Synthesis of Thiomorpholine via a Telescoped Photochemical Thiol-Ene/Cyclization Sequence in Continuous Flow.

A procedure for the continuous flow generation of thiomorpholine in a two-step telescoped format was developed. The key step was the photochemical thiol-ene reaction of cysteamine hydrochloride and vinyl chloride as low-cost starting materials. This reaction could be conducted under highly concentrated (4 M) conditions using a low amount (0.

A High-Yielding Synthesis of EIDD-2801 from Uridine.

A simple reordering of the reaction sequence allowed the improved synthesis of EIDD-2801, an antiviral drug with promising activity against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, starting from uridine. Compared to the original route, the yield was enhanced from 17 % to 61 %, and fewer isolation/purification steps were needed. In addition, a continuous flow procedure for the final acetonide deprotection was developed, which proved to be favorable toward selectivity and reproducibility.

A novel pathway for the thermolysis of N-nitrosoanthranilates using flash vacuum pyrolysis leading to 7-aminophthalides.

Flash vacuum pyrolysis of methyl N-methyl-N-nitrosoanthranilate leads to elimination of nitric oxide and disproportionation of the formed N-radical to 7-(methylamino)phthalide and methyl N-methylanthranilate. This transformation was found to be a convenient, solvent-free method for the preparation of 7-(methylamino)phthalides. An alternative route through pyrolysis of N-benzyl-N-methyl anthranilates was also investigated.

The Concept of Chemical Generators: On-Site On-Demand Production of Hazardous Reagents in Continuous Flow.

In recent years, a steadily growing number of chemists, from both academia and industry, have dedicated their research to the development of continuous flow processes performed in milli- or microreactors. The common availability of continuous flow equipment at virtually all scales and affordable cost has additionally impacted this trend. Furthermore, regulatory agencies such as the United States Food and Drug Administration actively encourage continuous manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) with the vision of quality and productivity improvements.

Lab-scale production of anhydrous diazomethane using membrane separation technology.

Diazomethane is among the most versatile and useful reagents for introducing methyl or methylene groups in organic synthesis. However, because of its explosive nature, its generation and purification by distillation are accompanied by a certain safety risk. This protocol describes how to construct a configurationally simple tube-in-flask reactor for the in situ on-demand generation of anhydrous diazomethane using membrane separation technology and thus avoiding distillation methods.

Integration of Bromine and Cyanogen Bromide Generators for the Continuous-Flow Synthesis of Cyclic Guanidines.

A continuous-flow process for the in situ on-demand generation of cyanogen bromide (BrCN) from bromine and potassium cyanide that makes use of membrane-separation technology is described. In order to circumvent the handling, storage, and transportation of elemental bromine, a continuous bromine generator using bromate-bromide synproportionation can optionally be attached upstream. Monitoring and quantification of BrCN generation was enabled through the implementation of in-line FTIR technology.

Design and Performance Validation of a Conductively Heated Sealed-Vessel Reactor for Organic Synthesis.

A newly designed robust and safe laboratory scale reactor for syntheses under sealed-vessel conditions at 250 °C maximum temperature and 20 bar maximum pressure is presented. The reactor employs conductive heating of a sealed glass vessel via a stainless steel heating jacket and implements both online temperature and pressure monitoring in addition to magnetic stirring. Reactions are performed in 10 mL borosilicate vials that are sealed with a silicone cap and Teflon septum and allow syntheses to be performed on a 2-6 mL scale.

Laboratory-Scale Membrane Reactor for the Generation of Anhydrous Diazomethane.

A configurationally simple and robust semibatch apparatus for the in situ on-demand generation of anhydrous solutions of diazomethane (CH2N2) avoiding distillation methods is presented. Diazomethane is produced by base-mediated decomposition of commercially available Diazald within a semipermeable Teflon AF-2400 tubing and subsequently selectively separated from the tubing into a solvent- and substrate-filled flask (tube-in-flask reactor). Reactions with CH2N2 can therefore be performed directly in the flask without dangerous and labor-intensive purification operations or exposure of the operator to CH2N2.

Structure-activity relationships and molecular docking of novel dihydropyrimidine-based mitotic Eg5 inhibitors.

Dihydropyrimidine-based compounds belong to the first discovered inhibitors of the human mitotic kinesin Eg5. Although they are used by many research groups as model compounds for chemical genetics, considerably less emphasis has been placed on the improvement of this type of inhibitor, with the exception of two recent studies. Dihydropyrimidines can be divided into class I (analogues that bind in the S configuration) and class II type inhibitors, which bind in the R configuration.

An investigation of wall effects in microwave-assisted ring-closing metathesis and cyclotrimerization reactions.

Challenging Ru-catalyzed ring-closing metathesis transformations leading to eight-membered-ring systems and Ni- or Co-catalyzed [2+2+2] cyclotrimerizations were evaluated at elevated temperatures applying microwave dielectric heating or conventional thermal heating in order to investigate the role of wall effects. All reactions were conducted in a dedicated reactor setup that allowed accurate internal reaction temperature measurements using fiber-optic probes for both types of heating modes. For ring-closing metathesis best results were achieved using an open vessel-gas sparging protocol in 1,2-dichloroethane at reflux temperature (83 degrees C), while cyclotrimerizations were performed under sealed vessel conditions in toluene between 80 and 160 degrees C.

Structural basis for inhibition of Eg5 by dihydropyrimidines: stereoselectivity of antimitotic inhibitors enastron, dimethylenastron and fluorastrol.

Human kinesin Eg5, which plays an essential role in mitosis by establishing the bipolar spindle, has proven to be an interesting drug target for the development of cancer chemotherapeutics. Here, we report the crystal structures of the Eg5 motor domain complexed with enastron, dimethylenastron, and fluorastrol. By comparing these structures to that of monastrol and mon-97, we identified the main reasons for increased potency of these new inhibitors, namely the better fit of the ligand to the allosteric binding site and the addition of fluorine atoms.

Controlled microwave heating in modern organic synthesis: highlights from the 2004-2008 literature.

Direct and rapid heating by microwave irradiation in combination with sealed vessel processing in many cases enables reactions to be carried out in a fraction of the time generally required using conventional conditions. This makes microwave chemistry an ideal tool for rapid reaction scouting and optimization of conditions, allowing very rapid progress through hypotheses-experiment-results iterations. The speed at which multiple variations of reaction conditions can be performed allows a morning discussion of "What should we try?" to become an after-lunch discussion of "What were the results?" Not surprisingly, therefore, many scientists both in academia and industry have turned to microwave synthesis as a front-line methodology for their projects.

Automated generation of a dihydropyrimidine compound library using microwave-assisted processing.

Here we report the generation of a small focused library of 12 diversely functionalized dihydropyrimidine (DHPM) derivatives via one-pot three-component Biginelli cyclocondensation of beta-ketoesters, aldehydes and (thio)ureas. By applying controlled microwave heating under sealed vessel conditions using a fully automated microwave instrument including a gripper and liquid handler, the sequential synthesis of DHPMs can be performed in a shorter reaction time (10-20 min per one DHPM derivative) compared to conventional heating methods, which normally require several hours of reflux heating. The solid products either crystallize directly upon cooling or can be precipitated upon addition of water, requiring only filtration for isolation.

Rapid preparation of the mitotic kinesin Eg5 inhibitor monastrol using controlled microwave-assisted synthesis.

We present here a protocol for the synthesis of the dihydropyrimidine (DHPM) derivative monastrol, which is known to be a specific mitotic kinesin Eg5 inhibitor. By applying controlled microwave heating under sealed-vessel conditions, the synthesis via the one-pot three-component Biginelli condensation can be performed in a shorter reaction time (30 min) compared with conventional heating methods that normally require several hours of reflux heating. For the purification of the crude target compound, two different methods are presented.

The impact of microwave synthesis on drug discovery.

In the past few years, using microwave energy to heat and drive chemical reactions has become increasingly popular in the medicinal chemistry community. First described 20 years ago, this non-classical heating method has matured from a laboratory curiosity to an established technique that is heavily used in academia and industry. One of the many advantages of using rapid 'microwave flash heating' for chemical synthesis is the dramatic reduction in reaction times--from days and hours to minutes and seconds.

Microwave-enhanced and metal-catalyzed functionalizations of the 4-aryl-dihydropyrimidone template.

Progress in organometallic catalysis and recent advancements in the development of carbonylative reaction protocols without direct use of carbon monoxide have been utilized for efficient functionalizations of 4-aryl-dihydropyrimidone structures. The use of modern microwave technology enabled both high reaction rates and convenient handling. Examples of palladium-catalyzed cross-couplings, Heck reactions, amino- and alkoxycarbonylations, and direct N-amidations of 4-(bromophenyl)-dihydropyrimidones were performed.

Combining Biginelli multicomponent and click chemistry: generation of 6-(1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)-dihydropyrimidone libraries.

Efficient solution-phase protocols for the high-throughput synthesis of 6-(1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)-dihydropyrimidones are reported. The multistep sequence involves the initial bromination of dihydropyrimidones precursors (DHPMs, Biginelli compounds) at the C6-methyl position, using a recyclable polymer-supported brominating agent under rapid flow-through conditions (residence time of 1 min). The 6-bromomethyldihydropyrimidone intermediates were subsequently subjected to a microwave-assisted azidation step (25 min), providing the key 6-azidomethyldihydropyrimidone precursors.

Microwave-assisted scavenging of electrophiles utilizing polymer-supported sequestration reagents. Application to the synthesis of N3-acylated dihydropyrimidine libraries.

Different scavenging techniques using polymer-supported sequestration agents are described for the purification steps in the synthesis of N3-acylated dihydropyrimidines. For scavenging both excess anhydride and unwanted byproducts, polystyrene and silica supported diamines, aminomethyl-functionalized SynPhase Lanterns and diethylenetriamine StratoSpheres Plugs are used. In both synthesis and purification microwave flash heating was utilized, reducing reaction times from hours to minutes.

High-throughput synthesis of N3-acylated dihydropyrimidines combining microwave-assisted synthesis and scavenging techniques.

[reaction: see text] The solution-phase synthesis of N3-acylated dihydropyrimidines was achieved utilizing microwave flash heating both in the synthesis (acylation) and purification (scavenging) steps. Quenching times for excess anhydrides using polystyrene or silica-supported diamine sequestration reagents were reduced from several hours to minutes utilizing microwave irradiation. The use of water as sequestration agent, coupled with an efficient solid-phase extraction workup technique allowed the rapid generation of a 20-member library of N3-acylated dihydropyrimidines.

High-speed microwave-promoted hetero-Diels-Alder reactions of 2(1H)-pyrazinones in ionic liquid doped solvents.

Inter- and intramolecular hetero-Diels-Alder reactions in a series of functionalized 2(1H)-pyrazinones were investigated under controlled microwave irradiation. The cycloaddition reactions were efficiently performed in sealed tubes, utilizing either a combination of 1,2-dichloroethane and a thermally stable ionic liquid, or 1,2-dichlorobenzene as reaction medium. In all cases, a significant rate-enhancement using microwave flash heating as compared to thermal heating was observed.