Photoredox catalysis enabling decarboxylative radical cyclization of γ,γ-dimethylallyltryptophan (DMAT) derivatives: formal synthesis of 6,7-secoagroclavine

• Alessio Regni,
• Francesca Bartoccini and
• Giovanni Piersanti

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 918–927, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.70

• photocatalyst. Keywords: decarboxylative cyclization; DMAT; ergot alkaloids; photoredox catalysis; radicals; Introduction Visible-light photoredox catalysis is rapidly changing the way organic chemists approach the design and synthesis of molecules by offering new synthetic disconnection opportunities that

• their ability to participate in either redox step of the catalytic cycle [42][43][44][45]. For example, the main use of α-amino acids in syntheses via photoredox catalysis is as readily available precursors of regioselective α-amino radicals by decarboxylative transformations, by oxidation of the

• intramolecular decarboxylative cyclization with the formation of the 3,4-fused indole carbocycle rings (Figure 1b,c). In detail, the photocatalytic strategy for accessing the two C(sp3) radicals of DMAT derivatives envision the formation of a relatively stabilized allylic-benzylic carbon-centered radical by

Synthesis of aliphatic nitriles from cyclobutanone oxime mediated by sulfuryl fluoride (SO₂F₂)

• Xian-Lin Chen and
• Hua-Li Qin

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 901–908, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.68

• esters and adopted the pre-acylation activation strategies [39][40][41]. Up to now, only one report employed an oxime for the generation of iminyl radicals to obtain the similar products, in which, substrates were limited to the electron-rich alkenes (Scheme 2b) [42]. On the other hand, sulfuryl fluoride

Photocatalytic sequential C–H functionalization expediting acetoxymalonylation of imidazo heterocycles

• Deepak Singh,
• Shyamal Pramanik and
• Soumitra Maity

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 666–673, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.48

• boron complex (B2pin2), and using an expensive metal-based photocatalyst [fac-Ir(ppy)3] under inert atmosphere. We have recently demonstrated that aerial oxygen could be captured by alkyl radicals to install a keto-functionality onto alkenes in an organophotocatalytic way [23]. We aimed to extend this

• under optimized reaction conditions, the acetylated product 4a was produced with excellent conversion (>90%). These results suggest the involvement of compound 5 as an intermediate, and Zn(OAc)2 or AcOH may be effective acetylating agents via generation of acetyl radicals. Control experiments under

Direct C2–H alkylation of indoles driven by the photochemical activity of halogen-bonded complexes

• Martina Mamone,
• Giuseppe Gentile,
• Jacopo Dosso,
• Maurizio Prato and
• Giacomo Filippini

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 575–581, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.42

• to photochemically generate electrophilic radicals that can drive the functionalization of suitable electron-rich substrates [23]. Exploiting this strategy, here we report a novel metal-free methodology for the direct homolytic aromatic substitution (HAS) reaction of indoles 1 with α-iodosulfones 2

• halogen-bonded EDA complex (Ia) between the sulfone 2a and DABCO (Figure 4). When irradiated, this photoactive aggregate led to the formation of reactive alkyl radicals (IIa), which may react with indole 1a eventually yielding the product 3a through a classical HAS pathway [31][32][33]. Then, we

• -iodosulfones and DABCO, that are able to produce reactive C-centered radicals under mild reaction conditions. (a) Exploitation of an EDA complex in organic synthesis. (b) This work: use of halogen-bonded complexes to photochemically initiate the C–H alkylation of indoles 1 with iodosulfones 2. Optical

Transition-metal-catalyzed domino reactions of strained bicyclic alkenes

• Austin Pounder,
• Eric Neufeld,
• Peter Myler and
• William Tam

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 487–540, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.38

•  7) instead of the more commonly, and expensive, metal-based photocatalysts. While broadly successful, tertiary radicals failed to deliver any desired product. Of note, the reaction was amenable to a broad scope of derivatized heterobicyclic alkenes with mono- and disubstituted bridgeheads having

• and Renaud expanded the scope of the photoredox/Ni dual-catalyzed coupling of alkyl nucleophiles 36 with heterobicyclic alkenes 30 to include α-amino radicals (Scheme 7) [40]. The authors noted the electron-rich oxabenzonorbornadiene derivatives provided the corresponding ring-opened adducts in good

Strategies to access the [5-8] bicyclic core encountered in the sesquiterpene, diterpene and sesterterpene series

• Cécile Alleman,
• Charlène Gadais,
• Laurent Legentil and
• François-Hugues Porée

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 245–281, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.23

• pleuromutilin tricyclic scaffold construction. Alternative reagents were thus explored to close the eight-membered ring via initial radical genesis. For instance, Bacqué et al. reported the insertion in the cyclization precursors of functional groups prone to form radicals (Scheme 35). In their investigations

NaI/PPh₃-catalyzed visible-light-mediated decarboxylative radical cascade cyclization of N-arylacrylamides for the efficient synthesis of quaternary oxindoles

• Dan Liu,
• Yue Zhao and
• Frederic W. Patureau

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 57–65, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.5

• /cyclization cascades from acrylamides for the synthesis of oxindoles [39][40][41]. The radicals are typically generated from alkyl halides [42][43][44], carboxylic acids [45][46][47], simple alkanes [48], alkylboronic acids [49], isocyanides [50], or other [51][52][53]. In this context, the group of Fu

Combining the best of both worlds: radical-based divergent total synthesis

• Kyriaki Gennaiou,
• Antonios Kelesidis,
• Maria Kourgiantaki and
• Alexandros L. Zografos

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1–26, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.1

• chemoselective manner [3]. The development of persistent radicals [4] as synthons in chemical synthesis, coupled with the advancements in generating and manipulating transient radicals [5] as cross-coupling partners in an array of chemical reactions, gives access to a wide variety of “new” retrosynthetic

• approach, excluding electrochemical methods for generating radicals. An exhaustive review on radical total synthesis or divergent total synthesis lies beyond the scope of this review, and the readers are advised to refer to excellent reviews on these topics [6][10][14]. This review covers the years 2018

• intermediates closely related to the biosynthetic origins of the family. On the other hand, radical retrosynthetic disconnections on common scaffolds are much less predictable and rarely similar due to the plethora of radical chemical transformations available nowadays. Although radicals stopped being

Redox-active molecules as organocatalysts for selective oxidative transformations – an unperceived organocatalysis field

• Elena R. Lopat’eva,
• Igor B. Krylov,
• Dmitry A. Lapshin and
• Alexander O. Terent’ev

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1672–1695, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.179

• aimed at overviewing the current state-of-art and perspectives of oxidative organocatalysis by redox-active molecules with the emphasis on challenging chemo-, regio- and stereoselective CH-functionalization processes. The catalytic systems based on N-oxyl radicals, amines, thiols, oxaziridines, ketone

• /peroxide, quinones, and iodine(I/III) compounds are the most developed catalyst types which are covered here. Keywords: CH-functionalization; free radicals; hypervalent iodine; N-oxyl radicals; redox-active molecules; Introduction Organocatalysis can be defined as catalysis by small organic molecules

• classified according to the catalytically active species or key intermediates: N-oxyl radicals, oxoammonium cations, amine cation radicals, thiyl radicals, quinones, dioxiranes and oxaziridines, hypervalent iodine compounds, etc. However, some examples of organocatalyzed oxidative processes, in which an

A one-pot electrochemical synthesis of 2-aminothiazoles from active methylene ketones and thioureas mediated by NH₄I

• Shang-Feng Yang,
• Pei Li,
• Zi-Lin Fang,
• Sen Liang,
• Hong-Yu Tian,
• Bao-Guo Sun,
• Kun Xu and
• Cheng-Chu Zeng

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1249–1255, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.130

•  1b). Alternatively, the oxidation of α-C–H of active methylene ketones generate α-carbon-centered radicals, thus providing another way to obtain thiazoles. Recently, Sun et al. reported a tert-butyl hydroperoxide/azodiisobutyronitrile-mediated synthesis of 2-aminothiazoles from active methylene

Polymer and small molecule mechanochemistry: closer than ever

• José G. Hernández

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1225–1235, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.128

• -known mechanophore that generates diarylacetonitrile radicals under force. Hence, when TASN derivative 8, bearing diarylurea moieties, was ball milled, the corresponding radical 9 was detected by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. Similar treatment proved that 6 was 28 times less prone

• to generate radicals (Scheme 3) [67]. The difference in the C–C bond scission between 6 and 8 was explained based on the ability of diarylurea moieties in 8 to form strong self-assemblies through hydrogen bonding. In the solid state, this enabled the transduction of mechanical force to the

• mechanophores. Moreover, it was demonstrated that the hydrogen bonds of the diarylurea linkages also acted as supporting units to maintain the activated mechanophores (radicals) for a longer time [67]. Overall, this new strategy, which harnesses the power of noncovalent interactions by ball milling [68][69][70

Electro-conversion of cumene into acetophenone using boron-doped diamond electrodes

• Mana Kitano,
• Tsuyoshi Saitoh,
• Shigeru Nishiyama,
• Yasuaki Einaga and
• Takashi Yamamoto

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1154–1158, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.119

• , entry 2). On the other hand, the isolated yield of 3 was decreased by the addition of H2O (Table 2, entries 3 and 4). This is probably because the addition of H2O promoted the generation of hydroxyl radicals, and a decomposition reaction became dominant. These results indicated that the oxygen source is

A Streptomyces P450 enzyme dimerizes isoflavones from plants

• Run-Zhou Liu,
• Shanchong Chen and
• Lihan Zhang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1107–1115, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.113

• host against oxidative radicals generated by UV irradiation [25][32]. To verify the antioxidative effect of the isoflavone dimers, 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS)-based antioxidant activity was performed [33]. The results showed that while 2 and 3 had an activity roughly

Radical cation Diels–Alder reactions of arylidene cycloalkanes

• Kaii Nakayama,
• Hidehiro Kamiya and
• Yohei Okada

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1100–1106, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.112

• at the β-position had a significant impact on the reaction. In general, tertiary radicals (or cations) are more stable than secondary ones and therefore, the additional methyl group seems to have a strong steric effect (Figure 3). If so, tying up the two methyl groups as a cyclopropane ring may

Cathodic generation of reactive (phenylthio)difluoromethyl species and its reactions: mechanistic aspects and synthetic applications

• Sadanobu Iwase,
• Shinsuke Inagi and
• Toshio Fuchigami

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 872–880, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.88

• )difluoromethyl group (ArSCF2) have potential biological applications such as anti-HIV-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitors and agrochemical applications [3][4]. Reurakul and Pohmakotr et al. carried out the reaction of PhSCF2Br with SmI2 in THF/iPrOH to generate PhSCF2 radicals followed by trapping with various

• radicals such as n-perfluoropropyl radical have high reactivity to electron-rich olefins such as α-methylstyrene and styrene [26]. In fact, our cathodically generated reactive species also reacted with α-methylstyrene. However, electron-rich dihydrofuran did not provide any radical adduct at all (Table 1

• often employed. Médebielle et al. successfully carried out the cathodic reduction of ArCF2X and RCOCF2X with nitrobenzene as a mediator to generate the corresponding difluoromethyl radicals selectively, and they applied this electrocatalytic system to the synthesis of various heterocyclic compounds

Thiophene/selenophene-based S-shaped double helicenes: regioselective synthesis and structures

• Mengjie Wang,
• Lanping Dang,
• Wan Xu,
• Zhiying Ma,
• Liuliu Shao,
• Guangxia Wang,
• Chunli Li and
• Hua Wang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 809–817, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.81

• )benzene (5c), and S-shaped double helicenes DH-1–3 is shown in Scheme 1. The double oxidative photocyclization of 5a–c is the key step in the synthesis of DH-1–3 because oxidative photocyclization induces double radicals on a double bond, which led to the C=C bond rotation along the resulting single C

Synthesis of α-(perfluoroalkylsulfonyl)propiophenones: a new set of reagents for the light-mediated perfluoroalkylation of aromatics

• Durbis J. Castillo-Pazos,
• Juan D. Lasso and
• Chao-Jun Li

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 788–795, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.79

• solubility of this class of molecules, perfluoroalkyl iodides have a tendency to be weakly soluble in common organic solvents (i.e., ethyl acetate and methanol) rendering their application troublesome [9]. Moreover, the homolysis of the perfluoroalkyl iodide produces iodine radicals that can result in stray

• halogenation reactions or oxidation. For these reasons, it would be ideal to develop an efficient methodology that allows for the generation of perfluoroalkyl radicals in a mild, redox- and pH-neutral manner, without the assistance of external photocatalysts, heavy metal catalysts, or further additives. Thus

• , trifluoromethyl radicals and its longer-chain analogues, share a common electrophilic character and a stabilizing stereoelectronic effect [14], we envisioned that the “dummy group” methodology could be translated into the formation of sought after perfluoroalkyl radicals (Scheme 1). In this work, we report the

Structural basis for endoperoxide-forming oxygenases

• Takahiro Mori and
• Ikuro Abe

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 707–721, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.71

• , natural and (semi)synthetic endoperoxides with wide structural diversity show antimalarial activity against Plasmodium falciparum malaria. In this case, the reductive activation of the endoperoxide ring with the homolytic cleavage of the O–O bond leads to the generation of carbon-centered free radicals

Menadione: a platform and a target to valuable compounds synthesis

• Acácio S. de Souza,
• Ruan Carlos B. Ribeiro,
• Dora C. S. Costa,
• Fernanda P. Pauli,
• David R. Pinho,
• Matheus G. de Moraes,
• Fernando de C. da Silva,
• Luana da S. M. Forezi and
• Vitor F. Ferreira

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 381–419, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.43

• •−), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), hydroxyl radical (•OH), and hydroperoxyl radical (•OOH) (Figure 3) [35]. Additionally, the menadione semiquinone radical can participate in another redox cycle, such as, the Fenton reaction, also resulting in the production of hydroxyl and hydroperoxyl radicals (Figure 3) [39][40

• dichloromethane and tert-butyl hydroperoxide at 80 °C (Table 2, entry 12). Methylation of 1,4-naphthoquinone Another route to prepare menadione (10) involves the methylation of 1,4-naphthoquinone. Because of their electron-deficient character, quinones are highly reactive with nucleophilic radicals [75]. The most

• useful alkylation approach is the Kochi–Anderson method [76] (or also known as Jacobsen–Torssell method [77][78]), via oxidative decarboxylation, where the quinone reacts with a carboxylic acid in the presence of silver(I) nitrate and ammonium or potassium peroxydisulfate. Nucleophilic free radicals are

High-speed C–H chlorination of ethylene carbonate using a new photoflow setup

• Takayoshi Kasakado,
• Takahide Fukuyama,
• Tomohiro Nakagawa,
• Shinji Taguchi and
• Ilhyong Ryu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 152–158, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.16

• homolysis of the Cl–Cl bond to generate chlorine radicals. In a subsequent step, a SH2 reaction by chlorine radicals at C–H bonds generates alkyl radicals and HCl. The second SH2 reaction between alkyl radicals and molecular chlorine then occurs to give the C–H chlorinated product and a chlorine radical

1,2-Naphthoquinone-4-sulfonic acid salts in organic synthesis

• Ruan Carlos B. Ribeiro,
• Patricia G. Ferreira,
• Amanda de A. Borges,
• Luana da S. M. Forezi,
• Fernando de Carvalho da Silva and
• Vitor F. Ferreira

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 53–69, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.5

• electrons through a redox cycle promoted by the 1,2- or 1,4-naphthoquinone system. In this cycle, transient reactive oxygen (ROS) and nitrogen (RNS) species are formed as free radicals, peroxides, superoxide anions, radical anions, or dianions. These species generated inside cells accelerate hypoxia and

DABCO-promoted photocatalytic C–H functionalization of aldehydes

• Bruno Maia da Silva Santos,
• Mariana dos Santos Dupim,
• Cauê Paula de Souza,
• Thiago Messias Cardozo and
• Fernanda Gadini Finelli

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2959–2967, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.205

• strategy for aldehyde C–H activation. The acyl radicals generated in this step were arylated with aryl bromides through a well stablished nickel cross-coupling methodology, leading to a variety of interesting aryl ketones in good yields. We also performed computational calculations to shine light in the

• functionalization using DABCO as a hydrogen atom abstractor in a photocatalytic strategy for synthetic purposes. In this context, our work aims to broaden the scope of DABCO-promoted photocatalytic C–H functionalization including formyl bonds of aldehydes as substrates (Figure 2e). The acyl radicals generated

• conditions were established, we investigated the generality of the aryl bromide scope using isovaleraldehyde (1) as source of acyl radicals. Scheme 1 shows that electron-rich and non-substituted aryl bromides seemed to give only moderate isolated yields (4–6, 39–53%), but electron-withdrawing substituted

Iron-catalyzed domino coupling reactions of π-systems

• Austin Pounder and
• William Tam

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2848–2893, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.196

• . Similar to their previous report, primary and secondary alkyl halides were prone to undergoing direct cross-coupling rather than radical addition across the π-system. Consistent with the proposed mechanism, perfluorinated n-alkyl radicals performed well, suggesting ease of Giese addition is crucial [67

• radical 28 (Scheme 5). Regioselective Giese addition to the π-system 21 would generate the transient 2° alkyl radical 29. Due to the high energetic barrier associated with direct cross-coupling between sterically hindered 3° alkyl radicals and aryliron complexes, it is assumed the persistent aryliron

• radicals [98]. Concurrently, Guo and co-workers reported a similar approach towards the synthesis of dihydrofurans 101 through the sequential radical addition/cyclization of inactivated C(sp3)−H bonds 100 with olefinic dicarbonyl species 99 (Scheme 19) [99]. Both accounts found the reaction was shut down

Photophysical, photostability, and ROS generation properties of new trifluoromethylated quinoline-phenol Schiff bases

• Inaiá O. Rocha,
• Yuri G. Kappenberg,
• Wilian C. Rosa,
• Clarissa P. Frizzo,
• Nilo Zanatta,
• Marcos A. P. Martins,
• Isadora Tisoco,
• Bernardo A. Iglesias and
• Helio G. Bonacorso

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2799–2811, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.191

• damage caused by oxidative stress, especially by eliminating reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as hydroxyl radicals (•OH), superoxide anions (O2•‒), and singlet oxygen (1O2) [3][22][23]. Therefore, research in recent years has focused on new compounds obtained from natural sources or by synthetic

Synthesis of highly substituted fluorenones via metal-free TBHP-promoted oxidative cyclization of 2-(aminomethyl)biphenyls. Application to the total synthesis of nobilone

• Ilya A. P. Jourjine,
• Lukas Zeisel,
• Jürgen Krauß and
• Franz Bracher

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2668–2679, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.181

• give imines, iminium salts, aldehydes and other, in some cases dimeric products [49]. Here, oxidation of the benzylic amino moiety should lead either to iminium ions (or N-acyl iminium ions) 4a as strong electrophiles or to stabilized radicals 4b which could undergo cyclization to give the fluorenone

• unsuccessful, fluorenone (3) was not formed under either of these conditions, suggesting the involvement of radicals in the cyclization reaction rather than an SEAr mechanism as proposed in Scheme 3. A more detailed investigation might be required to fully understand the mechanism of this oxidative benzylamine