Mechanistic details of metal-free cyclization reaction of organophosphorus oxide with alkynes mediated by 2,6-lutidine and Tf2O

Theoretical investigations have elucidated the mechanism of metal-free electrophilic phosphinative cyclization of alkynes reaction reported by Miura and coworkers. Two competitive mechanisms I and II were explored without or with 2,6-lutidine. Both of I and II involve transformation of P(V) to P(III), electrophilic addition, ring opening and cyclization/cyclization, hydrogen-transfer, and oxidation. The rate-determining step of mechanism I and competitive less-step II is electrophilic [2 + 1] cycloaddition and electrophilic addition via single C P bond formation with activation barrier of 13.5 and 10.6 kcal/mol, respectively. Our calculation results suggested that the cumulative effect of the isomer of 2,6-lutidine and Tf₂O as well as TfO⁻ affects the title reaction to some extent, and simultaneously activates key reaction sites and reverses the polarities of them via the formation of abundant noncovalent interactions to decrease activation barriers of TSs. In addition, the effects of two series substituents on reactivity of phosphine oxide were investigated. Therefore, our study will serve as useful guidance for more efficient metal-free synthesis of organophosphorus compounds mediated by pyridine reagents.     

Understanding the Diels-Alder reactivity of 1,2-azaborine analogues

The Diels-Alder reactivity of 1,2-heteroborines (H₄C₄B(H)X, X?=?NH, PH, AsH; O, S, Se) has been computationally explored by means of Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. The influence of the HB?=?X fragment on the reactivity of the system has been quantitatively analyzed in detail by means of the so-called Activation Strain Model (ASM) of reactivity. It is found that the interaction between these species and the dienophile is significantly stronger than that computed for their all-carbon isoelectronic counterpart, benzene. In addition, the strain energy plays a key role in the observed reactivity trends. The role of the aromaticity strength of these heteroarenes on the reactivity is also assessed.     

A Vinyl Sulfone‐Based Fluorogenic Probe Capable of Selective Labeling of PHGDH in Live Mammalian Cells

Chemical probes are powerful tools for interrogating small molecule‐target interactions. With additional fluorescence Turn‐ON functionality, such probes might enable direct measurements of target engagement in live mammalian cells. DNS‐pE (and its terminal alkyne‐containing version DNS‐pE2) is the first small molecule that can selectively label endogenous 3‐phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH) from various mammalian cells. Endowed with an electrophilic vinyl sulfone moiety that possesses fluorescence‐quenching properties, DNS‐pE/DNS‐pE2 became highly fluorescent only upon irreversible covalent modification of PHGDH. With an inhibitory property (in vitro K_i=7.4 μm ) comparable to that of known PHGDH inhibitors, our probes thus offer a promising approach to simultaneously image endogenous PHGDH activities and study its target engagement in live‐cell settings.     

1,2-Carbopentafluorophenylation of Alkynes: The Metallomimetic Pull-Push Reactivity of Tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane

We report the novel single-step 1,2-dicarbofunctionalization of an arylacetylene with an allylsilane and tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane [B(C₆F₅)₃] involving C−C bond formation with C−H bond scission at the β-position to the silicon atom of an allylsilane and B→C migration of a C₆F₅ group. The 1,2-carbopentafluorophenylation occurs smoothly without the requirement for a catalyst or heating. Mechanistic studies suggest that the metallomimetic “pull-push” reactivity of B(C₆F₅)₃ imparts consecutive electrophilic and nucleophilic characteristics to the benzylic carbon of the arylacetylene. Subsequent photochemical 6π-electrocyclization affords tetrafluoronaphthalenes, which are important in the pharmaceutical and materials sciences. Owing to the unique reactivity of B(C₆F₅)₃, the 1,2-carbopentafluorophenylation using 2-substituted furan proceeded with ring opening, and the reaction using silyl enolates formed a C−C bond with C−O bond scission at the silyloxy-substituted carbon.     

Tunable Probes with Direct Fluorescence Signals for the Constitutive and Immunoproteasome

Electrophiles are commonly used for the inhibition of proteases. Notably, inhibitors of the proteasome, a central determinant of cellular survival and a target of several FDA‐approved drugs, are mainly characterized by the reactivity of their electrophilic head groups. We aimed to tune the inhibitory strength of peptidic sulfonate esters by varying the leaving groups. Indeed, proteasome inhibition correlated well with the pK_a of the leaving group. The use of fluorophores as leaving groups enabled us to design probes that release a stoichiometric fluorescence signal upon reaction, thereby directly linking proteasome inactivation to the readout. This principle could be applicable to other sulfonyl fluoride based inhibitors and allows the design of sensitive probes for enzymatic studies.     

Magnetotropicity of five-membered heterocyclic molecules

Ab initio methods have been employed to obtain models for the current density field induced in the electrons of pentatomic cyclic molecules C₄H₄X, with X = CH₂, NH, O, S, PH, and AsH, in the presence of a static, homogeneous magnetic field normal to the plane containing the four ring carbon atoms. These models are expected to provide simple and valid tools to assess the magnetotropism of these compounds and to interpret their magnetic response.     

Competitive reactivities of vinylthiyl radicals thermally generated from haloethylenes and hydrogen sulfide

Acetylene and its derivatives have been used for the first time as “traps” for vinylthiyl radicals generatedin situ from hydrogen sulfide and haloethylenes in gas-phase processes. The competitive reactivity of the vinylthiyl radicals has been studied at 500–570 °C in the presence of two chemical “traps.” The efficiency of chemical “traps” for the vinylthiyl radicals decreases in the following sequence: HC≡CPh > HC≡CH > MeC≡CH > CH₂=CHCl. Acetylene is a more efficient “trap” for the vinylthiyl radicals than 1,2-dichloroethylene, from which they have been generated. The β-phenylvinylthiyl radicals generated during cothermolysis of halostyrene-hydrogen sulfide-acetylene component ternary systems undergo first of all intramolecular ring closure to give benzothiophene, which is a thermodynamically favorable system; the reaction of these radicals with acetylene and its derivatives occurs much more slowly than heterocyclization. Phenylacetylene is a more efficient “trap” than acetylene. α-Phenylvinylthiyl radicals mostly react with acetylene to yield 2-phenylthiophene.     

SUBSTITUENT EFFECTS OF PHOSPHORUS-CONTAINING GROUPS. THE ELECTRONIC EFFECTS IN ANILIDES AND PHENYL ESTERS

Abstract

¹³C NMR shielding parameters have been determined for the N-phosphorylated aniline and O-phosphorylated phenol derivatives, Ph–Y–P(O)Z₂ (Y=NH, O), and for their complexes with titanium tetrachloride. Inductive and resonance substituent constants were calculated using the dsp approach for the neutral and charged substituents. The results are compared with those for the corresponding neutral and charged acetyl derivatives. Shielding effects and substituent constants are discussed in terms of the interactions of the lone pair at Y with the aromatic ring and with the acyl center. It is concluded that no significant p _π-d _π back-donation from Y to the phosphorus atom operates in the systems studied.     

Gas-phase electrophilic addition reactions of chlorinated alkyl ions

Chemical ionization was used to study gas-phase electrophilic addition reactions of chloromethyl ions ([CH_xCl_3-x]⁺, x = 0, 1, 2) with a number of substituted benzenes (C₆H₅Y, Y = NH₂, OH, CHO, CN, NO₂). Mass-analyzed ion kinetic energy spectrometry was used to characterize the reaction products with respect to the site of electrophilic addition (ring v. substituent). In some cases, examination of secondary reaction products (ion–molecule adduct which has undergone an elimination reaction in the ion source) aided in establishing the original site of electrophilic addition. Aniline, benzonitrile and nitrobenzene exhibited preferential substituent interaction, while phenol and benzaldehyde gave a mixture of ring and substituent reaction products. These gas-phase results differ considerably from solution-phase Friedel–Crafts alkylation; however, they are consistent with the notion of preferential σ-bond formation at polarizable centers of negative charge.     

A quantum mechanical study of the reactivity of (SiO)2-defective silica surfaces

The reactivity of the strained (SiO)(2)-four atom ring defect at the silica surfaces has been studied in a cluster approach adopting the ONIOM2[B3LYP6-31+G(d,p):MNDO] method to compute the ring opening reaction by interaction with H(2)O and NH(3). The vibrational "fingerprints" of the isolated defect are computed at 921, 930, and 934 cm(-1) in reasonable agreement with experimental evidence on amorphous silica outgassed at T>900 K. The opening of the (SiO)(2)-four-member ring by the considered molecules is exergonic and the actual value depends on the possible constraints enforced on the reaction products by the silica surrounding. The free kinetic energy barriers result from the interplay between the nucleophilic/electrophilic character of the adsorbed molecule and are 22 and 25 kcal mol(-1) for NH(3) and H(2)O, respectively. All free energy profiles envisage an activated complex in which the nucleophilic part of the molecule interacts on the coordinatively strained silicon atom of the (SiO)(2) defect followed by the proton transfer from the coordinated molecule towards the oxygen of the defective ring. Calculations show that this step can be speed up by the presence of more than one adsorbed molecule or even more (about seven orders of magnitude), by the copresence of water molecules acting as "proton transfer helpers." In these cases, the free energy barriers decrease to approximately 13 and 15 kcal mol(-1) for NH(3) and H(2)O, respectively. For the case of H(2)O adsorption, benchmark test calculations reveal that MP2, BLYP, and B3LYP energy profiles are in very good agreement with each other, whereas for PBE, both the reaction energy and the activation barrier are underestimated. Present data also show that the molecular model mimicking the (SiO)(2) defect is far less reactive than what appears to occur on the real defect at the surface of amorphous silica. So, only a combination of some further geometrical strains imparted by the solid on the (SiO)(2) defect, not accounted for by the cluster models, and higher adsorbate loadings are needed to reharmonize experiment and simulation. Notwithstanding, the vibrational features of the reaction products have been characterized and support the available experimental measurements.     

Catalytic Reduction of Cyclic Ethers with Hydrosilanes

Catalytic reductive transformations of ethers as a synthetic building block are an important class of chemical reactions because a range of essential chemical feedstocks and fuels in contemporary life can be prepared through the key step of ethereal C?O bond cleavage of cellulosic biomass. Although conventional stoichiometric and catalytic methods for sp²‐ and sp³‐C?O bond cleavage of linear ethers and alcohols with hydrosilanes are well established, silylative ring opening of cyclic ethers has been less highlighted in this context. This review outlines catalytic systems for the silylative reduction of a range of cyclic ethers, including epoxides and sugars, leading to the corresponding alcohols and/or hydrocarbons. The chemical reactivity and selectivity of these ring‐opening catalytic processes are discussed with respect to the type of substrates; the representative catalytic working modes are also described.     

Relative reactivity of three and four membered rings--the absence of charge effect

Radical (neutral) and electrophilic (cationic) ring opening reactions were studied computationally in order to probe the difference in reactivity between three and four membered rings. Using the Marcus equation we have shown that the activation energy for the four membered ring opening is close to the Marcus predicted barrier whereas three membered rings display much higher reactivity than that predicted by the Marcus equation. Thus, the reactivity of the three membered rings is enhanced, in addition to the strain release, by another factor which is not operative in the four membered rings. It is clear also that this factor is not charge dependent. The possible origin of this effect is discussed.     

Furan ring opening–indole ring closure: SnCl2-induced reductive transformation of difuryl(2-nitroaryl)methanes into 2-(2-acylvinyl)indoles

A simple and efficient method for the synthesis of 2-(2-acylvinyl)-3-(5-alkyl-2-furyl)indoles by reductive recyclization of bis(5-alkyl-2-furyl)(2-nitroaryl)methanes is reported. This transformation was carried out by heating the substrates with SnCl₂·2H₂O in ethanol. The intermediate nitrosoarene moiety interacted with the furan ring via electrophilic nitrogen attack onto the C(2) position of the furan ring. It was shown that the related bis(5-alkyl-2-thienyl)(2-nitroaryl)methanes under the same reaction conditions failed to undergo the analogous recyclization and were transformed into bis(5-alkyl-2-thienyl)(2-aminoaryl)methanes.     

Study on the nature of interaction of furan with various hydrides

The nature of interactions of furan with various hydrides (Y) (Y=HF,HCl,H2O,H2S,NH3,PH3) is investigated using ab initio calculations. The contribution of attractive (electrostatic, inductive, and dispersive) and repulsive (exchange) components to the interactions energy is analyzed. HF, H2O, and NH3 favor sigma o-type H bonding, while HCl, H2S, and PH3 favor pi-type H bonding. Interaction energy decomposition reveals that sigma o-type complexes interactions are predominantly electrostatic in nature, while the dispersion and electrostatic interactions dominate the pi-type complexes.     

Siliconcarbon multiple-bonded (pπpπ)intermediates : II. Chemical reactivity and selectivity of thermally generated 1,1-dimethyl-1-silaethene (Me2SiCH2)

The order of reactivity and the selectivity of 1,1-dimethyl-1-silaethene (Me₂SiCH₂), generated from 1,1-dimethylsilacyclobutane at 611°, toward a variety of substrates was determined using standard competition experiments. The observed reactivity order was Ph₂CO>ROH, ArOH ? m-ClPhNH₂ CH₃CN, which indicates that with these substrates and under the reaction conditions used, Me₂SiCH₂ is behaving like an electrophilic species. Within a given class of substrates, polar effects were found to be generally unimportant, while increased steric effects caused a decrease in rate (up to 50%).     

A General Light-Driven Organocatalytic Platform for the Activation of Inert Substrates

Due to their strong covalent bonds and low reduction potentials, activating inert substrates is challenging. Recent advances in photoredox catalysis offered a number of solutions, each of which useful for activating specific inert bonds. Developing a general catalytic platform that can consistently target a broad range of inert substrates would be synthetically useful. Herein, we report a readily available indole thiolate organocatalyst that, upon excitation with 405 nm light, acquires a strongly reducing power. This excited-state reactivity served to activate, by single-electron reduction, strong C−F, C−Cl, and C−O bonds in both aromatic and aliphatic substrates. This catalytic platform was versatile enough to promote the reduction of generally recalcitrant electron-rich substrates (E_red<−3.0 V vs SCE), including arenes that afforded 1,4-cyclohexadienes. The protocol was also useful for the borylation and phosphorylation of inert substrates with a high functional group tolerance. Mechanistic studies identified an excited-state thiolate anion as responsible of the highly reducing reactivity.     

The formyloxyl radical: electrophilicity,C–H bond activation and anti-Markovnikov selectivity in the oxidation of aliphatic alkenes

In the past the formyloxyl radical, HC(O)O˙, had only been rarely experimentally observed, and those studies were theoretical-spectroscopic in the context of electronic structure. The absence of a convenient method for the preparation of the formyloxyl radical has precluded investigations into its reactivity towards organic substrates. Very recently, we discovered that HC(O)O˙ is formed in the anodic electrochemical oxidation of formic acid/lithium formate. Using a [Co^IIIW₁₂O₄₀]⁵⁻ polyanion catalyst, this led to the formation of phenyl formate from benzene. Here, we present our studies into the reactivity of electrochemically in situ generated HC(O)O˙ with organic substrates. Reactions with benzene and a selection of substituted derivatives showed that HC(O)O˙ is mildly electrophilic according to both experimentally and computationally derived Hammett linear free energy relationships. The reactions of HC(O)O˙ with terminal alkenes significantly favor anti-Markovnikov oxidations yielding the corresponding aldehyde as the major product as well as further oxidation products. Analysis of plausible reaction pathways using 1-hexene as a representative substrate favored the likelihood of hydrogen abstraction from the allylic C–H bond forming a hexallyl radical followed by strongly preferred further attack of a second HC(O)O˙ radical at the C1 position. Further oxidation products are surmised to be mostly a result of two consecutive addition reactions of HC(O)O˙ to the C C double bond. An outer-sphere electron transfer between the formyloxyl radical donor and the [Co^IIIW₁₂O₄₀]⁵⁻ polyanion acceptor forming a donor–acceptor [D⁺–A⁻] complex is proposed to induce the observed anti-Markovnikov selectivity. Finally, the overall reactivity of HC(O)O˙ towards hydrogen abstraction was evaluated using additional substrates. Alkanes were only slightly reactive, while the reactions of alkylarenes showed that aromatic substitution on the ring competes with C–H bond activation at the benzylic position. C–H bonds with bond dissociation energies (BDE) ≤ 85 kcal mol⁻¹ are easily attacked by HC(O)O˙ and reactivity appears to be significant for C–H bonds with a BDE of up to 90 kcal mol⁻¹. In summary, this research identifies the reactivity of HC(O)O˙ towards radical electrophilic substitution of arenes, anti-Markovnikov type oxidation of terminal alkenes, and indirectly defines the activity of HC(O)O˙ towards C–H bond activation.

The formyloxyl radical, formed electrochemically, is electrophilic, yields anti-Markovnikov oxidation products from alkenes, and is effective for C–H bond activation.     

Metal Trifluoromethanesulfonate‐Catalyzed Regioselective Reductive Ring Opening of Benzylidene Acetals

A systematic study of various metal trifluoromethanesulfonates as efficient catalysts in the regioselective reductive ring opening of benzylidene acetals is described, including the effects of solvents, reducing agents, and temperature. These catalysts are found to be effective in cleaving the 4,6‐O‐acetal rings of hexopyranosides at either O4 or O6, respectively. When used in conjunction with a 1 M solution of BH₃·THF in THF without extra addition of any solvent, it affects the ring fission at the O6 position to generate the corresponding primary alcohols, whereas O4‐opening takes place in acetonitrile in the presence of dimethylethylsilane as the reductant leading to the secondary hydroxyl derivatives in high selectivity and yields. These methodologies can be applied to a wide range of substrates containing various functional groups.     

Sulfonyl fluorides as privileged warheads in chemical biology

Sulfonyl fluoride electrophiles have found significant utility as reactive probes in chemical biology and molecular pharmacology. As warheads they possess the right balance of biocompatibility (including aqueous stability) and protein reactivity. Their functionality is privileged in this regard as they are known to modify not only reactive serines (resulting in their common use as protease inhibitors), but also context-specific threonine, lysine, tyrosine, cysteine and histidine residues. This review describes the application of sulfonyl fluoride probes across various areas of research and explores new approaches that could further enhance the chemical biology toolkit. We believe that sulfonyl fluoride probes will find greater utility in areas such as covalent enzyme inhibition, target identification and validation, and the mapping of enzyme binding sites, substrates and protein–protein interactions.     

Electronic and chelation effects on the unusual C2-methylation of N-(para-substituted)phenylaziridines with lithium organocuprates

Density functional theory calculations with the B3LYP functional were performed for the title ring‐opening reaction to understand the intrinsic activating and directing effects of the N‐substituents, as well as the electron donating effect of the para‐substituted (Y = Cl, H, Me) phenyl group at the more hindered benzylic C2 atom. The N‐tosyl group (i.e., N‐Tos) or the N‐(2‐pyridyl)sulfonyl group (i.e., N‐Py) was introduced to activate the ring nitrogen atom (N1) and the para‐substituted (Y = Cl, H, Me) phenyl group for the activation of the C2 atom. Conformational searches and geometry optimizations were performed for the N‐(para‐substituted)phenylaziridines ( 1 ～ 6 ). Calculations indicate that the aziridine 6 (i.e., Py/Me) has the most elongated C2? N1 bond intrinsically due to the electronic activating effects, implying the aziridine 6 to be the most potent candidate for the more‐hindered C2 opening. Transition states (TSs) were investigated for the prospective ring‐opening paths (I～IV), considering the types of intermolecular push–pull interactions between the N‐activated phenylaziridines and the cuprate. The N‐Py group provides an unique C2‐favored TS along the path IV, which the N‐Tos group cannot afford, due to the less charge transfer from the nucleophilic CH of the cuprate into the electrophilic C2 atom. Furthermore, the e‐donating effect of the para‐substituents (Y = Cl, H, Me) enhances the C2 opening for the path IV. This study enables us to understand the unusual ring‐opening phenomena in terms of electronic and directing effects and hence may serve as a tool to design substrates for highly regioselective ring openings. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2011