Synthesis of cannabidiol-based compounds as ACE2 inhibitors with potential application in the treatment of COVID-19.

Cannabis is a general name for plants of the genus Cannabis. Used as fiber, medicine, drug, for religious, therapeutic, and hedonistic purposes along the millenia, it is mostly known for its psychoactive properties. One of its major constituents, cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive substance, among many other biological activities, has shown potential as an anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug.

Cobalt-Catalysed Reductive Etherification Using Phosphine Oxide Promoters under Hydroformylation Conditions.

A phosphine-oxide-promoted, cobalt-catalysed reductive etherification using syngas as a reductant is reported. This novel methodology was successfully used to prepare a broad range of unsymmetrical ethers from various aldehydes and alcohols containing diverse functional groups, and was scaled-up to multigram scale under comparably mild conditions. Mechanistic experiments support an acetalization-hydrogenation sequence.

Phosphotungstic acid as a versatile catalyst for the synthesis of fragrance compounds by alpha-pinene oxide isomerization: solvent-induced chemoselectivity.

The remarkable effect of the solvent on the catalytic performance of H3PW12O40, the strongest heteropoly acid in the Keggin series, allows direction of the transformations of alpha-pinene oxide (1) to either campholenic aldehyde (2), trans-carveol (3), trans-sobrerol (4 a), or pinol (5). Each of these expensive fragrance compounds was obtained in good to excellent yields by using an appropriate solvent. Solvent polarity and basicity strongly affect the reaction pathways: nonpolar nonbasic solvents favor the formation of aldehyde 2; polar basic solvents favor the formation of alcohol 3; whereas in polar weakly basic solvents, the major products are compounds 4 a and 5.

Novel highly selective catalytic oxychlorination of phenols.

The highly selective oxychlorination of various phenols catalyzed by CuCl2 under mild conditions, in which chloride ions are used as chlorinating agents and dioxygen as a final oxidant, has been developed.