Palladium-catalyzed acetylation of arenes.

A simple method for the preparation of aryl methyl ketones is reported. The transformation involves the Pd-catalyzed coupling of an acyl anion equivalent, acetyltrimethylsilane, with aryl bromides to afford the corresponding acetylated arenes in synthetically useful yields. The methodology is tolerant of heterocycles and provides a new method for arene functionalization

Reactive organoallyl species generated from aryl halides and allene: allylation of alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes and cyclic ketones employing Pd/In transmetallation processes

Allylation of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and cyclic ketones promoted by Pd/In transmetallation processes has been studied. The unsaturated aldehydes underwent regioselective 1,2-addition to afford secondary homoally alcohols. The reactions have been performed using Pd(OAc)2/PPh3 as catalytic system and metallic indium affording the products in good yields. The same transformation with unsaturated ketones proved to be less efficient, while saturated cyclic ketones delivered generally excellent yields in the presence of CuI. In these latter processes the presence of a distal heteroatom influences the reaction rate

Recent Advances in Homogeneous Metal-Catalyzed Aerobic C–H Oxidation of Benzylic Compounds

Csp(3)-H oxidation of benzylic methylene compounds is an established strategy for the synthesis of aromatic ketones, esters, and amides. The need for more sustainable oxidizers has encouraged researchers to explore the use of molecular oxygen. In particular, homogeneous metal-catalyzed aerobic oxidation of benzylic methylenes has attracted much attention. This account summarizes the development of this oxidative strategy in the last two decades, examining key factors such as reaction yields, substrate: catalyst ratio, substrate scope, selectivity over other oxidation byproducts, and reaction conditions including solvents and temperature. Finally, several mechanistic proposals to explain the observed results will be discussed.(IT-774-13 (Basque Government) and CTQ2017-86630-P (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness) projects

Oxetanes: Recent Advances in Synthesis, Reactivity and Medicinal Chemistry

The 4-membered oxetane ring has been increasingly exploited for its behaviors, i.e. influence on physicochemical properties as a stable motif in medicinal chemistry, and propensity to undergo ring opening reactions as a synthetic intermediate. These applications have driven numerous studies into the synthesis of new oxetane derivatives. This review takes an overview of the literature for the synthesis of oxetane derivatives, concentrating on advances in the last 5 years up to the end of 2015. These methods are clustered by strategy for preparation of the ring (Sections 3 and 4), and further derivatisation of preformed oxetane-containing building blocks (Sections 5-7). Examples of the use of oxetanes in medicinal chemistry are reported, including a collation of oxetane derivatives appearing in recent patents for medicinal chemistry applications. Finally examples of oxetane derivatives in ring opening and ring expansion reactions are described

Hydrazones as Singular Reagents in Asymmetric Organocatalysis

This Minireview summarizes strategies and developments regarding the use of hydrazones as reagents in asymmetric organocatalysis, their distinct roles in nucleophile–electrophile, cycloaddition, and cyclization reactions. The key structural elements governing the reactivity of these reagents in a preferred pathway will be discussed, as well as their different interactions with organocatalysts, leading to diverse activation modes. Along these studies, the synthetic equivalence of N-monoalkyl, N,N-dialkyl, and N-acyl hydrazones with several synthons is also highlighted. Emphasis is also put on the mechanistic studies performed to understand the observed reactivities. Finally, the functional group transformations performed from the available products has also been analyzed, highlighting the synthetic value of these methodologies, which served to access numerous families of valuable multifunctional compounds and nitrogen-containing heterocycles.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad CTQ2013-48164-C2-1-P, CTQ201348164-C2-2-PEuropean FEDER fundsJunta de Andalucía 2012/FQM 107

Synthesis of Quinazoline and Quinazolinone Derivatives via Ligand-Promoted Ruthenium-Catalyzed Dehydrogenative and Deaminative Coupling Reaction of 2-Aminophenyl Ketones and 2-Aminobenzamides with Amines

The in situ formed ruthenium catalytic system ([Ru]/L) was found to be highly selective for the dehydrogenative coupling reaction of 2-aminophenyl ketones with amines to form quinazoline products. The deaminative coupling reaction of 2-aminobenzamides with amines led to the efficient formation of quinazolinone products. The catalytic coupling method provides an efficient synthesis of quinazoline and quinazolinone derivatives without using any reactive reagents or forming any toxic byproducts

Ferrocene-derived P,N ligands : synthesis and application in enantioselective catalysis

Due to their unique steric and electronic properties, air-stability and modular structure, chiral hybrid P,N-ferrocenyl ligands play a prominent role in the field of asymmetric catalysis. This report aims to give a concise introduction to the syntheses of chiral hybrid P,N-ferrocenyl ligands and presents an overview of their application in enantioselective catalysis. This review is of special interest to chemists working on ligand design and asymmetric catalysis, as well as to the broader organic and inorganic community

Base-Free Suzuki acylation reactions of sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts: a novel synthesis of substituted aryl ketones.

Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg.Asymmetric biaryl ketones are important building block in organic chemistry since they occur in large number of biological active compounds, natural product, cosmetics as well as in organic synthesis. The aim of this project was to develop a novel base-free Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling of biaryl ketones from sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts coupled with acyl chlorides catalysed by palladium precursor and investigate the electron effect of substituents attached to acyl chloride and sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts on the yields of ketones produced. A novel synthesis of biaryl ketones was successfully developed in coupling of commercially available substituted acyl chlorides with easily accessible substituted sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts catalysed by Pd(PPh3)4 in aqueous toluene. A wide range of functional groups were accommodated including CF3, OMe, SMe, Br, F, NO2, OH, NH2 yielding up to 96% in 24 hours. Encouraged by successful cross-coupling reaction between sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts and acyl chlorides under the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling acylation reaction conditions, we thought it would be logical to extend the scope of the developed reaction condition to include carboxylic anhydrides as electrophiles. As a result, substituted benzoic anhydrides were first synthesised following previously published procedures giving the desired products in excellent yields (87-99%). The synthesised carboxylic anhydrides were subsequently cross-coupled with boronate salts under base-free and ligandless palladium catalysed cross-coupling reaction conditions to synthesise biaryl ketones in aqueous acetone. The developed method appears sensitive to electronic effects both on the electrophile and on the nucleophile and on the nucleophile furnishing the desired ketones in moderate yields. Two novel methods have been developed to synthesise ketones from stable, easy to prepare and free flowing pure sodium (aryl trihydroxyborate) salts

Investigation of the chemocatalytic and biocatalytic valorization of a range of different lignin preparations: The importance of β-O-4 content

A set of seven different lignin preparations was generated from a range of organosolv (acidic, alkaline, ammonia-treated, and dioxane-based), ionic liquid, autohydrolysis, and Kraft pretreatments of lignocelluloses. Each lignin was characterized by 2D HSQC NMR spectroscopy, showing significant variability in the β-O-4 content of the different lignin samples. Each lignin was then valorised using three biocatalytic methods (microbial biotransformation with Rhodococcus jostii RHA045, treatment with Pseudomonas fluorescens Dyp1B or Sphingobacterium sp. T2 manganese superoxide dismutase) and two chemocatalytic methods (catalytic hydrogenation using Pt/alumina catalyst, DDQ benzylic oxidation/Zn reduction). Highest product yields for DDQ/Zn valorization were observed from poplar ammonia percolation-organosolv lignin, which had the highest β-O-4 content of the investigated lignins and also gave the highest yield of syringaldehyde (243 mg L -1 ) when using R. jostii RHA045 and the most enzymatic products using P. fluorescens Dyp1B. The highest product yield from the Pt/alumina hydrogenation was observed using oak dioxasolv lignin, which also had a high β-O-4 content. In general, highest product yields for both chemocatalytic and biocatalytic valorization methods were obtained from preparations that showed highest β-O-4 content, while variable yields were obtained with preparations containing intermediate β-O-4 content, and little or no product was obtained with preparations containing low β-O-4 content