Reactivity of electrophilic chlorine atoms due to σ-holes: a mechanistic assessment of the chemical reduction of a trichloromethyl group by sulfur nucleophiles.

σ-Holes are shown to promote the electrophilic behavior of chlorine atoms in a trichloromethyl group when bound to an electron-withdrawing moiety. A halogen bond-type non-covalent interaction between a chlorine atom and a negatively charged sulfur atom takes place, causing the abstraction of such a chlorine atom while leaving a carbanion, subsequently driving the chemical reduction of the trichloromethyl group to a sulfide in a stepwise process. The mechanism for the model reaction of trichloromethyl pyrimidine 1 with thiophenolate and thiophenol to yield phenylsulfide 4 was followed through H-NMR and studied using DFT transition state calculations, and the energy profile for this transformation is fully discussed.

Chemoselective Reduction of Trichloromethyl Compounds to gem-Dichloromethyl Groups Following Appel's Reaction Protocol.

A simple and easy reduction of trichloroacetyl compounds following the modification of Appel's reaction protocol, using triphenylphosphine and methanol, afforded the corresponding dichloroacetyl compounds, with the exception of trichloroacetylmorpholine, in yields of 80-98% under very mild experimental conditions. Likewise, when trichloromethyl heterocyclic compounds contain another reactive functional group, the reaction is highly chemoselective giving the dichloromethyl derivative.

Chemoselective aromatic C-H insertion of α-diazo-β-ketoesters catalyzed by dirhodium(II) carboxylates.

The ability of α-diazo-β-ketoesters bearing a substituent on the benzylic position to undergo aromatic C-H insertion is described. Good to excellent yields of the aromatic C-H insertion products were observed with Rh(2)(tpa)(4) or Rh(2)(esp)(2) catalysts. This is an attractive strategy to prepare tetralins carrying a methyl group on the benzylic position, a structural motif found in several types of natural products.

Stereoselective addition of the titanium enolate of N-acetyl (4S)-isopropyl-1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione to five-membered N-acyl iminium ions.

[reaction: see text] Addition of the chlorotitanium enolate of N-acetyl 4-isopropyl-1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione to five-membered, N-substituted N-acyl iminium ions furnished the corresponding Mannich-type addition products with good diastereoselectivity and in good yields. The synthetic utility of the addition product 8 was demonstrated in a chemospecific anti-aldol reaction with cinnamaldehyde. By using this strategy, we constructed three contiguous chiral centers with high stereocontrol employing the same chiral auxiliary.