesis (RCDEM and RCEYM). The synthesis of the C‐tethered trienes and dienynes includes the following steps: 1) hydroxyalkylation of enantiomerically pure titanated allylic sulfoximines with unsaturated aldehydes, 2) α‐lithiation of alkenylsulfoximines, 3) alkylation, hydroxy‐alkylation, formylation, and acylation of α‐lithioalkenylsulfoximines, and 4) addition of Grignard reagents to α‐formyl(acyl)alkenylsulfoximines. The sulfoximine group provided for high asymmetric induction in steps 1) and 4). RCDEM of the sulfoximine‐substituted trienes with the second‐generation Ru catalyst stereoselectively afforded the corresponding functionalized 7–11‐membered carbocyles. RCDEM of diastereomeric silyloxy‐substituted 1,6,12‐trienes revealed an interesting difference in reactivity. While the (R)‐diastereomer gave the 11‐membered carbocyle, the (S)‐diastereomer delivered in a cascade of cross metathesis and RCDEM 22‐membered macrocycles. RCDEM of cyclic trienes furnished bicyclic carbocycles with a bicyclo[7.4.0]tridecane and bicyclo[9.4.0]pentadecane skeleton. Selective transformations of the sulfoximine‐ and bissilyloxy‐substituted carbocycles were performed including deprotection, cross‐coupling reaction and reduction of the sulfoximine moiety. Esterification of a sulfoximine‐substituted homoallylic alcohol with unsaturated carboxylic acids gave the O‐tethered trienes, RCDEM of which yielded the sulfoximine‐substituted 9–11‐membered lactones. RCEYM of a sulfoximine‐substituted 1,7‐dien‐10‐yne showed an unprecedented dichotomy in ring formation depending on the Ru catalyst. While the second‐generation Ru catalyst gave the 9‐membered exo 1,3‐dienyl carbocycle, the first‐generation Ru catalyst furnished a truncated 9‐membered 1,3‐dieny carbocycle having one CH₂ unit less than the dienyne.     

Total Synthesis of Crotophorbolone

The complex ABC‐tricyclic structure of crotophorbolone, a derivative of the tigliane diterpenoids, was assembled by coupling of simple fragments. The six‐membered C‐ring fragment, having five contiguous stereocenters, was stereoselectively constructed from (R)‐carvone. After attachment of the five‐membered A‐ring through the π‐allyl Stille coupling reaction, the α‐alkoxy bridgehead radical reaction effected the endo‐cyclization of the seven‐membered B‐ring by forming the sterically congested bond at C9 and C10 stereospecifically and stereoselectively, respectively. Finally, the functional groups on the 5/7/6‐membered ring system were manipulated by rhodium‐catalyzed C2 olefin isomerization, C13 decarboxylative oxidation, and C4 hydroxylation, thus completing the first total synthesis of crotophorbolone.     

Enantioselective Total Synthesis of (+)‐Plumisclerin A

The first and enantioselective total synthesis of (+)‐plumisclerin A, a novel unique complex cytotoxic marine diterpenoid, has been accomplished. Around the central cyclopentane anchorage, a sequential ring‐formation protocol was adopted to generate the characteristic tricycle[4.3.1.0^1,5]decane and trans‐fused dihyrdopyran moiety. Scalable enantioselective La^III‐catalyzed Michael reaction, palladium(0)‐catalyzed carbonylation and SmI₂‐mediated radical conjugate addition were successfully applied in the synthesis, affording multiple grams of the complex and rigid B/C/D‐ring system having six continuous stereogenic centers and two all‐carbon quaternary centers. The trans‐fused dihyrdopyran moiety with an exo side‐chain was furnished in final stage through sequential redox transformations from a lactone precursor, which overcome the largish steric strain of the dense multiring system. The reported total synthesis also confirms the absolute chemistries of natural (+)‐plumisclerin A.     

3′,4′‐Bis(4‐chloro­phenyl)­spiro­[chroman‐3,5′(4′H)‐isoxazol]‐4‐one

The title compound, C₂₃H₁₅Cl₂NO₃, crystallizes with two independent mol­ecules in the asymmetric unit. The chroman­one moiety consists of a benzene ring fused with a six‐membered heterocyclic ring which adopts a sofa conformation. The five‐membered spiro­isoxazoline ring is in an envelope conformation. The p‐chloro­phenyl rings bridged by the five‐membered ring are nearly perpendicular to each other. The chromanone moiety of one mol­ecule packs into the cavity formed by the p‐chloro­phenyl rings of a second mol­ecule through the formation of C—H?π interactions. The structure is stabilized by weak C—H?O, C—H?Cl and C—H?π interactions.     

由邻苯二胺合成苯并咪唑、喹喔啉以及1-H-2,3－二氢1,5-苯并氮杂卓

A series of benzo-fused heteroaromatic compounds with 5-, 6- and 7-membered tings, such as benzimidazole,quinoxaline and 1H-1,5-benzodiazepine derivatives, were synthesized through condensation reaction of o-pheny1-enediamine with ary1 aldehydes or ketones. The experimental conditions were carefully examined, and the products were characterized by ^1H NMR, ^13C NMR, MS, IR and elemental analyses. In addition, the structure of a benzodiazaepine derivative with 7-membered ring was confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis.     

Selective Formation of Indene through the Reaction of Benzyl Radicals with Acetylene

The combustion of fossil fuels forms polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) composed of five‐ and six‐ membered aromatic rings, such as indene (C₉H₈), which are carcinogenic, mutagenic, and deleterious to the environment. Indene, the simplest PAH with single five‐ and six‐membered rings, has been predicted theoretically to be formed through the reaction of benzyl radicals with acetylene. Benzyl radicals are found in significant concentrations in combustion flames, owing to their highly stable aromatic and resonantly stabilized free‐radical character. We provide compelling experimental evidence that indene is synthesized through the reaction of the benzyl radical (C₇H₇) with acetylene (C₂H₂) under combustion‐like conditions at 600 K. The mechanism involves an initial addition step followed by cyclization and aromatization through atomic hydrogen loss. This reaction was found to form the indene isomer exclusively, which, in conjunction with the high concentrations of benzyl and acetylene in combustion environments, indicates that this pathway is the predominant route to synthesize the prototypical five‐ and six‐membered PAH.     

Asymmetric Total Synthesis of (+)‐Ryanodol and (+)‐Ryanodine

(+)‐Ryanodine ( 1 ) is the ester derivative of 1H‐pyrrole‐2‐carboxylic acid and the complex terpenoid (+)‐ryanodol ( 2 ), which possesses eleven contiguous stereogenic centers on the ABCDE‐ring system. Compound 1 is known to be a potent modulator of intracellular calcium release channels, whereas the activity of 2 is significantly weaker. To chemically construct 1 , the multiple oxygen functional groups must be installed on the fused pentacycle in stereoselective fashions and the extremely hindered C3‐hydroxy group must be acylated in a site‐selective manner. First, the total synthesis of 2 was accomplished by introducing the five stereocenters from the previously prepared enantiopure ABDE‐ring 7 . Stereoselective construction of the C3‐secondary, C2‐ and C6‐tertiary alcohols was achieved by three nucleophilic reactions. The C9‐ and C10‐trisubstituted carbon centers were regio‐ and stereoselectively introduced by hydroboration/oxidation of the six‐membered C‐ring, which was formed by the ring‐closing metathesis reaction. Direct esterification of the C3‐alcohol with pyrrole‐2‐carboxylic acid proved unsuccessful; therefore, we developed a new, two‐step protocol for attachment of the pyrrole moiety. The C3‐hydroxy group was first converted into the less sterically cumbersome glycine ester, which was then transformed into the pyrrole ring through condensation with 1,3‐bis(dimethylamino)allylium tetrafluoroborate. This procedure resulted in the first total synthesis of 1 .     

Total Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of (+)‐Gambieric Acid A and Its Analogues

In this study, we report the first total synthesis and complete stereostructure of gambieric acid A, a potent antifungal polycyclic ether metabolite, in detail. The A/B‐ring exocyclic enol ether 32 was prepared through a Suzuki–Miyaura coupling of the B‐ring vinyl iodide 18 and the alkylborate 33 and subsequent closure of the A‐ring by using diastereoselective bromoetherification as the key transformation. Suzuki–Miyaura coupling of 32 with acetate‐derived enol phosphate 49 , followed by ring‐closing metathesis of the derived diene, produced the D‐ring. Subsequent closure of the C‐ring through a mixed thioacetalization completed the synthesis of the A/BCD‐ring fragment 8 . The A/BCD‐ and F′GHIJ‐ring fragments (i.e., 8 and 9 ) were assembled through Suzuki–Miyaura coupling. The C25 stereogenic center was elaborated by exploiting the intrinsic conformational property of the seven‐membered F′‐ring. After the oxidative cleavage of the F′‐ring, the E‐ring was formed as a cyclic mixed thioacetal (i.e., 70 ) and then stereoselectively allylated by using glycosylation chemistry. Ring‐closing metathesis of the diene 3 thus obtained closed the F‐ring and completed the polycyclic ether skeleton. Finally, the J‐ring side chain was introduced by using a Julia–Kocienski olefination in the presence of CeCl₃ to complete the total synthesis of gambieric acid A ( 1 ), thereby unambiguously establishing its complete stereostructure. The present total synthesis enabled us to evaluate the antifungal and antiproliferative activities of 1 and several synthetic analogues.     

Trangmolins A–F with an Unprecedented Structural Plasticity of the Rings A and B: New Insight into Limonoid Biosynthesis

The absolute stereostructures of trangmolins A–F ( 1 – 6 ), limonoids with three new and one known topologies of the rings A and B, were unambiguously determined by NMR spectroscopic investigations, single‐crystal XRD analysis, and quantum‐chemical electronic circular dichroism calculations. Compounds 1 – 3 contain a hexahydro‐1H‐inden‐4‐one motif, compound 4 comprises a hexahydro‐2,6‐methanobenzofuran‐7‐one cage, and compound 5 consists of a hexahydro‐2H‐2,8‐epoxychromene scaffold. The C1?C30 linkage in 1 – 3 and the C3?C30 connection in 4 form two unprecedented types of ring A/B‐fused carbobicyclic cores: viii and ix . The oxidative cleavage of the C2?C3 bond in 5 and heterocyclization in 4 and 5 constitute the unprecedented tricyclic 6/6/5 ring A/B¹/B²‐ and 6/5/6 ring A¹A²/B‐fused topologies, respectively, which are uncovered, for the first time, in the construction of limonoid architectures. The diverse cyclization patterns of 1 – 6 reveal an unparalleled structural plasticity of rings A and B in limonoid biosynthesis.     

Di­cyano{[(1S)‐(1‐phenyl­ethyl)­aziridin‐2‐yl]­methano­lato‐κ2N,O}boron

In the title compound, C₁₃H₁₄BN₃O, the aziridine ring is an almost equilateral triangle, the C—C distance being slightly shorter than the C—N distances, probably because of the dative B—N bond. The five‐membered ring, composed of two C atoms and N, B and O atoms, is fused with the aziridine ring to form a six‐membered ring with a chair conformation.     

Thermochemistry of N‐heterocyclic carbenes with 5‐, 4‐, 3‐, and 2‐membered rings

N‐heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) based on imidazole‐2‐ylidene ( 1 ) or the saturated imidazolidine‐2‐ylidene ( 2 ) scaffolds are long‐lived singlet carbenes. Both benefit from inductive stabilization of the sigma lone pair on carbon by neighboring N atoms and delocalization of the N pi lone pairs into the nominally vacant p‐pi atomic orbital at the carbene carbon. With thermochemical schemes G4 and CBS‐QB3, we estimate the relative thermodynamic stabilization of smaller ring carbenes and acyclic species which may share the keys to NHC stability. These include four‐membered ring systems incorporating the carbene center, two trivalent N centers, and either a boron or a phosphorus atom to complete the ring. Amino‐substituted cyclopropenylidenes have been reported but three‐membered rings containing the carbene center and two N atoms are not known. Our calculations suggest that amino‐substituted cyclopropenylidenes are comparable in stability to the four‐membered NHCs but that diazacyclopropanylidenes would be substantially less effectively stabilized. Concluding the series are acyclic carbenes with and without neighboring N atoms and a series of “two‐membered ring” azapropadienenylidene cations of form :C?N?W with W = an electron‐withdrawing agent. We have studied W = NO₂, CH₂(+), CF₂(+), and (CN)₂C(+). Although these systems display a degree of stabilization and carbene‐like electronic structure, the stability of the NHCs is unsurpassed. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

A Tale of Biphenyl and Terphenyl Substituents for Structurally Diverse Ketiminato Magnesium,Calcium and Germanium Complexes

In this paper, we have used two N,O‐ketiminato ligands ( L1 and L2 ) with biphenyl and terphenyl substituent on the nitrogen atom. Deprotonation of L1 with KN(SiMe₃)₂ and subsequent reaction with MgI₂ led to a homoleptic dinuclear magnesium complex ( 1 ) with a Mg₂O₂ four‐membered ring. Deprotonation with nBuLi and subsequent reaction with MgI₂ afforded a unusual dinuclear magnesium complex ( 2 ) with a Mg₂O₂ ring. Extension of the ligand for calcium resulted in a trinuclear calcium complex ( 3 ) with six four‐membered Ca₂O₂ rings. We could not isolate any chelating complex when L2 was used as a ligand, and only oxygen bound magnesium ( 4 ) and calcium ( 5 ) adducts were isolated. DFT studies were performed to understand this dissimilar behavior. More diverse results were obtained when lithiated L1 and L2 were treated with germanium dichloride. We were able to stabilize a monomeric germylene monochloride ( 7 ) with L1 . However, with L2 , an unusual ligand scrambling, and a C?C coupling take place, leading to the formation of a secondary carbocation with GeCl₃‐ as a counter‐anion ( 8 ). Besides, a germanium dichloride adduct ( 9 ) bound to the oxygen center of the ligand was obtained as the minor product.     

Similar molecular constitutions but different conformations and different supramolecular assemblies in two related fused tetracyclic benzo[b]pyrimido[5,4‐f]azepine derivatives

A simple and effective two‐step approach to tricyclic pyrimidine‐fused benzazepines has been adapted to give the tetracyclic analogues. In (RS)‐8‐chloro‐6‐methyl‐1,2,6,7‐tetrahydropyrimido[5′,4′:6,7]azepino[3,2,1‐hi]indole, C₁₅H₁₄ClN₃, (I), the five‐membered ring adopts an envelope conformation, as does the reduced pyridine ring in (RS)‐9‐chloro‐7‐methyl‐2,3,7,8‐tetrahydro‐1H‐pyrimido[5′,4′:6,7]azepino[3,2,1‐ij]quinoline, C₁₆H₁₆ClN₃, (II). However, the seven‐membered rings in (I) and (II) adopt very different conformations, with the result that the methyl substituent occupies a quasi‐axial site in (I) but a quasi‐equatorial site in (II). The molecules of (I) are linked by C—H...N hydrogen bonds to form C(5) chains and inversion‐related pairs of chains are linked by a π–π stacking interaction. A combination of a C—H...π hydrogen bond and two C—Cl...π interactions links the molecules of (II) into complex sheets. Comparisons are made with some similar fused heterocyclic compounds.