Palladium-Catalyzed Triple Suzuki-Miyaura Reactions Using Cyclic (Vinyl Triflate)iodonium Salts.

By using cyclic (vinyl triflate)iodonium salts, a novel triple Suzuki-Miyaura reaction was accomplished for the synthesis of polyaromatic ethylene derivatives in the presence of palladium catalysts. The reaction exhibits extensive compatibility with a wide range of readily available arylboronic acids, giving triaryl-substituted ethylenes in good yields.

Fe-BPsalan Complex-Catalyzed Asymmetric [4 + 2] Cycloaddition of Cyclopentadiene with α,β-Unsaturated Heterocycles.

An efficient iron-catalyzed asymmetric [4 + 2] cycloaddition of cyclopentadiene with α,β-unsaturated acyl imidazoles or 2-cinnamoylisoindoline-1,3-dione derivatives was developed to afford the addition products in high yield and selectivity. Interestingly, the absolute structures of the addition products were controlled by the auxiliaries via different coordination modes with the same type of catalyst.

An Effective [Fe(TFDMAP)Cl] Catalyst for C-H Bond Amination with Aryl and Alkyl Azides.

[Fe(TFDMAP)Cl] can efficiently catalyze intermolecular sp C-H amination using aryl azides and intramolecular sp C-H amination of alkyl azides in moderate-to-high product yields. At catalyst loading down to 1 mol %, the reactions display high chemo- and regioselectivity with broad substrate scope and are effective for late-stage functionalization of complex natural/bioactive molecules.

Iron Porphyrin Catalyzed Insertion Reaction of N-Tosylhydrazone-Derived Carbenes into X-H (X = Si, Sn, Ge) Bonds.

An efficient Fe(TPP)Cl catalyzed insertion reaction of in situ generated benzylic carbenes from N-tosylhydrazones into X-H (X = Si, Sn, Ge) was developed. Silanes bearing tertiary, secondary, and primary (3°, 2°, and 1°) Si-H bonds all reacted well to afford insertion products in moderate to high yields (up to 97%), and the reaction time could be significantly shortened to 1 h under microwave irradiation. A programmable stepwise double insertion strategy was developed for the synthesis of unsymmetrical tetrasubstituted silanes.

Highly Enantioselective Iron-Catalyzed cis-Dihydroxylation of Alkenes with Hydrogen Peroxide Oxidant via an Fe(III) -OOH Reactive Intermediate.

The development of environmentally benign catalysts for highly enantioselective asymmetric cis-dihydroxylation (AD) of alkenes with broad substrate scope remains a challenge. By employing [Fe(II) (L)(OTf)2 ] (L=N,N'-dimethyl-N,N'-bis(2-methyl-8-quinolyl)-cyclohexane-1,2-diamine) as a catalyst, cis-diols in up to 99.8 % ee with 85 % isolated yield have been achieved in AD of alkenes with H2 O2 as an oxidant and alkenes in a limiting amount.

[Fe(III)(TF4DMAP)OTf] catalysed anti-Markovnikov oxidation of terminal aryl alkenes to aldehydes and transformation of methyl aryl tertiary amines to formamides with H2O2 as a terminal oxidant.

Anti-Markovnikov oxidation of terminal aryl alkenes to aldehydes and transformation of N-methyl aryl tertiary amines to formamides with H2O2 as a terminal oxidant under mild conditions have been achieved with moderate to good product yields using [Fe(III)(TF4DMAP)OTf] as catalyst.

Iron(III)-salan complexes catalysed highly enantioselective fluorination and hydroxylation of β-keto esters and N-Boc oxindoles.

Chiral iron(iii)-salan complexes catalysed highly enantioselective α-fluorination and α-hydroxylation of β-keto esters and N-Boc oxindoles to give the corresponding products in high yields and good-to-excellent ee values under mild reaction conditions.

Dirhodium carboxylates catalyzed enantioselective coupling reactions of α-diazophosphonates, anilines, and electron-deficient aldehydes.

Chiral dirhodium carboxylate complexes ([Rh(2)(S-PTAD)(4)] or [Rh(2)(S-PTTL)(4)]) efficiently catalyze asymmetric three-component coupling reactions of α-diazophosphonates, anilines, and electron-deficient aldehydes to give α-amino-β-hydroxyphosphonates. The high level of enantiocontrol provides evidence for the intermediacy of metal-bound ammonium ylide in the product-forming step.

Highly enantioselective intermolecular carbene insertion to C-H and Si-H bonds catalyzed by a chiral iridium(III) complex of a D4-symmetric Halterman porphyrin ligand.

The chiral iridium porphyrin [Ir((-)-D(4)-Por*)(Me)(EtOH)] displays excellent reactivity and stereoselectivity towards carbene insertion to C-H and Si-H bonds, affording corresponding products in high yields (up to 96%) and high enantioselectivities (up to 98% ee).

Selective oxidation of terminal aryl and aliphatic alkenes to aldehydes catalyzed by iron(III) porphyrins with triflate as a counter anion.

[Fe(Por)CF(3)SO(3)] (Por = porphyrin dianion) can efficiently catalyze selective oxidation of terminal aryl alkenes and aliphatic alkenes to aldehydes in good to high yields under mild conditions.

Diastereoselective HOTf-catalyzed three-component one-pot 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of alpha-diazo ester, nitrosobenzene and electron-deficient alkene.

A novel HOTf-catalyzed three-component one-pot cycloaddition of alpha-diazo ester, nitrosobenzene and electron deficient alkene has been developed. This catalysis is very simple to operate and tolerant to moisture/oxygen to afford the product with high to excellent diastereoselectivity in good to excellent yield, thus providing a useful and convenient method for the preparation of diverse functionalized isoxazolidines under very mild conditions.

cis-Beta-bis(carbonyl) ruthenium-salen complexes: X-ray crystal structures and remarkable catalytic properties toward asymmetric intramolecular alkene cyclopropanation.

cis-Beta-[Ru(II)(salen(A))(CO)(2)] (salen(A) = N,N'-bis(3-R(1)-5-R(2)-salicylidene)-1,2-cyclohexenediamine dianion; R(1) = R(2) = Bu(t), 1a; R(1) = Pr(i), R(2) = H, 1b; R(1) = Bu(t), R(2) = H, 1c) complexes were prepared by treating Ru(3)(CO)(12) with the respective H(2)salen(A) in 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene and structurally characterized by X-ray crystallography. Complexes 1a-c catalyze intramolecular cyclopropanation of trans-allylic diazoacetates N(2)CHCO(2)CH(2)CH=CHR (3, R = Ph, 4-ClC(6)H(4), 4-BrC(6)H(4), 4-MeC(6)H(4), 4-MeOC(6)H(4), 2-MeC(6)H(4), 2-furanyl) under light irradiation to give cyclopropyl lactones 4 in up to 96% yield and up to 98% ee. DFT calculations on intramolecular cyclopropanation of 3a (R = Ph) with model catalyst cis-beta-[Ru(II)(salen(A0))(CO)(2)] (salen(A0) = N,N'-bis(salicylidene)-1,2-cyclohexenediamine dianion) reveal the intermediacy of both cis-beta- and trans-[Ru(salen(A0))(CHCO(2)CH(2)CH=CHPh)(CO)] bearing salen(A0) in a nonplanar and planar coordination mode, respectively, with the cis-beta-carbene species being a major intermediate in the catalytic carbenoid transfer reaction.

Ruthenium-catalyzed one-pot carbenoid N-H insertion reactions and diastereoselective synthesis of prolines.

Aryl- and aliphatic-substituted 3-hydroxyprolines and various other amino esters are conveniently prepared by [RuCl2(p-cymene)]2-catalyzed one-pot intramolecular and intermolecular carbenoid N-H insertion reactions, respectively, and the prolines are formed with high diastereoselectivities. The catalytic reactions are tolerant toward air/moisture, and the product yields are insensitive to the organic solvents used.