Visible-light-driven NHC and organophotoredox dual catalysis for the synthesis of carbonyl compounds

• Vasudevan Dhayalan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2584–2603, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.200

• ; NHC; organic photocatalyst; radicals; visible-light; Introduction Over the last ten years, NHC-catalyzed visible-light-promoted radical chemistry has been extensively developed for the cost-effective and practical synthesis of bioactive intermediates, pharmaceuticals, drugs, and natural products [1

• presence of NHC (20 mol %), 4CzIPN (2 mol %) under mild conditions, producing corresponding unsymmetrical ketone derivatives 8 in up to 95% yield. An Ir-based photocatalyst was initially selected because its excited state is a strong oxidant (E1/2[Ir*III/II] = +1.21 V). Although 4-ethylanisole exhibits a

• substrate 7, generating the aryl radical cation C along with the formation of corresponding radical anion of the photocatalyst (PC•–). The reduction potentials are (E1/2(P/P•–) = –1.37V vs SCE for [Ir(dF(CF₃)ppy)₂(dtbbpy)]PF₆ and –1.21V vs SCE for 4CzIPN as an organophotocatalyst. This method permits the C

Synthesis of the tetracyclic skeleton of Aspidosperma alkaloids via PET-initiated cationic radical-derived interrupted [2 + 2]/retro-Mannich reaction

• Ru-Dong Liu,
• Jian-Yu Long,
• Zhi-Lin Song,
• Zhen Yang and
• Zhong-Chao Zhang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2470–2478, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.189

• ] gave the desired product 10a, with catalyst I giving the best result (Table 1, entries 1–3). The necessities of irradiation and the presence of a photocatalyst were also defined (Table 1, entries 4 and 5). However, use of the other tested catalysts did not give the desired product under the reaction

• intricacies of the key PET reaction for formation of the unique bicyclo[2.2.0]hexane unit present in the proposed intermediate L (Figure 1). In the presence of the excited photocatalyst [FCNIr(III)Pic]*, the substrate participates in an oxidative single-electron transfer (SET) process, which leads to the

Enantioselective radical chemistry: a bright future ahead

• Anna C. Renner,
• Sagar S. Thorat,
• Hariharaputhiran Subramanian and
• Mukund P. Sibi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2283–2296, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.174

• enantioselectivities. A radical chaperone methodology is based on a multicatalytic system in which a chiral Cu(I) catalyst, Brønsted acid (camphoric acid) and Ir photocatalyst work synergistically. An asymmetric synthetic method based on radical C–H functionalization was reported by Nagib and co-workers for the

• and imidoyl chlorides) in the presence of CuBArF4/bisoxazoline L4 catalyst, an acid co-catalyst, and iridium photocatalyst form chiral oxazolines 29 in good yields and excellent enantioselectivities (82–97% ee) (Scheme 6). Chiral β-aminoalcohols 30 can be obtained by the hydrolysis of 29. Another

• isomerization reactions of cyclic meso-epoxides as part of a bimetallic titanium/cobalt catalytic system [64]. Photoredox catalysis in radical reactions The ability of a photocatalyst (organic small molecule or transition-metal complex) to undergo single electron transfer (SET) to a variety of organic

C2 to C6 biobased carbonyl platforms for fine chemistry

• Jingjing Jiang,
• Muhammad Noman Haider Tariq,
• Florence Popowycz,
• Yanlong Gu and
• Yves Queneau

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2103–2172, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.165

•  15) [74][75][76]. Tang et al. recently reported the environmentally friendly production of glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone from using glycerol through photocatalytic oxidation under visible light using a Cuδ+-decorated WO3 photocatalyst in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) [77]. The

• presence of the photocatalyst provokes an impressive five-fold rise in the conversion rate (3.81 mmol/g) without compromising the high selectivity towards the two trioses (glyceraldehyde, 46.4%, and dihydroxyacetone, 32.9%). Okamoto and co-workers developed a new hydroxyapatite (HAp)-loaded flow system for

• simulated solar light and molecular O2 as the oxidant, and mesoporous carbon nitride (SGCN) as the photocatalyst. The latter showed excellent photoconversion (>95%) of furfural with 33% and 42% selectivity of HFO and MAN, respectively (Scheme 35). Xiao et al. developed this method and suggested that the

The application of desymmetric enantioselective reduction of cyclic 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds in the total synthesis of terpenoid and alkaloid natural products

• Dong-Xing Tan and
• Fu-She Han

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2085–2102, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.164

• 69 and lactone 70 at 456 nm with fac-Ir(ppy)3 as the photocatalyst furnished a mixture of isomeric olefins. Finally, DBU-promoted the isomeric olefins conjugation and removal of the two silyl ether completed the first total synthesis of (+)-randainin D (13). Total synthesis of (−)-hunterine A and

Photochemical reduction of acylimidazolium salts

• Michael Jakob,
• Nick Bechler,
• Hassan Abdelwahab,
• Fabian Weber,
• Janos Wasternack,
• Leonardo Kleebauer,
• Jan P. Götze and
• Matthew N. Hopkinson

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1973–1983, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.153

• additional photocatalyst. Moreover, under the same photocatalyst-free conditions, UV-A-light-mediated reduction could be achieved using triethylsilane as the only reductant with subsequent desilylation and NHC elimination with fluoride delivering the corresponding aldehyde product. Keywords: carbenes

• = 4,4′-di-tert-butyl-2,2′-dipyridine) as a photocatalyst and the simple tertiary amine diisopropylethylamine (DIPEA, 5 equiv) in MeCN (0.05 M). After 24 h under irradiation with light from blue LEDs (λmax = 440 nm), the crude mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and analyzed by 1H NMR

• , irradiation of 1 and DIPEA (5 equiv) in the absence of the photocatalyst (λmax = 440 nm) did result in significant consumption of the acylazolium species (11% remaining by 1H NMR) with the fully reduced species 2 being observed in trace amounts (1H NMR yield = 2%). In addition to these compounds, IMeH+ (45

Photocatalysis and photochemistry in organic synthesis

• Timothy Noël and
• Bartholomäus Pieber

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1645–1647, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.128

• impact of [Ru(bpy)3]Cl2 on several research areas, including solar energy conversion [5], optosensing [6], photodynamic therapy [7][8] and bioimaging [9]. Scattered examples of [Ru(bpy)3]Cl2 being used as a photocatalyst for visible-light-driven organic synthesis appeared in the scientific literature as

General method for the synthesis of enaminones via photocatalysis

• Paula Pérez-Ramos,
• Raquel G. Soengas and
• Humberto Rodríguez-Solla

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1535–1543, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.116

• carried out by using 3-bromochromone (7a) and morpholine (8a) as model substrates in the presence of Ni(II) salt (5 mol %) and ligand (5 mol %), a pyridinium salt (1 equiv) and a photocatalyst (1 mol %) under 427 nm blue LEDs. After carefully screening of the reaction parameters (Table 1 and Tables S1–S7

• while 3-iodochromone failed to provide the desired enaminone 9a (Table S7, Supporting Information File 1). Control experiments including the reaction in the absence of visible-light or photocatalyst, showed no product formation (Table 1, entries 16 and 17). Interestingly, the yield of 9a dropped to 30

• . Simultaneously, acridinium photocatalyst PC1 absorbed energy and transitioned from the ground state to excited state under visible-light irradiation. This excited state PC1* is quenched by the amine, generating the amine radical cation and PC1 radical via a single-electron transfer (SET) process. Then, the C−Br

Photoredox-catalyzed arylation of isonitriles by diaryliodonium salts towards benzamides

• Nadezhda M. Metalnikova,
• Nikita S. Antonkin,
• Tuan K. Nguyen,
• Natalia S. Soldatova,
• Alexander V. Nyuchev,
• Mikhail A. Kinzhalov and
• Pavel S. Postnikov

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1480–1488, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.110

• ones [31][32][33] introducing the photocatalyst [Ru(bpy)3](PF6)2, which successfully initiated the reaction under blue light irradiation and afforded benzamide 2aa in 36% yield (Table 1, entry 2). In that case less than 2% of the iodonium salt 1a remained in the reaction medium according to the 1H NMR

• [Ru(bpy)3](PF6)2 as the photocatalyst, under an Ar atmosphere with irradiation by blue LED light (Table 1, entry 2). With the optimized conditions in hands, a series of benzamides 2aa–je were synthesized using various symmetrical diaryliodonium salts 1a–k and isonitriles (Scheme 2). The analysis of

Oxetanes: formation, reactivity and total syntheses of natural products

• Peter Gabko,
• Martin Kalník and
• Maroš Bella

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1324–1373, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.101

•  23) based on the rebound triplet mechanism [64]. The stereochemical behaviour of the reaction is controlled by a novel hydrogen-bonding chiral iridium photocatalyst 86, delivering oxetane products 87 in excellent enantiomeric excess. In this unique photocycloaddition mechanism, previously described

Recent advances in amidyl radical-mediated photocatalytic direct intermolecular hydrogen atom transfer

• Hao-Sen Wang,
• Lin Li,
• Xin Chen,
• Jian-Li Wu,
• Kai Sun,
• Xiao-Lan Chen,
• Ling-Bo Qu and
• Bing Yu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1306–1323, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.100

• amidyl radicals from HRP: (a) direct single-electron oxidation of amide HRP in the presence of photocatalyst and a base via a proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) process by the cleavage of the N–H bond; (b) single-electron reduction of HRP catalyzed by photocatalyst via a single-electron transfer

• the photocatalyst [Ir(dF(CF3)ppy)2(4,4'-d(CF3)bpy)]PF6 in combination with a base (NBu4OP(O)(OBu)2) (Scheme 1) [59]. The generation of amidyl radical 5 involved a stepwise PCET process catalyzed by the combined effect, in the presence of photocatalyst and the base. Subsequently, amidyl radical 5

• radical anion 15 was reduced by the photocatalyst Ir(Fppy)3 from the reagent 11. The resulting anion 14 underwent aromatization to release a nitrile anion, subsequently yielding product 12. This strategy also successfully produced products 16 and 17 with yields of 85% and 56%, respectively, from

Recent advances in oxidative radical difunctionalization of N-arylacrylamides enabled by carbon radical reagents

• Jiangfei Chen,
• Yi-Lin Qu,
• Ming Yuan,
• Xiang-Mei Wu,
• Heng-Pei Jiang,
• Ying Fu and
• Shengrong Guo

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1207–1271, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.98

• . Notably, an equivalent amount of TBHP was required as an oxidant to regenerate the photocatalyst. Various substituents, including electron-donating and electron-withdrawing groups on the aryl ring of N-arylacrylamides, such as p-Me, p-MeO, p-MeO2C, p-CF₃, p-Cl, and p-pinB, were compatible with this

• -transfer (SET) process occurred efficiently under blue LED irradiation in the presence of Ir[dF(CF3)ppy]2(dtbbpy)PF6 as the photocatalyst. This was followed by deprotonation and radical migration, yielding α-aminoalkyl radical A, which added to the intramolecular C=C bond of N,N-dimethylaniline to produce

• alkyl radical intermediate 1. Subsequently, radical cyclization and deprotonation, assisted by the tert-butoxy radical, led to the desired products 26. It is important to emphasize that TBHP plays a crucial role as an oxidant in regenerating the photocatalyst for the catalytic cycle. In the same year

Recent advances in synthetic approaches for bioactive cinnamic acid derivatives

• Betty A. Kustiana,
• Galuh Widiyarti and
• Teni Ernawati

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1031–1086, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.85

• -workers (2022) functionalized Weinreb amides through organophotocatalytic N–O cleavage via 114 and 115 to give the corresponding primary amides 111–113 in good yields (Scheme 34) [27]. Xie and co-workers (2022) synthesized cinnamamide 83 mediated by [Ir(dF(CF3)ppy)2(dtbbpy)]PF6 (PC-1) as photocatalyst

• , metathesis reactions have also been applied to stereoselectively synthesize cinnamic acid derivatives. For example, Lakhdar and co-workers (2022) combined E-selective Grubbs second-generation catalysts (cat 7) with photocatalyst (PC-4) to convert styrenes and methyl acrylate (444) into the corresponding (Z

• )-cinnamic acid esters 445–448 in excellent yields via E-to-Z photoisomerization mediated by the photocatalyst (Scheme 90) [152]. Nguyen and co-workers (2019) employed iodine to catalyze the intermolecular olefin-carbonyl metathesis reaction of benzaldehyde (449) and acrylate 450 to give the corresponding

Study of tribenzo[b,d,f]azepine as donor in D–A photocatalysts

• Katy Medrano-Uribe,
• Jorge Humbrías-Martín and
• Luca Dell’Amico

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 935–944, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.76

• demonstrate that these simple D–A structures exhibit promising photocatalytic properties, comparable to those of more complex D–A–D systems. Keywords: donor–acceptor system; photocatalyst design; photoredox catalysis; organic photocatalyst; Introduction In recent years, photocatalysis has emerged as a

• power (E*red up to 1.5 V) can be classified as a bimodal photocatalyst. This type of molecule is capable of driving both oxidative and reductive reactions, thereby offering significant versatility to achieve photocatalytic transformations. To our delight, molecule 5a possesses a promising E*ox =−1.89 V

• facilitated by reduced photocatalyst (PC) and the interaction of 15 with the radical cation of DIPEA. The best result, again, was attributed to molecule 5a with 60% isolated yield (Table 5, entry 1). In contrast, molecule 5b showed the worst performance with 41% NMR yield (Table 5, entry 2). For compounds 5c

Light-enabled intramolecular [2 + 2] cycloaddition via photoactivation of simple alkenylboronic esters

• Lewis McGhie,
• Hannah M. Kortman,
• Jenna Rumpf,
• Peter H. Seeberger and
• John J. Molloy

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 854–863, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.69

• prohibitively high in energy for selective reactivity [5]. The inception of energy transfer catalysis (EnT) has expedited discoveries concerning the photoactivation of organic molecules [15][16][17], enabling direct access to the triplet excited state through the use of a photocatalyst (Figure 1A, top

• the alkene leading to the generation of an 89:11 (E/Z) mixture of geometrical isomers (Table 1, entry 3). The use of xanthone (74 kcal/mol), a highly powerful organic photocatalyst, enabled enhanced reactivity producing a photostationary state of 73:27 after 16 hours (Table 1, entry 4). Varying

Photocatalyzed elaboration of antibody-based bioconjugates

• Marine Le Stum,
• Eugénie Romero and
• Gary A. Molander

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 616–629, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.49

• oxygen [42]. Through energy transfer (EnT) from the ruthenium-based photocatalyst to triplet oxygen, singlet oxygen is produced in a targeted manner, which oxidizes histidine to an endoperoxide, significantly increasing its reactivity toward nucleophiles (Figure 4A). This strategy employs a

• of the ArM significantly enhances the potential of the photocatalyst for antibody modification [43]. By inserting a [Ru(bpy)2dppz]2+ complex into the apo-form of riboflavin-binding protein (RFBP), a complete reversal of selectivity was achieved: the Ru complex alone enabled tyrosine modification via

• method allows the same photocatalyst and electrophile to be involved in two different but selective bioconjugations of mAbs. It remains limited to reactions involving oxidative mechanistic pathways with 1O2. Cys In 2016, Bräse et al. developed a photomediated disulfide rebridging method, exploiting the

Photomechanochemistry: harnessing mechanical forces to enhance photochemical reactions

• Francesco Mele,
• Ana M. Constantin,
• Andrea Porcheddu,
• Raimondo Maggi,
• Giovanni Maestri,
• Nicola Della Ca’ and
• Luca Capaldo

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 458–472, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.33

• rearrangements. Most organic molecules are colorless and, in fact, do not absorb visible light: highly energetic UV irradiation is typically needed. A milder approach is offered by photocatalytic approaches. Here, a photocatalyst is added to the reaction mixture to convert light energy into chemical potential to

• transform molecules. Intriguingly, photocatalysts typically absorb harmless visible light and can be chosen ad hoc to trigger the desired chemistry. Indeed, the photocatalyst–substrate interaction can occur via energy transfer [4][5][6][7][8], single-electron transfer [9][10][11][12], or hydrogen-atom

• -workers in 2022. They reported the photo-thermo-mechanochemical approach for the synthesis of quinolines from sulfoxonium ylides and 2-vinylanilines promoted by an iron(II) phthalocyanine (FeIIPc) photocatalyst (Scheme 3) [65]. First, a mixture of 2-(1-phenylvinyl)aniline (3.1), sulfoxonium ylide 3.2, and

Beyond symmetric self-assembly and effective molarity: unlocking functional enzyme mimics with robust organic cages

• Keith G. Andrews

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 421–443, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.30

• -selective reactions [21][185][430][431][432][433]. Cage structure may also activate photocatalysts [434] or help restrict detrimental photocatalyst deactivation reactions [435]. We also point towards conformational autodesymmetrization [39] as a largely ignored strategy to develop low-symmetry cavities

Red light excitation: illuminating photocatalysis in a new spectrum

• Lucas Fortier,
• Corentin Lefebvre and
• Norbert Hoffmann

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 296–326, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.22

• catalysis in recent years not only with heavy metals such as ruthenium and iridium [1][2][3][4][5], but also with lighter elements [6][7][8]. This field of light-mediated organic transformations relies on the use of a photocatalyst to promote radical reactions through electron transfer between this former

• excitation to the triplet state from the ground state S0. This effect mitigates rapid back-electron transfer from the singlet excited state to the ground state, extending the excited-state lifetime of the photocatalyst. Since the T1 → S0 transition is spin-forbidden, the process increases the overall

• study found that by using [Os(phen)3]2+ as the photocatalyst and 660 nm red light, the reaction exhibited greater functional group tolerance, handling a variety of electron-deficient, neutral and rich (hetero)aryl bromides 9 and primary and secondary amine-based nucleophiles 10 with minimal degradation

Visible-light-promoted radical cyclisation of unactivated alkenes in benzimidazoles: synthesis of difluoromethyl- and aryldifluoromethyl-substituted polycyclic imidazoles

• Yujun Pang,
• Jinglan Yan,
• Nawaf Al-Maharik,
• Qian Zhang,
• Zeguo Fang and
• Dong Li

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 234–241, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.15

• CF2HCO2H or PhCF2COOH, along with benzimidazoles bearing unactivated alkenes and PhI(OAc)2 as substrates, and proceeded without the need of any base, metal catalyst, photocatalyst or additive. In total, 24 examples were examined, and all of them successfully underwent cyclization reaction to produce the

Recent advances in electrochemical copper catalysis for modern organic synthesis

• Yemin Kim and
• Won Jun Jang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 155–178, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.9

• products and drugs has proven to be useful in these reactions. As shown in Figure 7, the photocatalyst sodium anthraquinone-2,7-disulfonate (AQDS) is excited by 395 nm light to form AQDS* and undergoes electron transfer with arylalkanes 20 to generate an ion-radical pair (AQDS•−, 20•+). This ion radical

• products with high enantioselectivity. The catalytic cycle is depicted in Figure 7. The photoexcited photocatalyst anthraquinone (AQ*) acts as a hydrogen-atom transfer (HAT) acceptor and transforms the alkylarene 20 into benzylic radical intermediate 23 together with reduced [AQ–H]•. The benzylic radical

• enantioenriched nitrile products 29. The proposed mechanism is illustrated in Figure 8. [Mes-Acr-Ph]+* is generated through the photoexcitation of the photocatalyst [Mes-Acr-Ph]+, which undergoes electron transfer to the heteroarene 28, resulting in the formation of the [Mes-Acr-Ph]• and heteroarene radical

Cu(OTf)₂-catalyzed multicomponent reactions

• Sara Colombo,
• Camilla Loro,
• Egle M. Beccalli,
• Gianluigi Broggini and
• Marta Papis

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 122–145, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.7

• and sulfur dioxide afforded vinyl sulfones with excellent regio- and stereoselectivity (Scheme 9) [22]. The authors used DABCO(SO2)2 to generate sulfur dioxide, and visible light irradiation and the mandatory presence of a photocatalyst for this transformation suggested a radical mechanism. The

Recent advances in organocatalytic atroposelective reactions

• Henrich Szabados and
• Radovan Šebesta

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 55–121, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.6

Giese-type alkylation of dehydroalanine derivatives via silane-mediated alkyl bromide activation

• Perry van der Heide,
• Michele Retini,
• Fabiola Fanini,
• Giovanni Piersanti,
• Francesco Secci,
• Daniele Mazzarella,
• Timothy Noël and
• Alberto Luridiana

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3274–3280, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.271

• photocatalyst (Figure 1d) [25]. Noël et al. [26] have further extended this approach to include alkyl bromides (Figure 1e) [26]. Despite the effectiveness of the photolysis, benzophenone derivatives have also been shown to enhance the productivity of silane-mediated conjugate additions, using alkyl halides [27

• initial reaction, using CH3CN as solvent, led to formation of methyl 3-cyclohexyl-2-(1,3-dioxoisoindolin-2-yl)propanoate (3, 51% yield, 85% conv.; Table 1, entry 1). To demonstrate the importance of the photocatalyst, BP l was excluded (Table 1, entry 2), resulting in a slightly higher conversion and a

• slight increase in chemical yield. Giese reaction: Radical addition on olefins with an electron-withdrawing group (EWG) followed by a HAT or SET and protonation; halogen-atom transfer: (a) tin-mediated XAT, (b) XAT initiated by a photocatalyst (PC) and mediated by boranes (B), silanes (Si) or alkylamines

Advances in the use of metal-free tetrapyrrolic macrocycles as catalysts

• Mandeep K. Chahal

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3085–3112, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.257

• -workers reported using metal-free planar H2TPP (18) as a photocatalyst for the photoredox-α-alkylation of aldehydes with ethyl diazoacetate [91]. This reaction achieved an impressive product yield up to 84%. Control experiments showed that omitting any one of the reaction components – such as the

• various amines tested, only the secondary amines (morpholine) led to product formation, confirming the formation of enamine in the catalytic cycle. The proposed mechanism suggested that the amine, photocatalyst, and light each played crucial roles (Figure 14). The porphyrin acted as both a photoredox unit