Regioselective copper-mediated synthesis of thieno[2,3-c]pyrane-7-one, indolo[2,3-c]pyrane-1-one, and indolo[3,2-c]pyrane-1-one

In the presence of copper(I) iodide, heteroaromatic β-iodo-α,β-unsaturated carboxylic acid systems opposed to terminal alkyne afford selectively 6-endo-dig cyclization products via a tandem coupling oxacyclization reaction.     

Cyclization reactions of methylthioacetanilides

The cyclization reactions of methylthioacetanilides mediated by manganese(III) acetate and/or copper(II) acetate are described. Indolinones and indolinediones can be produced effectively via a 5-membered ring cyclization of methylthioacetanilides. The product distributions are highly dependent on the reaction conditions. In most cases, the electronic effect of the substituents on the aryl ring was found to significantly affect the yields of cyclization products. This cyclization reaction proceeded faster with manganese(III) acetate/copper(II) acetate.     

1,3-Dipolar Addition of Methyl α-Diazoacetoacetate to Enamines： A New Synthetic Route to 5-Amino-4,5-dihydrofurans

The reaction of methyl α-diazoacetoacetate with enamines catalyzed by dirhodium and copper complexes underwent formal 1,3-dipolar addition to give 5-amino-4,5-dihydrofurans in moderate yields. The reaction was suggested to proceed via a nucleophilic addition of enamines to rnetal-carbenes and a subsequent intramolecular cyclization of the resulting zwitterionic intermediates.     

Synthesis of benzoxazine and 1,3-oxazine derivatives via ligand-free copper(I)-catalyzed one-pot cascade addition/cyclization reaction

A novel and efficient synthesis of benzoxazine and 1,3-oxazine derivatives via ligand-free copper(I)-catalyzed one-pot cascade addition/cyclization reaction has been developed. A variety of carbodiimides coupled with o-halophenylmethanols and/or substituted (Z)-3-iodoprop-2-en-1-ols to give the corresponding products in moderate to excellent yields under the mild condition.     

Gold-catalyzed ketene dual functionalization and mechanistic insights: divergent synthesis of indenes and benzo[d]oxepines

An unprecedented gold-catalyzed ketene C=O/C=C bifunctionalization method has been developed. Mechanistic studies and density function theory(DFT) calculations indicate that the reaction is initiated by gold-catalyzed Wolff rearrangement of diazoketone to form the ketene intermediate, followed by intermolecular nucleophilic addition and terminated with two divergent cyclization processes via enol intermediates. In the case with alcohols as the nucleophiles, the reaction goes through a C-5-endodig carbocyclization to give the indene products; whereas, O-7-endo-dig cyclization occurs dominantly when indoles/pyrroles are used as the nucleophiles, delivering the 7-membered benzo[d]oxepines. In comparison with the well-documented cycloaddition and nucleophilic addition reactions, this cascade reaction features a novel reaction pattern for the ketene dual functionalization through addition with nucleophile and electrophile in sequence.     

One pot synthesis of indene through copper(I)-catalyzed three-components coupling and cyclization reaction

A new and efficient synthesis of substituted indene has been achieved via copper(I)-catalyzed domino three-component coupling and cyclization reaction in moderate to good yield.     

Synthesis of pyrazoles via CuI-mediated electrophilic cyclizations of α,β-alkynic hydrazones

Synthesis of pyrazoles via electrophilic cyclization of α,β-alkynic hydrazones by copper(I) iodide is described. When treated with copper(I) iodide in the presence of triethylamine in refluxing acetonitrile, α,β-alkynic hydrazones, prepared readily from hydrazines and propargyl aldehydes and ketones, undergo electrophilic cyclization to afford pyrazole derivatives in good to excellent yields. The reaction appears to be general for a variety of α,β-alkynic hydrazones and tolerates the presence of aliphatic, aromatic, and ferrocenyl moieties with electron-withdrawing and electron-donating substituents.     

Rhenium-catalyzed formation of indene frameworks via C-H bond activation: [3+2] annulation of aromatic aldimines and acetylenes

A rhenium complex, [ReBr(CO)3(thf)]2, catalyzes the reaction of an aromatic aldimine with an acetylene to give an indene derivative in a quantitative yield. The reaction proceeds via C-H bond activation, insertion of the acetylene, intramolecular nucleophilic cyclization, and reductive elimination. In contrast to ruthenium and rhodium catalysts, which are usually employed in this type of reaction, the rhenium catalyst promotes the intramolecular nucleophilic cyclization of the alkenylmetal species generated by insertion of the acetylene.     

Rhodium(III)-catalyzed intermolecular cyclization of anilines with sulfoxonium ylides toward indoles

C2-substituted indoles were efficiently prepared with excellent regio-selectivity from N-phenylpyridin-2-amines and sulfoxonium ylides via cascade reaction of C-H alkylation/nucleophilic cyclization.     

Stereo/regio-controlled cyclization of polychlorohex-5-enoic acids into substituted cyclobutanes

A new method of synthesis was developed for functionally substituted cyclobutanecarboxylic acids based on an intramolecular cyclization of derivatives of the 2,2,4,6,6-pentachloro-3,3-dimethylhex-5-enoic acid in the presence of the copper(I) amine complexes. The cyclization proceeds both regiospecifically and stereoselectively, and the stereoisomeric composition of the products depends on the capability of the functional group in the initial polychloroalkenoic acid to coordinate to the transition metal ion. A reaction mechanism is suggested explaining the region/stereo-controlled course of the cyclization process.     

TFAA‐Catalyzed Annulation Synthesis of Spiro Pyrrolo[1,2‐a]quinoxaline Derivatives from 1‐(2‐Aminophenyl)pyrroles and Benzoquinones/Ketones

A metal‐free trifluorosulfonate anhydride (TFAA)‐catalyzed strategy for the synthesis of spiro pyrrolo[1,2‐a]quinoxalines from 1‐(2‐aminophenyl)pyrroles and benzoquinones/ketones has been developed. With this general method, spiro pyrrolo[1,2‐a]quinoxalines have been accessed via nucleophilic addition and cyclization. This reaction exhibits good functional group tolerance, and a wide range of products are obtained in moderate to good yields.     

Electrophilic cyclization of (Z)-selenoenynes: synthesis and reactivity of 3-iodoselenophenes

We present here our results of the electrophilic cyclization reaction of (Z)-selenoenynes with different electrophiles such as I(2), ICl, PhSeBr, and PhSeCl. The cyclization reaction proceeded cleanly under mild reaction conditions, and 3-substituted selenophenes were formed in moderate to excellent yields. We observed that the nature of solvent and structure of (Z)-selenoenyne were important to the cyclization reaction. In addition, the obtained 3-iodoselenophenes were readily transformed to more complex products using a metal-halogen exchange reaction with n-BuLi and trapping the intermediate formed with aldehydes, furnishing the desired secondary alcohols in good yields. Conversely, using the palladium or copper catalyzed cross-coupling reactions with terminal alkynes or alkyl alcohols, we were able to convert 3-iodoselenophene to Sonogashira or Ullmann type products, respectively, in good yields.     

Facile construction of the benzofuran and chromene ring systems via PdII-catalyzed oxidative cyclization

[reaction: see text]. We herein report the development of one-pot procedures for the conversion of allyl aryl ethers to 2-methylbenzofurans (via sequential Claisen rearrangement and oxidative cyclization) and for the conversion of aryl homoallyl ethers to chromenes (via direct oxidative cyclization). It is likely that both reactions proceed via a common Pd-catalyzed pathway involving olefin activation, nucleophilic attack, and beta-hydride elimination.     

Silver(I)-catalyzed novel cascade cyclization reactions: incorporation of allenes into the isochromenes

[reaction: see text] The silver(I)-catalyzed reaction of alkynones with alcohols represents a general tool for the synthesis of 1-allenyl isochromenes. The reaction most probably proceeds via the formation of benzopyrylium cation, which subsequently undergoes nucleophilic attack of an alcohol to give the annulation products.     

Solvent-free 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition of Azomethine Imines with Terminal Alkynes Promoted by Calcium Fluoride Under the Ball Milling Condition

A convenient and efficient procedure for the synthesis of N,N-bicyclic pyrazolidinone derivatives has been developed via the reaction of azomethine imines with terminal alkynes under the ball milling condition without solvent, which was promoted by calcium fluoride with a catalyst of copper(I) salt. The cyclization reactions exhibited moderate to high yields.     

Reversal of nucleophilicity of enamides in water: control of cyclization pathways by reaction media for the orthogonal synthesis of dihydropyridinone and pyrrolidinone Clausena alkaloids

A highly efficient, metal-free, and divergent method for the synthesis of 3,4-dihydropyridin-2-one and pyrrolidin-2-one Clausena alkaloids and their analogs is reported. While the oxirane-containing enamides underwent the TFA-mediated 6-endo-enamide-epoxide cyclization reaction in Bu(t)OH to produce homoclausenamides, an unprecedented nucleophilic reaction occurred at the alpha-carbon of enamides in water to yield 5-endo-enamide-epoxide cyclization products in excellent yields. The reversal of nucleophilicity of enamides in intramolecular cyclization is discussed in terms of steric and electronic effects of the oxirane-containing enamides.     

Indium-mediated atom-transfer and reductive radical cyclizations of iodoalkynes: synthesis and biological evaluation of HIV-protease inhibitors

Novel indium-mediated radical cyclization reactions of aliphatic iodoalkynes have been studied. Treatment of iodoalkynes with a catalytic amount of In (0.1 equiv) and I(2) (0.05 equiv) promotes atom-transfer 5-exo cyclization to give five-membered alkenyl iodides. In contrast, reaction with In (2 equiv) and I(2) (1 equiv) yields reductive 5-exo cyclization products via the same 5-exo cyclization. Both processes are most likely initiated by low-valent indium species. To demonstrate versatility of these reactions, optically active HIV protease inhibitors were synthesized by this reductive cyclization method. Among them, several products, which contain a hydroxyethylamine dipeptide isostere as a transition state-mimicking substructure, proved to possess potent activity (IC(50) = 5-39 nM) against a wide spectrum of HIV strains, including multidrug-resistant variants.     

Regiochemistry of copper(I)-mediated cyclization reactions of halo-dienamides

Reaction of 2-substituted dienamides with catalytic amounts of copper halide/tripyridylamine (TPA) furnishes either 5-exo or 6-endo products with the outcome dependent upon the radical initiating unit. Reaction of 3-substituted dienamides produces beta-lactams via a 4-exo cyclization with termination of the reaction occurring via either halogen atom transfer, trapping with oxygen, elimination, or radical-radical coupling depending upon the diene.     

Imidazobenzothiazine and primidobenzothiazine derivatives synthesis via an aliphatic SN2 substitution/Cu(I) catalyzed Ullmann coupling cascade process

An efficient method for the preparation of various imidazobenzothiazine and primidobenzothiazine derivatives from readily available 2-mercaptoimidazoles (thiouracils) and bromobenzyl bromides via a copper(I)-catalyzed one-pot cascade process has been developed. The reaction involves a S_N2 process and an intramolecular C–N cross coupling cyclization.     

Reaction of cytisine with alka-1,3- and -2,3-dien-2-ylphosphonates

Methods have been developed for functionalizing the alkaloid cytisine via introduction of alka-1,3- and -2,3-dien-2-ylphosphonate fragments. The main pathway of the reaction of cytisine with 2-(diethoxyphosphoryl) alka-2,3-dien-1-yl methanesulfonates is nucleophilic substitution of the methanesulfonyloxy group with retention of the alkadiene skeleton. A minor reaction pathway is nucleophilic substitution with formation of alka-1,3-dien-2-ylphosphonates. Cytisine conjugates with exclusively alka-1,3-dien-2-ylphosphonate fragment have been synthesized by copper(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of N-(prop-2-yn-1-yl)cytisine to 3-azidoalka-1,3-dien-2-ylphosphonates.