Synthesis and cross-coupling reactions of tetraalkylammonium organotrifluoroborate salts

Treatment of organoboronic acids with hydrofluoric acid generates an in situ tetracoordinate hydronium organotrifluoroborate species which undergoes counterion exchange with tetra-n-butylammonium hydroxide. The resultant tetraalkylammonium salts are as air and moisture stable as their potassium organotrifluoroborate counterparts with the added advantage of being readily soluble in organic media. They were found to undergo Pd-catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura cross-couplings with a variety of aryl- and alkenylhalides under mild conditions. Their Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling with acid halides is also possible for the generation of ketones.     

Laccases: Versatile Biocatalysts for the Synthesis of Heterocyclic Cores

Laccases are multicopper oxidases that have shown a great potential in various biotechnological and green chemistry processes mainly due to their high relative non-specific oxidation of phenols, arylamines and some inorganic metals, and their high redox potentials that can span from 500 to 800 mV vs. SHE. Other advantages of laccases include the use of readily available oxygen as a second substrate, the formation of water as a side-product and no requirement for cofactors. Importantly, addition of low-molecular-weight redox mediators that act as electron shuttles, promoting the oxidation of complex bulky substrates and/or of higher redox potential than the enzymes themselves, can further expand their substrate scope, in the so-called laccase-mediated systems (LMS). Laccase bioprocesses can be designed for efficiency at both acidic and basic conditions since it is known that fungal and bacterial laccases exhibit distinct optimal pH values for the similar phenolic and aromatic amines. This review covers studies on the synthesis of five- and six-membered ring heterocyclic cores, such as benzimidazoles, benzofurans, benzothiazoles, quinazoline and quinazolinone, phenazine, phenoxazine, phenoxazinone and phenothiazine derivatives. The enzymes used and the reaction protocols are briefly outlined, and the mechanistic pathways described.     

Suzuki cross-coupling reactions using reverse-phase glass beads in aqueous media

Reverse-phase glass beads have been employed in Suzuki reactions to provide, in aqueous media, a route to diverse polar substrates in good yield and with low levels of palladium leaching.     

One-pot synthesis of substituted styrenes from vicinal dibromoalkanes and arylboronic acids

Dehydrobromination of vicinal dibromoalkanes in systems comprising 1,2-dimethoxy-ethane, N-butyl-N′-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (or tetrabutylammonium bromide), and a base with subsequent palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling of the thus formed bromoalkenes with arylboronic acids furnished substituted styrenes. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 116–123, January, 2007.     

Effect of microwave irradiation on the reactivity of chloroarenes in Suzuki—Miyaura reaction

Simple catalytic systems for the Suzuki—Miyaura reaction of aryl chlorides under microwave conditions were tested. Microwave irradiation facilitated the reaction course. The catalyst, base, and solvent effect were studied and two reaction systems offered reasonable to high yields within a short time.     

Pd-isatin Schiff base complex immobilized onγ-Fe2O3 as a magnetically recyclable catalyst for the Heck and Suzuki cross-coupling reactions

A Pd‐isatin Schiff base complex immobilized onγ‐Fe2O3 (Pd‐isatin Schiff base‐γ‐Fe2O3) was synthe‐sized and characterized by Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, high resolu‐tion tr...     

羧基亚胺配体的合成及其促进Suzuki偶联反应的研究

合成了4种羧基亚胺配体并将其用于促进Suzuki偶联反应。通过考察配体结构、溶剂极性、碱强度和温度等因素对反应产率的影响,确定了羧基亚胺配体参与的钯催化Suzuki偶联反应的最佳条件为:催化剂的量为0.001(mol)%的Pd Cl2和0.002(mol)%的配体,以碳酸钾作碱,4m L乙醇水溶液(1∶1,体积比)作溶剂,反应温度为60℃,在空气条件下反应。结果表明,羧基亚胺配体能够有效促进Suzuki偶联反应;在合成的配体L1~L4中,具有适当的位阻和给电子基团的L2的催化活性最高,能够高效催化合成一系列联芳类化合物。     

Palladium in the Chemical Synthesis and Modification of Proteins

The field of site‐specific modification of proteins has drawn significant attention in recent years owing to its importance in various research areas such as the development of novel therapeutics and understanding the biochemical and cellular behaviors of proteins. The presence of a large number of reactive functional groups in the protein of interest and in the cellular environment renders modification at a specific site a highly challenging task. With the development of sophisticated chemical methodologies it is now possible to target a specific site of a protein with a desired modification, however, many challenges remain to be solved. In this context, transition metals in particular palladium‐mediated C−C bond‐forming and C−O bond‐cleavage reactions gained great interest owing to the unique catalytic properties of palladium. Palladium chemistry is being explored for protein modifications in vitro, on the cell surface, and within the cell. Very recently, palladium complexes have been applied for the rapid deprotection of several widely utilized cysteine protecting groups as well as in the removal of solubilizing tags to facilitate chemical protein synthesis. This Minireview highlights these advances and how the accumulated knowledge of palladium chemistry for small molecules is being impressively transferred to synthesis and modification of chemical proteins.     

Preparation and Application of Solid,Salt‐Stabilized Zinc Amide Enolates with Enhanced Air and Moisture Stability

The treatment of various N‐morpholino amides with TMPZnCl⋅LiCl (TMP=2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidyl) and Mg(OPiv)₂ in THF at 25 °C provides solid zinc enolates with enhanced air and moisture stability (t _1/2 in air: 1–3 h) after solvent evaporation. These enolates undergo Pd‐ and Cu‐catalyzed cross‐couplings with (hetero)aryl bromides as well as allylic and benzylic halides. The arylated N‐morpholino amides were converted into various ketones by LaCl₃⋅2 LiCl mediated acylation with Grignard reagents. The new, solid enolates were used to prepare a potent anti‐breast‐cancer drug candidate in six steps and 23 % overall yield.     

NIR‐Absorbing Donor–Acceptor Based 1,1,4,4‐Tetracyanobuta‐1,3‐Diene (TCBD)‐ and Cyclohexa‐2,5‐Diene‐1,4‐Ylidene‐Expanded TCBD‐Substituted Ferrocenyl Phenothiazines

A series of unsymmetrical (D‐A‐D₁, D₁‐π‐D‐A‐D₁, and D₁‐A₁‐D‐A₂‐D₁; A=acceptor, D=donor) and symmetrical (D₁‐A‐D‐A‐D₁) phenothiazines ( 4 b , 4 c , 4 c′ , 5 b , 5 c , 5 d , 5 d′ , 5 e , 5 e′ , 5 f , and 5 f′ ) were designed and synthesized by a [2+2] cycloaddition–electrocyclic ring‐opening reaction of ferrocenyl‐substituted phenothiazines with tetracyanoethylene (TCNE) and 7,7,8,8‐tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ). The photophysical, electrochemical, and computational studies show a strong charge‐transfer (CT) interaction in the phenothiazine derivatives that can be tuned by varying the number of TCNE/TCNQ acceptors. Phenothiazines 4 b , 4 c , 4 c′ , 5 b , 5 c , 5 d , 5 d′ , 5 e , 5 e′ , 5 f and 5 f′ show redshifted absorption in the λ =400 to 900 nm region, as a result of a low HOMO–LUMO gap, which is supported by TD‐DFT calculations. The electrochemical study exhibits reduction waves at low potential due to strong 1,1,4,4‐tetracyanobuta‐1,3‐diene (TCBD) and cyclohexa‐2,5‐diene‐1,4‐ylidene‐expanded TCBD acceptors. The incorporation of cyclohexa‐2,5‐diene‐1,4‐ylidene‐expanded TCBD stabilized the LUMO energy level to a greater extent than TCBD.