Cationic dirhodium carboxylate-catalyzed synthesis of dihydropyrimidones from propargyl ureas

Cationic Rh(II) complexes are able to catalyze the regioselective hydroamination of propargyl ureas in a 6-endo fashion. This transformation permits access to interesting substitution patterns of dihydropyrimidines, which have found use as nucleotide exchange factor inhibitors.     

Synthesis of fused indoles by sequential palladium-catalyzed Heck reaction and N-heteroannulation

A route to 3,4-fused indoles via two consecutive palladium-catalyzed reactions; an intramolecular Heck reaction followed by a reductive N-heteroannulation is described. Using this route, a number of indoles have been prepared having a variety of ring sizes anchored to the 3- and 4-position of the indole nucleus. Furthermore, a number of functional groups, both carbon and heteroatom substituents can be introduced in (and on) the additional ring without any detrimental effects on the two reactions.     

Mechanism of Al(III)-catalyzed transamidation of unactivated secondary carboxamides

The carbon-nitrogen bond of secondary carboxamides is generally thermodynamically and kinetically unreactive; however, we recently discovered that the trisamidoaluminum(III) dimer Al2(NMe2)6 catalyzes facile transamidation between simple secondary carboxamides and primary amines under moderate conditions. The present report describes kinetic and spectroscopic studies that illuminate the mechanism of this unusual transformation. The catalytic reaction exhibits a bimolecular rate law with a first-order dependence on the Al(III) and amine concentrations. No rate dependence on the carboxamide concentration is observed. Spectroscopic studies (1H and 13C NMR, FTIR) support a catalyst resting state that consists of a mixture of tris-(kappa2-amidate)aluminum(III) complexes. These results, together with the presence of a significant kinetic isotope effect when deuterated amine substrate (RND2) is used, implicate a mechanism in which the amine undergoes preequilibrium coordination to aluminum and proton transfer to a kappa2-amidate ligand to yield an Al(kappa2-amidate)2(kappa1-carboxamide)(NHR) complex, followed by rate-limiting intramolecular delivery of the amido ligand (NHR) to the neutral Al(III)-activated kappa1-carboxamide. Noteworthy in this mechanism is the bifunctional character of Al(III), which is capable of activating both the amine nucleophile and the carboxamide electrophile in the reaction.     

Mechanism of Pd(OAc)2/DMSO-catalyzed aerobic alcohol oxidation: mass-transfer-limitation effects and catalyst decomposition pathways

Pd(OAc)(2) in DMSO is an effective catalyst for the aerobic oxidation of alcohols and numerous other organic substrates. Kinetic studies of the catalytic oxidation of primary and secondary benzylic alcohol substrates provide fundamental insights into the catalytic mechanism. In contrast to the conclusion reached in our earlier study (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 766-767), we find that Pd(II)-mediated alcohol oxidation is the turnover-limiting step of the catalytic reaction. At elevated catalyst loading, however, the rate of catalytic turnover is limited by the dissolution of oxygen gas into solution. This mass-transfer rate is measured directly by using gas-uptake methods, and it correlates with the maximum rate observed during catalysis. Initial-rate studies were complemented by kinetic analysis of the full-reaction timecourses at different catalyst concentrations. Kinetic fits of these traces reveal the presence of unimolecular and bimolecular catalyst decomposition pathways that compete with productive catalytic turnover.