Enantiospecific synthesis of ABC-ring system of A-nor and abeo 4(3→2) tetra and pentacyclic triterpenes

Enantiospecific synthesis of ABC-ring systems of A-nor and abeo 4(3→2) tetra and pentacyclic triterpenes has been accomplished starting from the readily available monoterpene (R)-carvone. (R)-Carvone was used as the B-ring of the target molecules. A lithium-liquid ammonia mediated cyclisation of δ,?-unsaturated ester was employed for the cyclopentannulation at the C-5 and C-6 carbons of carvone and an RCM reaction was employed for the cyclohexannulation to generate the ABC-ring system of A-nor tetra and pentacyclic triterpenes. The strategy has been extended for the synthesis of the ABC-ring system of abeo 4(3→2) tetra and pentacyclic triterpenes.     

Reactions of Complex Ligands,LXX. An Intramolecular Alkyne Insertion/Carbonylation/Cyclization Sequence of Chromium Aminocarbene Complexes: A Novel Access to Indole and Indenoindole Skeletons

2-Alkynylanilinocarbene chromium complexes 1–7 bearing a rigid arene C₂ spacer between the aminocarbene and alkyne units were prepared from pentacarbonyl(aroyl)chromates(–I), acetyl bromide, and 2-alkynylanilines. They undergo intramolecular cyclization the course of which depends on the substitution pattern at the alkyne terminus. A tandem alkyne insertion into the metal–carbene bond/carbonylation sequence affords Cr(CO)₃-coordinated 3-indolylketenes 8, 9, 12–14 by using a bulky substituent; the rate of the reaction increases with N-alkylation. Less bulky n-alkynylanilinocarbene complexes 4, 5 exhibit two competing carbene annulation sequences: Benzannulation leads to benzo[a]carbazoles 15, 16 , whereas cyclopentannulation without prior carbonylation furnishes indeno[1,2-b]indoles 17, 18 .     

A lifetime journey into the world of chemistry

The professional life of the author has been a fascinating journey through the magnificent landscapes of synthetic organic chemistry. A friendly editor invited him to share a few of these travel memories. This review is thus a (very) personal and (totally) prejudiced account of the author's research in organic chemistry. It describes the work of his associates and coworkers at UCLouvain in Belgium or at IECB in France. All schemes only deal with work which was done in both research groups. The names of the coworkers will appear in the references. The author apologizes to those coworkers whose work has not been cited but he had to sail within his pages' allocation. As will be seen, many areas of organic synthesis have been visited. The results of the research were put into perspective with the status of the field when the research was undertaken. Obviously several of these fields of research have dramatically expanded later on; credit could not be given here to these important developments. However, when available, some recent reviews will be cited to give a flavour of the most recent work. Thus, the reader should not expect to read a “classical” review of a topical subject. The purpose of this paper is merely the sharing of professional experiences of a modest but enthusiastic teacher and researcher.     

Alkylation and cyclopentannulation of phospholene derivatives

The deprotonation of 1-phenyl-3-phospholene 1-oxide, 1-sulfide or 1-borane with 1 or 2 equiv of LDA, followed by quenching with electrophiles gave a range of 2-mono- or 2,5-disubstituted phospholene derivatives in good yield. Only trans substitution in relation to the P-Ph group was observed. Treatment of lithiated phospholene intermediates with 1,3-dihaloalkanes afforded annulated 2-phenyl-2-phosphabicyclo[3.3.0]oct-3-ene derivatives. The annulation reactions occurred with high regio- and stereoselectivity and led to the exclusive formation of the exo-Ph-P substituted products.     

Recent Advances in the Catalytic Synthesis of the Cyclopentene Core

Five-membered carbocycles are ubiquitously found in natural products, pharmaceuticals, and other classes of organic compounds. Within this category, cyclopentenes deserve special attention due to their prevalence as targets and as well as key intermediates for synthesizing more complex molecules. Herein, we offer an overview summarizing some significant recent advances in the catalytic assembly of this structural motif. A great variety of synthetic methodologies and strategies are covered, including transition metal-catalyzed or organocatalyzed processes. Both inter- and intramolecular transformations are documented. On this ground, our expertise in the application of C−H functionalization reactions oriented towards the formation of this ring and its subsequent selective functionalization is embedded.     

Azaarenes: 13 Rings in a Row by Cyclopentannulation

Cyclopentannulation was explored as a strategy to access large, stable azaarenes. Buchwald–Hartwig coupling of previously reported di- and tetrabrominated cyclopentannulated N,N′-dihydrotetraazapentacenes furnished stable azaarenes with up to 13 six-membered rings in a row and a length of 3.1 nm. Their optoelectronic and semi-conducting properties as well as their aromaticity were investigated.