The double role of ionic liquids in organic electrosynthesis: Precursors of N-heterocyclic carbenes and green solvents. Henry reaction

N-heterocyclic carbenes, electrogenerated by cathodic reduction of imidazolium-based room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs), are stable bases able to catalyze the Henry reaction. Accordingly, the electrosynthesis of beta-nitroalcohols has been achieved, under mild conditions and in high yields, by stirring nitromethane and aldehydes in previously electrolyzed RTILs. RTILs have been used as green solvents as well as precursors of N-heterocyclic carbenes. (c) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Multicomponent Electrocatalytic Selective Approach to Unsymmetrical Spiro[furo[3,2-<i>c</i>]pyran-2,5′-pyrimidine] Scaffold under a Column Chromatography-Free Protocol at Room Temperature

Electrochemical synthesis suggested a mild, green and atom-efficient route to interesting and useful molecules, thus avoiding harsh chemical oxidizing and reducing agents used in traditional synthetic methods. Organic electrochemistry offers an excellent alternative to conventional methods of organic synthesis and creates a modern tool for carrying out organic synthesis, including cascade and multicomponent ones. In this research, a novel electrocatalytic multicomponent transformation was found: the electrochemical multicomponent assembly of arylaldehydes, N,N′-dimethylbarbituric acid and 4-hydroxy-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2-one in one pot reaction was carried out in alcohols in an undivided cell in the presence of alkali metal halides with the selective formation of substituted unsymmetrical 1′,3′,6-trimethyl-3-aryl-2′H,3H,4H-spiro[furo[3,2-c]pyran-2,5′-pyrimidine]-2′,4,4′,6′(1′H,3′H)-tetraones in 73–82% yields. This new electrocatalytic process is a selective, facile and efficient way to obtain spiro[furo[3,2-c]pyran-2,5′-pyrimidines]. According to screening molecular docking data using a self-made Python script in Flare, all synthesized compounds may be prominent for different medical applications, such as breast cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and treatments connected with urinary tract, bones and the cardiovascular system