Intramolecular Aromatic Substitution Research Articles

Transition-Metal-Free Synthesis of 2-Substituted Benzo[cd]Indoles via the Reaction of 1-Halo-8-lithionaphthalenes with Nitriles.

A simple and effective organolithium approach to the synthesis of 2-substituted benzo[cd]indoles from peri-dihalonaphthalenes and nitriles has been developed. The reaction proceeds via a surprisingly easy intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution facilitated by the "clothespin effect". The discovered transformation provides good isolated yields, allows usage of an extensive range of nitriles, and demonstrates a good substituents tolerance. UV-absorption and NMR spectra of the obtained benzo[cd]indoles and their protonated forms demonstrated exclusive protonation to the indole nitrogen atom even in the presence of two NMe2 groups in positions 5 and 6 (i. e. "proton sponge" moiety).

Convergent Syntheses of Isomeric Imidazolospiroketones as Templates for Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase (ACC) Inhibitors.

The synthesis of imidazole fused spirocyclic ketones as templates for acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) inhibitors is reported. By completing the spirocyclic ring closure via divergent pathways, the synthesis of these regioisomers from common intermediates was developed. Through an aldehyde homologation/transmetalation strategy, one isomer was formed selectively. The second desired isomer was obtained via an intramolecular aromatic homolytic substitution reaction. Preparation of these isomeric spiroketones provided templates which, upon elaboration, led to key structure-activity relationship (SAR) points for delivery of potent ACC inhibitors.

Experimental and Theoretical Investigation of an Azaoxyallyl Cation-Templated Intramolecular Aryl Amination Leading to Oxindole Derivatives.

Herein, development and detailed investigation of a SN '-type intramolecular aromatic substitution reaction involving α-arylazaoxyallyl cation intermediate, is disclosed. The study showcased that while α-aryl-α-chlorohydroxamate could be activated by a combination of base and 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) into the corresponding azaoxyallyl cations, it could further emerge into a π-extended species involving the adjacent α-aryl moiety, and this transition is contingent on electronic effects of the aromatic ring as well as on α-substituents. An effective activation of the α-aromatic ring could pave the path for intramolecular Ar(Csp2 )-N bond formation towards oxindoles. Control experiments and DFT calculations suggested that a non-pericyclic nucleophilic amination pathway is most likely operative and precluded the possibility of concerted or electrophilic amination mechanism. HFIP as the reaction solvent plays pivotal roles in the transformation.

Gold(I)-Catalyzed Intermolecular Formal [4+2] Cycloaddition of O-Aryl Ynol Ethers and Enol Ethers: Synthesis of Chromene Derivatives.

Gold(I)‐catalyzed formal [4+2] cycloaddition of O‐aryl ynol ethers 1 and enol ethers 2 is described. This intermolecular reaction between two electron‐rich unsaturated systems takes place, under mild conditions, in the presence of 5 mol% [IPrAu(CH3CN)]SbF6 as catalyst giving chromene derivatives with good yields. The cycloaddition is completely regio‐ and stereoselective, as well as versatile for both reactives. Silyl enol ethers can also react in the same way and under the same reaction conditions with quantitative yields. A plausible mechanism through a selective addition of the enol ether to the alkyne gold activated complex followed by an intramolecular aromatic electrophilic substitution is proposed. Several experimental results support the presence of a cationic oxonium intermediate prior to the aromatic substitution. The reaction represents a new entry to the chromene core.

Transforming Oxadiazolines through Nitrene Intermediates by Energy Transfer Catalysis: Access to Sulfoximines and Benzimidazoles.

Subtle differences in reaction conditions facilitated unprecedented photocatalytic reactions of oxadiazolines by energy transfer catalysis. A set of compounds, sulfoximines and benzimidazoles, were ingeniously prepared from oxadiazolines via nitrene intermediates by photocatalytic N-O/C-N bond cleavages. The synthesis of sulfoximines was realized through intermolecular N-S bond formation between nitrene intermediates and sulfoxides, whereas benzimidazoles were obtained via intramolecular aromatic substitution of the nitrene to the tethered aryl substituent.

Chemistry with Electrochemically Generated N-Centered Radicals.

N-centered radicals are versatile reaction intermediates that can react with various π systems to construct C-N bonds. Current methods for generating N-centered radicals usually involve the cleavage of an N-heteroatom bond; however, similar strategies that are applicable to N-H bonds prove to be more challenging to develop and therefore are attracting increasing attention. In this Account, we summarize our recent efforts in the development of electrochemical methods for the generation and synthetic utilization of N-centered radicals. In our studies, N-aryl amidyl radical, amidinyl radical and iminyl radical cation intermediates are generated from N-H precursors through direct electrolysis or indirect electrolysis assisted by a redox catalyst. In addition, an electrocatalytic method that converts oximes to iminoxyl radicals has also been developed. The electrophilic amidyl radical intermediates can participate in 5-exo or 6-exo cyclization with alkenes and alkynes to afford C-centered radicals, which can then undergo various transformations such as H atom abstraction, single-electron transfer oxidation to a carbocation, cyclization, or aromatic substitution, leading to a diverse range of N-heterocyclic products. Furthermore, amidinyl radicals, iminyl radical cations, and iminoxyl radicals can undergo intramolecular aromatic substitution to afford various N-heteroaromatic compounds. Importantly, the electrochemical reaction can be channeled toward a specific product despite the presence of other competing pathways. For a successful electrosynthesis, it is important to take into consideration of both the electron transfer steps associated with the electrode and the nonelectrode related processes. A unique feature of electrochemistry is the simultaneous occurrence of anodic oxidation and cathodic reduction, which, as this Account demonstrates, allows the dehydrogenative transformations to proceed through H2 evolution without the need for chemical oxidants. In addition, cathodic solvent reduction can continuously generate a low concentration of base, which facilitates anodic substrate oxidation. Such a mechanistic paradigm obviates the need for stoichiometric strong bases and avoids base-promoted decomposition of sensitive substrates or products. Furthermore, electrode materials can also be adjusted to control the reaction outcome, as demonstrated by the synthesis of N-heteroaromatics and the corresponding N-oxides from biaryl ketoximes.

Selective Cu-Catalyzed Intramolecular Annulation of 3-Aryl/Heteryl-2-(diazoacetyl)-1H-pyrroles: Synthesis of Benzo/Furo/Thieno[e]-Fused 1H-Indol-7-oles and Their Transformations.

The Co(III)-catalyzed reaction of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds with 2-(diazoacetyl)-2H-azirines, prepared by a simplified procedure from 2H-azirin-2-carbonyl chlorides, led in high yields to the formation of 2-(diazoacetyl)pyrroles, while leaving the diazoacetyl function intact. The intramolecular aromatic substitution reaction of 2-(diazoacetyl)pyrroles, catalyzed by Cu(OTf)2, provided selectively previously unknown benzo[e]- and hetero[e]-fused indol-7-oles in good yields. Formylation of benzo[e]indol-4-ol led selectively to the 5-formyl derivative, which is a good precursor for an unusual salen ligand and its Ni-complex. Triflates prepared from benzo[e]indol-4-oles gave various 4-substituted benzo[e]indoles carrying aryl, 2-thienyl, 2-pyridyl, and alkynyl groups, in excellent yields using cross-coupling reactions. 4-(2-Pyridyl)benzo[e]indoles, upon treatment with BF3·Et2O/Et3N, afforded a new type of fluorescent boron complexes with large Stokes shifts.

Prediction of the Synthesis of Spiro Derivatives by Double Intramolecular Aromatic Electrophilic Substitution Using Reactivity Indices.

The synthesis of heterocyclic spirobifluorene (SBF) analogs generally requires long and complicated synthetic pathways. Despite this synthetic effort, such structural modification allows the (opto)electronic properties of this remarkable three-dimensional node to be tuned especially for molecular electronic applications. For this reason, the development of a simple, robust, and efficient synthetic methodology to introduce various heterocycles in place of classical phenyl rings in the spirofluorene motif is highly and timely desirable. In this context, we describe herein our efforts to develop a straightforward and efficient synthesis leading to replacement of 2 phenyl rings by various heterocycles in spiro compounds from 2,2′-dibromobenzophenone. As the same procedure to form fully heterocyclic compounds failed, an original theoretical approach based mainly on the uncommon Fukui dual function was developed in order to determine clearly the limitation of this strategy and provide an efficient predictive tool. Indeed, such calculation allows prediction of the thermodynamic and kinetic aspects of the synthesis of spiro derivatives using a double aromatic electrophilic substitution. If this procedure reproduces well our experimental results focused on (heterocyclic) SBF compounds, it can be certainly adapted and generalized to other intramolecular substitutions.

On Water: Metal-Free Synthesis of Highly Functionalized Benzothiazolylidene from ortho-Haloanilines.

An environmentally benign, transition-metal-free organic base promoted one-pot cascade synthesis of highly functionalized benzo[ d]thiazol-2(3 H)-ylidene benzamide in the presence of water was accomplished by three-component reaction of ortho-iodoanilines, acrylates, and aroyl isothiocyanates. The protocol involves the in situ generation of thiourea intermediate followed by triethylamine induced intramolecular SNAr displacement reaction and subsequent Michael addition onto acrylate leads to the formation of benzo[ d]thiazol-2(3 H)-ylidene benzamide. Benzo[ b]thiazole is also generated in good yields using amidation and intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution chemistry. The control experiments support the proposed mechanistic pathway. Further X-ray crystallographic studies confirmed the assigned structures of the fused benzamide.

Asymmetric Total Synthesis and Evaluation of Antitumor Activity of Ophiorrhisine A and Its Derivatives.

The first asymmetric total synthesis of ophiorrhisine A (1), a new cyclic tetrapeptide isolated from Ophiorrhiza nutans, was accomplished via an intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution reaction (IMSNAr) of a linear tripeptide to construct a 14-membered paracyclophane ring, resulting in confirmation of its structure and absolute configuration. The structure-activity relationship study of 1 and its derivatives demonstrated that some derivatives possessed cytotoxicity toward human cancer cell lines A549, HT29, and HCT116.

Oxygenophilic Lewis Acid Promoted Synthesis of 2-Arylindoles from Anilines and Cyanoepoxides in Alcohol.

A convenient synthetic method to indoles from anilines and cyanoepoxides was developed under the catalysis of BF3·OEt2 or AlCl3 in alcohols. The reaction involves a tandem reaction of the regiospecific ring-opening of cyanoepoxides with anilines, elimination of cyanide, intramolecular aromatic electrophilic substitution, and water elimination. The Lewis acid generated protic acid is an efficient catalyst. The method features readily accessible starting materials, wide substrate scope, transition-metal-free environment, and regiospecificity in the ring-opening of cyanoepoxides.

A concise synthesis of cyclobrassinin and its analogues via a thiyl radical aromatic substitution

Cyclobrassinin and its six and seven-membered ring analogues have been synthesized through a thiyl radical-mediated intramolecular aromatic substitution of brassinin derivatives.

Convenient two-step synthesis of highly functionalized benzo-fused 1,4-diazepin-3-ones and 1,5-diazocin-4-ones by sequential Ugi and intramolecular SNAr reactions

Benzodiazepinones are an important family of heterocycles with very attractive pharmacological properties and peptidomimetic abilities. We report herein a rapid and efficient two-step synthesis of polysubstituted 1,4-benzodiazepin-3-ones and 1,5-benzodiazocin-4-ones using a multicomponent condensation/cyclization strategy. The approach uses an Ugi four-component reaction to condense readily available Nα-Fmoc-amino acids, amines and isocyanides with a 2-fluorobenzaldehyde derivative followed by a one-pot Fmoc-group removal, intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution for ring closure and side chain deprotection. The described method gives access to benzo-fused 7- and 8-membered rings bearing a wide variety of functionalized substituents and was applied to efficiently prepare tri- and tetrasubstituted 1,4-benzodiazepin-3-ones and 1,5-benzodiazocin-4-ones in high yields in two straightforward steps.

Synthesis of Ring-Fused Pyridinium Salts by Intramolecular Nucleophilic Aromatic Substitution Reaction and Their Optoelectronic Properties.

The synthesis of nitrogen cation-doped polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) having a variety of counteranions is reported via the trimethylsilyl (TMS)-promoted intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution (SNAr) reaction of fluoroarenes and pyridine groups. The electrochemical properties and optical properties of the obtained nitrogen cation-doped PAHs were studied in detail, clarifying that they have low-lying LUMO levels and good emission properties derived from the incorporation of planar N-arylpyridinium moieties.

One-pot tandem Ugi-4CR/S(N)Ar approach to highly functionalized quino[2,3-b][1,5]benzoxazepines.

We have developed a convenient and facile method for the synthesis of functionalized diverse quino[2,3-b][1,5]benzoxazepines. These new compounds were synthesized through a one-pot sequential Ugi-4CR/base-free intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution (S(N)Ar) reaction in moderate to good yields from readily available starting materials. Structural confirmation of the products is confirmed by analytical data and X-ray crystallography.

On the Mechanism of Phenolic Formylation Mediated by TiCl4 Complexes: Existence of Diradical Intermediates Induced by Valence Tautomerism

AbstractThe conventional electrophilic intramolecular aromatic substitution pathway proposed by Cresp et al. [J. Chem. Soc., Perkin Trans. 1 1973, 340–345] is confirmed by the observed products of phenolic formylation mediated by TiCl4. However, when the nucleophilic path is quenched by appropriate ligand modification, the initial equilibria between the possible neutral complexes of TiCl4 with 3,5‐dimethoxyphenol and/or diethyl ether lead to different stable diradical intermediates induced by valence tautomerism that provide valuable activated reagents. Some of these species have been detected by EPR, characterized theoretically and captured by TEMPO, thus providing a consistent mechanism for the reaction with one or more equivalents of TEMPO per phenol.

Transition-metal-free intramolecular carbene aromatic substitution/Büchner reaction: synthesis of fluorenes and [6,5,7]benzo-fused rings.

Intramolecular aromatic substitution and Büchner reaction have been established as powerful methods for the construction of polycyclic compounds. These reactions are traditionally catalyzed by Rh(II) catalysts with α-diazocarbonyl compounds as the substrates. Herein a transition-metal-free intramolecular aromatic substitution/Büchner reaction is presented. These reactions use readily available N-tosylhydrazones as the diazo compound precursors and show wide substrate scope.

Benzyl anion transfer in the fragmentation of N-(phenylsulfonyl)-benzeneacetamides: a gas-phase intramolecular S(N)Ar reaction.

In this study, we report a gas-phase benzyl anion transfer via intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution (SNAr) during the course of tandem mass spectrometry of deprotonated N-(phenylsulfonyl)-benzeneacetamide. Upon collisional activation, the formation of the initial ion/neutral complex ([C6H5CH2(-)/C6H5SO2NCO]), which was generated by heterolytic cleavage of the CH2-CO bond, is proposed as the key step. Subsequently, the anionic counterpart, benzyl anion, is transferred to conduct the intra-complex SNAr reaction. After losing neutral HNCO, the intermediate gives rise to product ion B at m/z 231, whose structure is confirmed by comparing the multistage spectra with those of deprotonated 2-benzylbenzenesulfinic acid and (benzylsulfonyl)benzene. In addition, intra-complex proton transfer is also observed within the complex [C6H5CH2(-)/C6H5SO2NCO] to generate product ion C at m/z 182. The INC-mediated mechanism was corroborated by theoretical calculations, isotope experiments, breakdown curve, substituent experiments, etc. This work may provide further understanding of the physicochemical properties of the gaseous benzyl anion.

ChemInform Abstract: New Acridizinium Salts Derived from [2‐(Bromomethyl)phenyl]carbonyl Compounds.

A new method is proposed for the preparation of 1-hydroxypyrido[1,2-b]isoquinolinium bromides by intramolecular aromatic electrophilic substitution in 3-hydroxy-1-(2-formylbenzyl)pyridinium, 3-hydroxy- and 3-amino-1-[2-(4-chlorobenzoyl)benzyl]pyridinium bromides. The alkylation of pyridine and some of its derivatives by 2-(bromomethyl)benzaldehyde, 2-(bromomethyl)benzophenone derivatives, and methyl 2-(bromomethyl)benzoate was studied.

Aqueous Oxidation of Sulfonamide Antibiotics: Aromatic Nucleophilic Substitution of an Aniline Radical Cation

Sulfonamide antibiotics are an important class of organic micropollutants in the aquatic environment. For several, sulfur dioxide extrusion products have been previously reported upon photochemical or dark oxidation. Using quantum chemical modeling calculations and transient absorption spectroscopy, it is shown that single-electron oxidation from sulfadiazine produces the corresponding aniline radical cation. Density functional theory calculations indicate that this intermediate can exist in four protonation states. One species exhibits a low barrier for an intramolecular nucleophilic attack at the para position of the oxidized aniline ring, in which a pyrimidine nitrogen acts as a nucleophile. This attack can lead to a rearranged structure, which exhibits the same connectivity as the SO2 -extruded oxidation product that was previously observed in the aquatic environment and characterized by NMR spectroscopy. We report a detailed reaction mechanism for this intramolecular aromatic nucleophilic substitution, and we discuss the possibility of this reaction pathway for other sulfonamide drugs.