Nickel-catalyzed reductive cyclization of organohalides

A mild and convenient nickel-catalyzed method for free-radical cyclization of organohalides is described. The use of a NiCl(2)?DME/Pybox complex as the catalyst and zinc powder in methanol efficiently promotes the reductive cyclization of various unsaturated alkyl halides to give carbo-, oxa-, and azacycles as products in high yields.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive cyclizations and couplings

For over 50 years, nickel catalysis has been applied in cycloaddition processes. Nickel-catalyzed reductive couplings and cyclizations, however, have only recently attracted a high level of interest. This group of new reactions allows a broad range of multicomponent couplings involving two or more pi components with a main-group or transition-metal reagent. These processes allow the assembly of important organic substructures from widely available reaction components. Multiple contiguous stereocenters, polycyclic ring systems, and novel arrays of complex functionality may often be prepared from simple, achiral, acyclic precursors. With three or more reactive functional groups participating in the catalytic processes, many mechanistic questions abound, including the precise timing of bond constructions and the nature of reactive intermediates. This Review is thus aimed at providing a critical evaluation of recent progress in this rapidly developing field.     

Nickel-catalyzed regioselective access to dibenzo[c,f]oxocine framework via reductive Heck reaction

Nickel-catalyzed regioselective construction of dibenzo[c,f]oxocine framework with tri-substituted exo-cyclic alkenes have been obtained through an efficient implementation of reductive-Heck protocol. This cost effective, efficient methodology has been demonstrated for the synthesis of various dibenzo[c,f]oxocine derivatives with moderate to good yields.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive electrocarboxylation of disubstituted alkynes

Electrochemically reduced Ni(bipy)₃(BF₄)₂ catalyzes the reaction of carbon dioxide with disubstituted alkynes to yield mono- and di-carboxylated derivatives. The reaction is performed under mild conditions in an undivided cell fitted with a sacrificial magnesium anode.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides

Nickel-catalyzed, intramolecular and intermolecular reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides affords synthetically useful homoallylic alcohols of defined alkene geometry. Very high regioselectivity is generally observed, and cyclizations proceed with complete selectivity for endo epoxide opening. This catalytic reaction represents the first use of a non-pi-based electrophile in a growing class of nickel-catalyzed, multicomponent coupling reactions, and is the first catalytic method of reductive coupling of alkynes and epoxides that is effective for both intermolecular and intramolecular cases, and mechanistically distinct from these, possibly involving a nickella(II)oxetane.     

Nickel-catalyzed asymmetric reductive aryl-allylation of unactivated alkenes

Herein we report a nickel-catalyzed asymmetric reductive aryl-allylation of aryl iodide-tethered unactivated alkenes, wherein both acyclic allyl carbonates and cyclic vinyl ethylene carbonates can serve as the coupling partners. Furthermore, the direct use of allylic alcohols as the electrophilic allyl source in this reaction is also viable in the presence of BOC anhydride. Remarkably, this reaction proceeds with high linear/branched-, E/Z- and enantio-selectivity, allowing the synthesis of various chiral indanes and dihydrobenzofurans (50 examples) containing a homoallyl-substituted quaternary stereocenter with high optical purity (90–98% ee). In this reductive reaction, the use of pregenerated organometallics can be circumvented, giving this process good functionality tolerance and high step-economy.

A nickel-catalyzed reductive asymmetric aryl-allylation of tethered unactivated alkenes has been developed, providing diverse benzene-annulated cyclic compounds bearing a quaternary stereocenter with high regio-, E/Z- and enantio-selectivity.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive cross-coupling of unactivated alkyl halides

A Ni-catalyzed reductive approach to the cross-coupling of two unactivated alkyl halides has been successfully developed. The reaction works efficiently for primary and secondary halides, with at least one being bromide. The mild reaction conditions allow for excellent functional group tolerance and provide the C(sp(3))-C(sp(3)) coupling products in moderate to excellent yields.     

钯催化芳香硝基化合物与烯烃的选择性还原羰化酰胺化反应

与芳香胺相比,芳香硝基化合物具有廉价易得、官能团兼容性好等优点,作为氮源在下游含氮化学品合成中具有广泛的应用.目前烯烃羰化酰胺化反应绝大多数以胺类化合物为氮源,其中直链和支链酰胺产物的选择性主要是通过具有特定电子和位阻特性的配体调控实现.已报道的芳香硝基化合物的还原酰胺化反应研究中,需要外加还原剂或者利用金属羰基化合物Mo(CO)6释放的CO为羰基源和还原剂.本文发展了一种毋须外加还原剂的钯催化芳香硝基化合物与烯烃的还原羰化酰胺化反应新方法.研究发现,钯金属催化剂(特别是离子型)的抗衡阴离子是还原羰化酰胺化反应中化学选择性和羰化区域选择性的关键因素.抗衡阴离子为氯离子、硼酸为助剂时,最优钯前驱物K2PdCl4的产物主要为支链酰胺,此时不同的膦配体并不能调控其区域选择性,这与胺的烯烃酰胺化反应可以通过配体调控羰化的区域选择性表现出明显的不同.含氮中间体原位捕捉、硝基化合物还原下游可能中间体对照实验等研究表明,芳香硝基化合物在以一氧化碳为还原剂的催化还原体系下被完全脱氧还原为氮烯(Ar-N:),再经过烯酰胺中间体进一步烯键还原得到相应的支链酰胺;当离子型钯前驱物的抗衡阴离子配位性较弱时,最优钯前驱物为Pd(CH3CN)4(OTf)2时,以直链酰胺为主要产物,此时不同的膦配体可以调控酰胺化的区域选择性.同样的机理研究表明,在该催化剂体系下芳香硝基化合物首先被还原为芳基胺,然后再发生与现有报道类似的胺类化合物的烯烃羰化酰胺化反应.这两个催化反应体系都表现出了较好的底物适用性,并且可以高效地应用于除草剂(敌稗)的一步合成.本文为以硝基化合物为起始氮源,通过催化控制生成特定含氮中间体,从而可控合成不同的含氮化学品提供了一条新思路.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive carboxylation of styrenes using CO2

A nickel-catalyzed reductive carboxylation of styrenes using CO2 has been developed. The reaction proceeds under mild conditions using diethylzinc as the reductant. Preliminary data suggests the mechanism involves two discrete nickel-mediated catalytic cycles, the first involving a catalyzed hydrozincation of the alkene followed by a second, slower nickel-catalyzed carboxylation of the in situ formed organozinc reagent. Importantly, the catalyst system is very robust and will fixate CO2 in good yield even if exposed to only an equimolar amount introduced into the headspace above the reaction.     

Fe-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides and Grignard reagents

A highly chemoselective iron-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated olefins with alkyl halides (iodides and bromides) and sp²-hybridized Grignard reagents is reported. The reaction operates under fast turnover frequency and tolerates a diverse range of sp²-hybridized nucleophiles (electron-rich and electron-deficient (hetero)aryl and alkenyl Grignard reagents), alkyl halides (tertiary alkyl iodides/bromides and perfluorinated bromides), and unactivated olefins bearing diverse functional groups including tethered alkenes, ethers, protected alcohols, aldehydes, and amines to yield the desired 1,2-alkylarylated products with high regiocontrol. Further, we demonstrate that this protocol is amenable for the synthesis of new (hetero)carbocycles including tetrahydrofurans and pyrrolidines via a three-component radical cascade cyclization/arylation that forges three new C–C bonds.

A highly selective iron-catalyzed three-component dicarbofunctionalization of unactivated alkenes with alkyl halides and sp²-hybridized Grignard reagents is reported.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of unactivated alkyl bromides and aliphatic aldehydes

A mild, convenient coupling of aliphatic aldehydes and unactivated alkyl bromides has been developed. The catalytic system features the use of a common Ni(ii) precatalyst and a readily available bioxazoline ligand and affords silyl-protected secondary alcohols. The reaction is operationally simple, utilizing Mn as a stoichiometric reductant, and tolerates a wide range of functional groups. The use of 1,5-hexadiene as an additive is an important reaction parameter that provides significant benefits in yield optimizations. Initial mechanistic experiments support a mechanism featuring an alpha-silyloxy Ni species that undergoes formal oxidative addition to the alkyl bromide via a reductive cross-coupling pathway.

Aliphatic aldehydes and alkyl bromides are reductively coupled using nickel catalysis. A BiOX ligand and 1,5-hexadiene paired with a silyl chloride and Mn as the terminal reductant are important features of the process.     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of chlorodiphenylphosphine with aryl bromides into functionalized triarylphosphines

Functionalized triarylphosphines are obtained with good yields in a one-step reaction of an equimolar mixture of chlorodiphenylphosphine and an aromatic bromide in NMP or DMF at 110°C in the presence of zinc dust and a catalytic amount of NiBr₂(bpy). A possible catalytic pathway is discussed.     

Nickel-catalyzed enantioselective three-component coupling of bis-1,3-dienes, aldehydes, and dimethylzinc

Nickel-catalyzed three-component coupling of bis-1,3-dienes, aldehyde, and dimethylzinc was investigated. In the presence of catalytic amounts of Ni(acac)2 and PPh3, bis-1,3-dienes smoothly react with an aldehyde and dimethylzinc via intramolecular cyclodimerization of bis-1,3-diene moiety. The reaction proceeds through formation of a cyclic bis-allylnickel complex, insertion of an aldehyde, and addition of dimethylzinc to the resulting oxanickellacycle intermediate. An enantioselective coupling was also achieved by the use of a chiral monodentate phosphine ligand, H-MOP.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed tandem enyne-cross metathesis-cyclopropanation: three-component access to vinyl cyclopropanes

Substituted vinylcyclopropanes are prepared through a ruthenium-catalyzed, tandem three-component coupling between an olefin, alkyne, and diazoester. Grubbs’ 2nd generation (NHC) ruthenium complexes in the presence of ethylene effect a stereoselective enyne-cross metathesis between alkynes and olefins to generate 1,3-substituted dienes. The slow introduction of diazoacetates to this reaction mixture then allows for the regioselective cyclopropanation of the resulting diene. When the olefin reaction partner is just ethylene (i.e., R′ = H), the tandem process is less efficient. In this case, the byproducts provide unique insight into possible catalyst decomposition pathways.     

Studies on the asymmetric Birch reductive alkylation to access spiroimines

The asymmetric Birch reductive alkylation has been investigated to synthesize spiroimine analogs of the neurophycotoxin (?)-gymnodimine A 1. Two types of chiral aromatic substrates, an acyclic benzamide 2 and a benzoxazepinone 3 were studied. We found that the chiral auxiliary of benzoxazepinone could be easily removed in a three step procedure to afford β-ketoester 14 that was converted into spiroimines 23–24 possessing antagonist effects on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs).     

Nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of aryl halides with secondary alkyl bromides and allylic acetate

A room-temperature Ni-catalyzed reductive method for the coupling of aryl bromides with secondary alkyl bromides has been developed, providing C(sp(2))-C(sp(3)) products in good to excellent yields. Slight modification of this protocol allows efficient coupling of activated aryl chlorides with cyclohexyl bromide and aryl bromides with allylic acetate.     

A three-component tandem reductive aldol reaction catalyzed by N-heterocyclic carbene-copper complexes

[Structure: see text] An efficient catalytic system for the three-component coupling of electrophilic alkenes, aldehydes, and silane was optimized with a new family of copper N-heterocyclic carbene complexes. These catalysts do not require activation and show high activity (TOF>15,000 h-1) as well as some anti diastereoselectivity.     

Nickel-catalyzed asymmetric reductive arylation of α-chlorosulfones with aryl halides

We report an asymmetric Ni-catalyzed reductive cross-coupling of aryl/heteroaryl halides with racemic α-chlorosulfones to afford enantioenriched sulfones. The reaction tolerates a variety of functional groups under mild reaction conditions, which complements the current methods. The utility of this work was demonstrated by facile late-stage functionalization of commercial drugs.

In this work Ni-Catalyzed reductive cross-coupling between (hetero)aryl halides and racemic α-chlorosulfones to prepare enantioenriched α,α-disubstituted sulfones was demonstrated, allowing facile structural derivatization of drug precursors.     

Nickel-catalyzed highly regio- and stereoselective three-component assembly of allenes, aryl iodides, and alkenylzirconium reagents

Cyclohexylallene (1a) and alkenylzirconium reagent (n-PrCH=CHZr(Cp)2Cl) undergo three-component assembly with a variety of aromatic iodides (R1-I: R1 = 4-PhOMe, 4-PhCOMe, 4-PhMe, 2-thiophene, 2-PhOMe, 3-PhOMe, and 4-PhCO2Et) in the presence of NiCl2(PPh3)2 and zinc powder in THF at 50 degrees C to afford corresponding three-component assembly products in moderate to good yields with very high regio- and stereoselectivity. In addition to cyclohexylallene, also phenylallene, n-butylallene, cyclopentylallene, and cycloheptylallene underwent the three-component assembling reaction to furnish the corresponding 1,4-diene derivatives in good yields. Several alkenylzirconium reagents (R2CH=CHZr(Cp)2Cl: R2 = Ph (3b), t-Bu, TMS) were also employed for this three-component assembly. The nickel-catalyzed three-component assembly was further extended to vinyl iodides. Thus, 1a reacts with 3b and ethyl (Z)-3-iodoacrylate to produce a highly substituted triene in excellent yield. In all of these three-component assembly reactions, the E isomers were formed predominantly with E/Z ratios between 94/6 and 99/1. A possible mechanism for this highly regio- and stereoselective three-component assembly is proposed.