Prospecting for natural products by genome mining and microcrystal electron diffraction.

More than 60% of pharmaceuticals are related to natural products (NPs), chemicals produced by living organisms. Despite this, the rate of NP discovery has slowed over the past few decades. In many cases the rate-limiting step in NP discovery is structural characterization.

Characterization of Reactive Organometallic Species via MicroED.

Here we apply microcrystal electron diffraction (MicroED) to the structural determination of transition-metal complexes. We find that the simultaneous use of 300 keV electrons, very low electron doses, and an ultrasensitive camera allows for the collection of data without cryogenic cooling of the stage. This technique reveals the first crystal structures of the classic zirconocene hydride, colloquially known as "Schwartz's reagent", a novel Pd(II) complex not amenable to solution-state NMR or X-ray crystallography, and five other paramagnetic and diamagnetic transition-metal complexes.

Nonclassical Applications of -Carborane Anions: From Main Group Chemistry and Catalysis to Energy Storage.

Classically -carborane anions, particularly [HCBH] and [HCBH], and their derivatives have primarily been used as weakly coordinating anions to isolate reactive intermediates, platforms for stoichiometric and catalytic functionalization, counteranions for simple Lewis acid catalysis, and components of materials like liquid crystals. The aim of this article is to educate the reader on the contemporary nonclassical applications of these anions. Specifically, this review will cover new directions in main group catalysis utilized to achieve some of the most challenging catalytic reactions such as C-F, C-H, and C-C functionalizations that are difficult or impossible to realize with transition metals.

Metalation behavior of a bis-saturated NHC ligand with a flexible m-xylyl linker.

Saturated N-heterocyclic carbenes have unique ligand properties that differ even from their unsaturated analogs. While the unsaturated version has been extensively used in multidentate ligand scaffolds, the incorporation of the saturated version is less common. Here we report the straightforward synthesis of a new bis-saturated N-heterocyclic carbene ligand wherein the carbene moieties are linked by a flexible meta-xylyl unit.

Non-symmetric pincer ligands: complexes and applications in catalysis.

Pincer ligands have become ubiquitous in organometallic chemistry and homogeneous catalysis. Recently, new varieties of pincer ligands with non-symmetrical backbones and/or ligating groups have been reported and their application in transition metal complexes has been exploited in a variety of catalytic transformations. This non-symmetric approach vastly increases the structural and electronic diversity of this class of ligand.