Iridium-catalyzed Reaction Research Articles

Asymmetric Hydrogenation of Ketones by Simple Alkane-Diyl-Based Ir(P,N,O) Catalysts: A Comparative Study.

The development of new chiral ligands with simple and modular structure represents a challenging direction in the design of efficient homogeneous transition metal catalysts. Herein, we report on the asymmetric hydrogenation of prochiral ketones catalyzed by the iridium complexes of simple alkane-diyl-based P,N,O-type chiral ligands with a highly modular structure. The role of (i) the P-N and N-O backbone in the potentially tridentate ligands, (ii) the number, position and relative configuration of their stereogenic elements and (iii) the effect of their NH and OH subunits on the activity and enantioselectivity of the catalytic reactions are studied. The systematic variation in the ligand structure and the comparative catalytic experiments shed light on different mechanistic aspects of the iridium-catalyzed reaction. The catalysts containing the simple alkane-diyl-based ligands with central chirality provided high enantioselectivities (up to 98% ee) under optimized reaction conditions and proved to be active and selective even at very high substrate concentrations (100 mmol substrate/mL solvent).

Asymmetric Tandem Copper- and Iridium-Catalyzed Reaction for the Construction of 1,3-Chiral Centers

Key words copper catalysis - stereodivergent - multi-continuous stereocenters

Iridium-Catalyzed Formal [4+1] Annulation of Benzamides and Cyclopropanols to Afford Isoindolin-1-one Derivatives via C–H Activation

AbstractAn iridium-catalyzed reaction protocol has been developed to achieve the oxidative C–H/N–H annulation of benzamides with cyclopropanols as C1 synthon. Structurally diverse isoindolin-1-ones were furnished via sequential C–H/C–C cleavage and C–C/C–N bond formation.

Highly Enantioselective Iridium-Catalyzed Coupling Reaction of Vinyl Azides and Racemic Allylic Carbonates

Highly Enantioselective Iridium-Catalyzed Coupling Reaction of Vinyl Azides and Racemic Allylic Carbonates

Enantioselective Direct Vinylogous Allylic Alkylation of 4-Methylquinolones under Iridium Catalysis.

The first enantioselective vinylogous allylic alkylation of 4-methylquinolones has been developed. This iridium-catalyzed reaction introduces an allyl group at the γ-position of 4-methyl-2-quinolones with exclusive branched selectivity and an excellent level of enantioselectivity. This in turn allows for the enantioselective synthesis of γ-allylquinolines and related nitrogenous heterocycles. This is the first application of 4-methylquinolones in an enantioselective transformation.

Iridium-Catalyzed Three-Component Coupling Reaction

Iridium-Catalyzed Three-Component Coupling Reaction

Hydroamination versus Allylic Amination in Iridium-Catalyzed Reactions of Allylic Acetates with Amines: 1,3-Aminoalcohols via Ester-Directed Regioselectivity.

In the presence of a neutral dppf-modified iridium catalyst and Cs2CO3, linear allylic acetates react with primary amines to form products of hydroamination with complete 1,3-regioselectivity. The collective data, including deuterium labeling studies, corroborate a catalytic mechanism involving rapid, reversible acetate-directed aminoiridation with inner-sphere/outer-sphere crossover followed by turnover-limiting proto-demetalation mediated by amine.

Applications of Iridium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Allylic Substitution Reactions in Target-Oriented Synthesis.

Metal catalyzed allylic substitution is a cornerstone of organometallic and synthetic chemistry. Enantioselective versions have been developed with catalysts derived from transition metals, most notably molybdenum, nickel, ruthenium, rhodium, iridium, palladium, and copper. The palladium- and the iridium-catalyzed versions have turned out to be particularly versatile in organic synthesis because of the very broad scope of the nucleophile and great functional group compatibility. Assets of the iridium-catalyzed reaction are the formation of branched, chiral products from simple monosubstituted allylic substrates, high degrees of regio- and enantioselectivity, and use of modular, readily available chiral ligands. The possibility to use carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur compounds as well as fluoride as nucleophiles allows a wide range of chiral building blocks to be prepared. Our Account begins with the presentation of fundamental reaction schemes and chiral ligands. We will focus our discussion on reactions promoted by phosphoramidite ligands, though numerous chiral ligands have been employed. The subsequent section presents a brief overview of reaction mechanism and experimental conditions. Two versions of the iridium-catalyzed allylic substitution have emerged. In type 1 reactions (introduced in 1997), linear allylic esters are commonly used as substrates under basic reaction conditions. In type 2 reactions (introduced in 2007), environmentally friendly branched allylic alcohols can be reacted under acidic conditions; occasionally, derivatives of allylic alcohols have also been applied. A unique feature of the type 2 reactions is that highly electrophilic allylic intermediates can be brought to reaction with weakly activated alkenes. The subsequent text is ordered according to the strategies followed to transform allylic substitution products to desired targets, most of which are natural products or drugs. Syntheses starting with an intermolecular allylic substitution are discussed first. Some fairly complex targets, for example, the potent nitric oxide inhibitor (-)-nyasol and the drug (-)-protrifenbute, have been synthesized via less than five steps from simple starting materials. Most targets discussed are cyclic compounds. Intermolecular allylic substitution with subsequent ring closing metathesis is a powerful strategy for their synthesis. Highlights are stereodivergent syntheses of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinols (THC), wherein iridium- and organocatalysis are combined (dual catalysis). The combination of allylic alkylation with a Diels-Alder reaction was utilized to synthesize the ketide apiosporic acid and the drug fesoterodine (Toviaz). Sequential allylic amination, hydroboration and Suzuki-Miyaura coupling generates enones suitable for conjugate addition reactions; this strategy was employed in syntheses of a variety of alkaloids, for example, the poison frog alkaloid (+)-cis-195A (pumiliotoxin C). Intramolecular substitutions offer interesting possibilities to build up stereochemical complexity via short synthetic routes. For example, in diastereoselective cyclizations of chiral compounds, substrate control can be overruled by catalyst control in order to generate cis- and trans-isomers selectively from a given precursor. This approach was used to prepare a variety of piperidine and pyrrolidine alkaloids. Finally, complex polycyclic structures, including the structurally unusual indolosesquiterpenoid mycoleptodiscin A, have been generated diastereo- and enantioselectively from olefins by polyene cyclizations and from electron-rich arenes, such as indoles, in dearomatization reactions.

ChemInform Abstract: Synthesis of 2H‐Azirines by Iridium‐Catalyzed Decarboxylative Ring Contraction of Isoxazol‐5(4H)‐ones

Abstractunder phosphine‐free and environmentally benign conditions

Synthesis of 2H-Azirines by Iridium-Catalyzed Decarboxylative Ring Contraction of Isoxazol-5(4H)-ones.

A phosphine-free iridium-catalyzed reaction of isoxazol-5(4H)-ones (isoxazolones) has been developed, and affords 2H-azirines through decarboxylation and ring contraction. This method provides an efficient and environmentally benign protocol which could replace the conventional approaches used to synthesize 2H-azirines.

An Iridium-Catalyzed Reductive Approach to Nitrones from N-Hydroxyamides.

An Ir-catalyzed reductive formation of functionalized nitrones from N-hydroxyamides was reported. The reaction took place through two types of iridium-catalyzed reactions including dehydrosilylation and hydrosilylation. The method showed high chemoselectivity in the presence of sensitive functional groups, such as methyl esters, and was successfully applied to the synthesis of cyclic and macrocyclic nitrones, which are known to be challenging compounds to access by conventional methods. (1)H NMR studies strongly supported generation of an N-siloxyamide and an N,O-acetal as the actual intermediates.

Catalyst-controlled selectivity in the C-H borylation of methane and ethane.

The C-H bonds of methane are generally more kinetically inert than those of other hydrocarbons, reaction solvents, and methane functionalization products. Thus, developing strategies to achieve selective functionalization of CH4 remains a major challenge. Here, we report transition metal-catalyzed C-H borylation of methane with bis-pinacolborane (B2pin2) in cyclohexane solvent at 150°C under 2800 to 3500 kilopascals of methane pressure. Iridium, rhodium, and ruthenium complexes all catalyze the reaction. Formation of mono- versus diborylated methane is tunable as a function of catalyst, with the ruthenium complex providing the highest ratio of CH3Bpin to CH2(Bpin)2 Despite the high relative concentration of cyclohexane, minimal quantities of borylated cyclohexane products are observed. Furthermore, all three metal complexes catalyze borylation of methane with >3.5:1 selectivity over ethane.

Methane borylation in a cyclohexane sea

C–H Bond Activation Although methane combusts readily at high temperatures, it is generally the hardest hydrocarbon to transform under gentler conditions, owing to its particularly strong C–H bonds. Cook et al. now show that soluble rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium catalysts can slice through these C–H bonds to add boron substituents to methane at 150°C. Smith et al. report the iridium-catalyzed reaction using phosphine ligands to enhance activity. Both studies were performed in cyclohexane solvent, revealing a remarkable selective preference for the methane reaction over functionalization of the cyclic hydrocarbon. Science , this issue pp. [1421][1] and [1424][2] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.aad9289 [2]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.aad9730

Catalytic borylation of methane.

Despite steady progress in catalytic methods for the borylation of hydrocarbons, methane has not yet been subject to this transformation. Here we report the iridium-catalyzed borylation of methane using bis(pinacolborane) in cyclohexane solvent. Initially, trace amounts of borylated products were detected with phenanthroline-coordinated Ir complexes. A combination of experimental high-pressure and high-throughput screening, and computational mechanism discovery techniques helped to rationalize the foundation of the catalysis and identify improved phosphine-coordinated catalytic complexes. Optimized conditions of 150°C and 3500-kilopascal pressure led to yields as high as ~52%, turnover numbers of 100, and improved chemoselectivity for monoborylated versus diborylated methane.

Diastereodivergent Reverse Prenylation of Indole and Tryptophan Derivatives: Total Synthesis of Amauromine, Novoamauromine, and epi-Amauromine.

A regio- and stereoselective reverse prenylation of indole and tryptophan derivatives is presented. All four possible stereoisomers are accessible through this iridium-catalyzed reaction. The stereoselectivity is controlled by a chiral phosphoramidite ligand in combination with an achiral borane additive and can be switched by changing the nature of the borane. One enantiomer of the ligand is thus sufficient to prepare all possible isomers. The synthetic potential of this method was demonstrated by a short total synthesis of amauromine and its two natural diastereomers.

Ir-catalyzed reverse prenylation of 3-substituted indoles: total synthesis of (+)-aszonalenin and (-)-brevicompanine B.

The selective reverse prenylation of 3-substituted-1H-indoles at C3 is described. The iridium-catalyzed reaction proceeds with high branched to linear selectivity (>20:1) for a variety of indoles. In addition, a diastereoselective reverse prenylation of tryptophan methyl ester is disclosed, and its synthetic utility is demonstrated in the synthesis of (+)-aszonalenin and (-)-brevicompanine B.

Intramolecular Reactions of Metal Carbenoids with Allylic Ethers: Is a Free Ylide Involved in Every Case?

Rhodium-, copper- and iridium-catalyzed reactions of the (13)C-labelled diazo carbonyl substrates 18* and 19* were performed. Results obtained from copper- and iridium-catalyzed reactions of the (13)C-labelled α-diazo β-keto ester 19* indicate that either or both of these reactions do not proceed via a free oxonium ylide but instead follow a competing non-ylide route that delivers apparent [2,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement products. In the case of the iridium-catalyzed reaction of α-diazo β-keto ester 19*, results obtained from crossover experiments indicate that the initially formed metal-bound ylide dissociates to give an iridium enolate and an allyl cation, which recombine to form the -C bond.

Iridium-Catalyzed Synthesis of ω-Hydroxy Homoallylic Alcohols

A novel process has been developed for the construction ω-hydroxy homoallylic alcohols via the iridium-catalyzed reaction of α,ω-diols with 2-alkynes such as 1-arylprop-1-ynes.

ChemInform Abstract: Iridium‐Catalyzed Dehydrogenative Decarbonylation of Primary Alcohols with the Liberation of Syngas.

A new iridium-catalyzed reaction in which molecular hydrogen and carbon monoxide are cleaved from primary alcohols in the absence of any stoichiometric additives has been developed. The dehydrogenative decarbonylation was achieved with a catalyst generated in situ from [Ir(coe)(2)Cl](2) (coe = cyclooctene) and racemic 2,2'-bis(diphenylphosphino)-1,1'-binaphthyl (rac-BINAP) in a mesitylene solution saturated with water. A catalytic amount of lithium chloride was also added to improve the catalyst turnover. The reaction has been applied to a variety of primary alcohols and gives rise to products in good to excellent yields. Ethers, esters, imides, and aryl halides are stable under the reaction conditions, whereas olefins are partially saturated. The reaction is believed to proceed by two consecutive organometallic transformations that are catalyzed by the same iridium(I)-BINAP species. First, dehydrogenation of the primary alcohol to the corresponding aldehyde takes place, which is then followed by decarbonylation to the product with one less carbon atom.

Cationic Iridium-Catalyzed Synthesis Initiated by the Cleavage of C-H, N-H, and C-O Bonds

The direct functionalization of inactive bonds is an ideal transformation in organic synthesis because the introduction of activating groups, such as halogens and metals, to substrates is unnecessary and by-products derived from them are not formed. This report describes several types of cationic iridium-catalyzed reactions that occur through C-H, N-H, or C-O bond cleavage. The carbonyl-directed sp2 C-H bond activation of aryl ketones realized new approaches to benzofulvene, benzofuran and indole synthesis, as well as the C2-position-selective alkylation of N-acyl-protected indoles. The enantioselective sp3 C-H alkylation of 2-(alkylamino)pyridines and the intermolecular enantioselective hydroamination of heteroaromatic amines gave various chiral amines. O-to-N-alkyl migration in 2-alkoxypyridines gave N-alkylpyridones via C-O bond cleavage.