Development and Applications of an Amide Linchpin Reagent.

Linchpin reagents are building blocks that can be chemoselectively functionalized to afford products with a common, useful functional group. In this work, we describe the development and validation of the first amide linchpin reagent and demonstrate its use as a doubly electrophilic building block for the synthesis of a variety of amides, including challenging classes. The linchpin reagent was first functionalized via rhodium-catalyzed electrophilic amination.

Enabling Unfavorable Hydroamination Reactions Using a Chemoselective N-O Bond Reduction.

Despite major advances, intramolecular alkene hydroamination reactions often face limitations. Herein, a redox-enabled process featuring oxidation of an amine to a hydroxylamine, a concerted hydroamination step, followed by catalytic reduction of -oxide is shown to be broadly applicable. Catalyst screening and optimization showed that a KOsO(OH)-pinacol complex rapidly and chemoselectively reduces the -oxide cycloadduct in the presence of hydroxylamine and dimethyl sulfoxide.

Oxidative Syntheses of ,-Dialkylhydroxylamines.

Despite the wide utility of hydroxylamines in organic synthesis, relatively few are commercially available, and there is a need for direct, efficient, and selective methods for their synthesis. Herein, we report two complementary methods to accomplish direct oxidation of secondary amines using UHP as an oxidant. The first method uses 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE) and a large excess of amine.

Cope-Type Hydroamination of Vinylboronates.

Aminoboronic acid derivatives can serve as versatile synthetic intermediates and pharmacophores but remain difficult to synthesize. Herein we report a synthesis of the β-aminoboronic acid motif via anti-Markovnikov hydroamination of vinylboronates. This reaction benefits from the activating effect of the boronate substituent and forms novel BON-containing heterocycles, oxazaborolidine zwitterions.

Sphingosine Kinases Promote Ebola Virus Infection and Can Be Targeted to Inhibit Filoviruses, Coronaviruses, and Arenaviruses Using Late Endocytic Trafficking to Enter Cells.

Entry of enveloped viruses in host cells requires the fusion of viral and host cell membranes, a process that is facilitated by viral fusion proteins protruding from the viral envelope. These viral fusion proteins need to be triggered by host factors, and for some viruses, this event occurs inside endosomes and/or lysosomes. Consequently, these 'late-penetrating viruses' must be internalized and delivered to entry-conducive intracellular vesicles.

Synthesis of 1,2,4-Triazinones Exploiting the Reactivity of Diazadiene and -Isocyanate Intermediates.

1,2,4-Triazinones are useful compounds, but their synthesis can be challenging. Herein, we report a strategy to build 1,2,4-triazinones using α-bromohydrazones to access diazadienes and exploiting their ability to undergo facile substitution with nitrogen nucleophiles. The -isocyanate intermediate formed in situ can then undergo cyclization to give the desired triazinones.

Taming Chiral Quaternary Stereocenters via Remote H-Bonding Stereoinduction in Palladium-Catalyzed (3+2) Cycloadditions.

Ring-opening transformations of donor-acceptor (D-A) cyclopropanes enable the rapid assembly of complex molecules. However, the enantioselective formation of chiral quaternary stereocenters using substrates bearing two different acceptors remains a challenge. Herein, we describe the first palladium-catalyzed highly diastereo- and enantioselective (3+2) cycloaddition of vinyl cyclopropanes bearing two different electron-withdrawing groups, a subset of D-A cyclopropanes.

A redox-enabled strategy for intramolecular hydroamination.

Metal- or acid-catalyzed intramolecular hydroamination and Cope-type intramolecular hydroamination, a distinct concerted approach using hydroxylamines, typically suffer from significant synthetic limitations. Herein we report a process for intramolecular hydroamination that uses a redox-enabled strategy relying on efficient generation of hydroxylamines by oxidation, followed by Cope-type hydroamination, then reduction of the resulting pyrrolidine -oxide. The steps are performed sequentially in a single pot, no catalyst is required, the conditions are mild, the process is highly functional group tolerant, and no chromatography is generally required for isolation.

Investigation of Masked N-Acyl-N-isocyanates: Support for Oxadiazolones as Blocked N-Isocyanate Precursors.

In contrast to carbon-substituted isocyanates that are common building blocks, N-substituted isocyanates remain underdeveloped and reports on their N-acyl derivatives (i. e. amido-isocyanates) are exceedingly rare.

Reactivity of -acyl hydrazone probes with the mammalian proteome.

Small molecule probes with distinct reactivities are useful tools for the identification and characterization of protein modifications and function. Herein, we show that hydrazone probes with an -carbamate structural motif react differently from -carbamates within the human proteome. Mass spectrometry analysis of probe-treated mammalian cell lysates identified several proteins that were covalently modified by the hydrazone probes, including the cytidine deaminase APOBEC3A.

Design and discovery of new antiproliferative 1,2,4-triazin-3(2H)-ones as tubulin polymerization inhibitors targeting colchicine binding site.

Thirty-five new colchicine binding site inhibitors have been designed and synthesized based on the 1,2,4-triazin-3(2H)-one nucleus. Such molecules were synthesized through a cascade reaction between readily accessible α-amino ketones and phenyl carbazate as a masked N-isocyanate precursor. The synthesized derivatives are cisoid restricted combretastatin A4 analogues containing 1,2,4-triazin-3(2H)-one in place of the olefinic bond, and they have the same essential pharmacophoric features of colchicine binding site inhibitors.

Synthesis of Hydroxamic Acid Derivatives Using Blocked (Masked) -Isocyanate Precursors.

Hydroxamic acids are present in a several pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. Synthetic strategies providing access to hydroxamic acid derivatives remain limited, typically requiring the use of nucleophilic hydroxylamine reagents. Herein, a synthesis of hydroxamates from unactivated carboxylic acids is reported making use of rare blocked (masked) -substituted isocyanates.

Photocatalytic Intramolecular C-H Amination Using -Oxyureas as Nitrene Precursors.

Nitrenes are remarkable high-energy chemical species that enable direct C-N bond formation, typically via controlled reactions of metal-stabilized nitrenes. Here, in contrast, the combined use of photocatalysis with careful engineering of the precursor enabled C-H amination forming imidazolidinones and related nitrogen heterocycles from readily accessible hydroxylamine precursors. Preliminary mechanistic results are consistent with the formation of free carbamoyl triplet nitrenes as reactive intermediates.

Cyclic Ureate Tantalum Catalyst for Preferential Hydroaminoalkylation with Aliphatic Amines: Mechanistic Insights into Substrate Controlled Reactivity.

The efficient and catalytic amination of unactivated alkenes with simple secondary alkyl amines is preferentially achieved. A sterically accessible, ,-chelated cyclic ureate tantalum catalyst was prepared and characterized by X-ray crystallography. This optimized catalyst can be used for the hydroaminoalkylation of 1-octene with a variety of aryl and alkyl amines, but notably enhanced catalytic activity can be realized with challenging -alkyl secondary amine substrates.

O-Isocyanates as Uncharged 1,3-Dipole Equivalents in [3+2] Cycloadditions.

1,3-Dipoles are commonly used in [3+2] cycloadditions, whereas isoelectronic uncharged dipole variants remain underdeveloped. In contrast to conventional 1,3-dipoles, uncharged dipole equivalents form zwitterionic cycloadducts, which can be exploited to build further molecular complexity. In this work, the first cycloadditions of oxygen-substituted isocyanates (O-isocyanates) were studied experimentally and by DFT calculations.

A Bifunctional Nucleoside Probe for the Inhibition of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Type 1 Reverse Transcriptase.

Nucleoside analogs have proven effective for the inhibition of viral polymerases and are the foundation of many antiviral therapies. In this work, the antiretroviral potential of 6-azauracil analogs was assessed using activity-based protein profiling techniques and functional assays. Probes based on the 6-azauracil scaffold were examined and found to bind to HCV polymerase and HIV-1 reverse transcriptase through covalent modification of residues near the active site.

Aminimide Synthesis Using Concerted Amination Reactions of Alkenes: Scope and Mechanistic Information.

Aminimides are key intermediates in the thermal cycloadditions of suitable alkenyl-hydrazine derivatives. Substrate modifications (β-,-dialkyl) allowed the isolation of these reactive intermediates, and the analysis of their stereochemistry provided support for concerted (Cope-type) hydroamination and concerted [3 + 2] aminocarbonylation reaction pathways. This work also establishes the applicability of these approaches to form complex aminimides in moderate to excellent yields.

Formation of Complex Hydrazine Derivatives via Aza-Lossen Rearrangement.

The development of a broadly applicable procedure for the aza-Lossen rearrangement is reported. This process converts amines into complex hydrazine derivatives in two steps under safe, mild conditions. This method allows the chemoselective formation of N-N bonds, resulting in the synthesis of cyclic and acyclic products while avoiding side reactions of the amphoteric (ambident) nitrogen-substituted isocyanate intermediate.

Synthesis of N-Oxyureas by Substitution and Cope-Type Hydroamination Reactions Using O-Isocyanate Precursors.

Oxy-carbamate O-isocyanate precursors facilitate access to synthetically valuable N-oxyureas via substitution with amines. This work exploits the reactivity of suitable O-isocyanate precursors, identified by a thorough study highlighting the different reactivity of isocyanate masking groups. This led to bench-stable O-isocyanate precursors, offering improved versatility in the synthesis of N-oxyureas, and demonstrates the controlled reactivity of masked O-isocyanates.

Catalytic substitution/cyclization sequences of O-substituted Isocyanates: synthesis of 1-alkoxybenzimidazolones and 1-alkoxy-3,4-dihydroquinazolin-2(1H)-ones.

O-Substituted isocyanates (O-isocyanates) have rarely been used in organic synthesis, given their tendency to undergo side reactions (e.g., trimerization).

Organocatalysis using aldehydes: the development and improvement of catalytic hydroaminations, hydrations and hydrolyses.

Organocatalysis has emerged as a powerful approach to facilitate and accelerate various difficult reactions. This Feature article presents recent developments and improvements using aldehydes as catalysts in difficult Cope-type intermolecular hydroamination, hydration and hydrolysis reactions. Most reactions exploit temporary intramolecularity.

Synthesis of Indazolones via Friedel-Crafts Cyclization of Blocked (Masked) N-Isocyanates.

Nitrogen-substituted isocyanates (N-isocyanates) are rare amphoteric reagents with high, but underdeveloped synthetic potential. Herein, we study the formation of indazolones by Friedel-Crafts cyclization of N-isocyanates using blocked (masked) N-isocyanate precursors: the effect of the masking group and the reaction scope have been delineated. Substrate synthesis has also been improved using a reported copper-catalyzed coupling of arylbismuth(V) reagents that is compatible with the hemilabile OPh blocking group.

o-Phthalaldehyde catalyzed hydrolysis of organophosphinic amides and other P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-NH containing compounds.

Over 50 years ago, Jencks and Gilchrist showed that formaldehyde catalyses the hydrolysis of phosphoramidate through electrophilic activation, induced by covalent attachment to its nitrogen atom. Given our interest in the use of aldehydes as catalysts, this work was revisited to identify a superior catalyst, o-phthalaldehyde, which facilitates hydrolyses of various organophosphorus compounds bearing P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-NH subunits under mild conditions. Interestingly, chemoselective hydrolysis of the P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-N bonds could be accomplished in the presence of P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-OR bonds.

On the Ability of Formaldehyde to Act as a Tethering Catalyst in Water.

The low concentration issue is a fundamental challenge when it comes to prebiotic chemistry, as macromolecular systems need to be assembled via intermolecular reactions, and this is inherently difficult in dilute solutions. This is especially true when the reactions are challenging, and reactions that proceeded more rapidly could have dictated chemical evolution. Herein we establish that formaldehyde is capable of catalyzing, via temporary intramolecularity, a challenging reaction in water at low concentrations, thus providing an alternative to other approaches that can either lead to higher concentrations or higher effective molarities.