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

• [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction between azodicarboxylates and nitrile ylides XXXVI as 1,3-dipoles. The latter are generated from diazoalkanes under the coordination of the copper catalyst to form a carbenoid species that undergoes nucleophilic attack of the nitriles. This transformation has

• process by using α-diazoketones, nitroalkenes and primary amines, in the presence of air as oxidant. The mechanism involved the formation of α-ketocarbene XXVI from α-diazoketone, able to react with the amine affording imine XXV after copper-catalyzed oxidative dehydrogenation. The subsequent [3 + 2

• ] cycloaddition reaction with the nitroalkene produces the pyrrolidine XXVII, which then aromatizes by extrusion of HNO2 (Scheme 21) [38]. Substituted pyrrolidines 30 were achieved in an enantioselective form starting from amino acid esters, electron-poor olefins and 4-substituted-2-picolinaldehydes or 4

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

• 161 were constructed by a (3 + 2) cycloaddition of isoindolinone-substitued propargylic alcohols 160 with bisindoles 159 mediated by CPA C39 (Scheme 47) [75]. These axially chiral spirocyclic products were prepared with good to very good yields and excellent enantiomeric purities. The slow

Non-covalent organocatalyzed enantioselective cyclization reactions of α,β-unsaturated imines

• Sergio Torres-Oya and
• Mercedes Zurro

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3221–3255, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.268

• -workers reported a cinchona alkaloid-derived thiourea-catalyzed regio- and stereoselective cycloaddition of 3-isothiocyanatooxindoles and imines containing two or three electron-deficient unsaturated bonds [25]. Firstly, the (3 + 2) cycloaddition of 3-isothiocyanatooxindoles 4 and aldimines 5 was explored

• (Scheme 3). The reaction of 3-isothiocyanatooxindoles 4 and ketimines 7 led to the (3 + 2) cycloaddition through the C=C bond of the α,β-unsaturated imine instead of the C=N bond, affording various spirocyclic derivatives 8 with excellent yields (92–98%), diastereoselectivities (15:1–20:1 dr), and

• -workers reported a dihydroquinine-derived squaramide-catalyzed (3 + 2) cycloaddition reaction of isocyanoacetates 26 and saccharin-derived 1-azadienes 14 [32]. In this work, the azadiene works as a C2 synthon, while the isocyanoacetate, bearing a protected carboxylic acid and a carbene-like divalent

A review of recent advances in electrochemical and photoelectrochemical late-stage functionalization classified by anodic oxidation, cathodic reduction, and paired electrolysis

• Nian Li,
• Ruzal Sitdikov,
• Ajit Prabhakar Kale,
• Joost Steverlynck,
• Bo Li and
• Magnus Rueping

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2500–2566, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.214

• product (Scheme 30a). In the same year, the Xia group reported an iodide ion and PPh3-induced electrochemical oxidative [3 + 2] cycloaddition of carboxylic acids and isocyanoacetates [41]. The successful LSF of drug molecules such as sulbactam acid and oxaprozin demonstrated the potential applicability of

Deuterated reagents in multicomponent reactions to afford deuterium-labeled products

• Kevin Schofield,
• Shayna Maddern,
• Yueteng Zhang,
• Grace E. Mastin,
• Rachel Knight,
• Wei Wang,
• James Galligan and
• Christopher Hulme

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2270–2279, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.195

• aldehyde [10]. Latterly, Yamamoto utilized a 90% deuterated [D2]-isocyanide in a copper catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition to afford a 60% deuterated [D2]-pyrrole [11]. The utility of the Leuckart–Wallach reaction towards the generation of isocyanides was first explored by Dömling [12], yet the use of such

Multicomponent syntheses of pyrazoles via (3 + 2)-cyclocondensation and (3 + 2)-cycloaddition key steps

• Ignaz Betcke,
• Alissa C. Götzinger,
• Maryna M. Kornet and
• Thomas J. J. Müller

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2024–2077, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.178

• with electrophiles, such as deuteration or electrophilic chlorination using N-chlorosuccinimide, in this consecutive three-component synthesis to give persubstituted pyrazoles 165 (Scheme 55) [162]. (3 + 2)-Cycloaddition – C2 building blocks as substrates 1,3-Dipolar cycloadditions are important

• give 1,5-diacyl-5-hydroxypyrazolines 131. Cleavage of the protecting group with potassium carbonate in methanol finally provides the corresponding 5-acyl NH-pyrazoles 132 (Scheme 46) [149]. A novel approach to synthesizing pyrazoles via the initial formation of isoxazoles 138 through (3 + 2

• )-cycloaddition of nitrile oxides 137, generated in situ from hydroxyiminoyl chloride 135 and terminal alkynes, was proposed by Kovacs and Novak. Copper supported on iron serves as a catalyst and as a reagent for the reductive ring opening and leads to β-aminoenones 139, which react in the consecutive one-pot

Harnessing the versatility of hydrazones through electrosynthetic oxidative transformations

• Aurélie Claraz

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1988–2004, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.175

• agrochemical industries. The (3 + 2)-cycloaddition between nitrile imines and alkenes represents one of the most efficient strategies to prepare these azacycles. However, conventional methods for the generation of the nitrile imine involved the use of unstable hydrazonoyl halides or the oxidation of aldehyde

• -derived hydrazones under harsh reaction conditions. In 2023, the group of Waldvogel presented a formal electrooxidative (3 + 2)-cycloaddition between aldehyde-derived hydrazones 72 and alkenes 73 to yield a large range of N-arylpyrazolines 74 under mild reaction conditions (Scheme 14) [58]. A biphasic

• situ cathodic generation of the base was supported by a control experiment in a divided cell, where no conversion was achieved. Final formal (3 + 2)-cycloaddition with the dipolarophiles 73 delivered the pyrazolines 74. It is interesting to note that a complementary (3 + 2)-cycloaddition between

The Groebke–Blackburn–Bienaymé reaction in its maturity: innovation and improvements since its 21st birthday (2019–2023)

• Cristina Martini,
• Muhammad Idham Darussalam Mardjan and
• Andrea Basso

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1839–1879, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.162

Syntheses and medicinal chemistry of spiro heterocyclic steroids

• Laura L. Romero-Hernández,
• Ana Isabel Ahuja-Casarín,
• Penélope Merino-Montiel,
• Sara Montiel-Smith,
• José Luis Vega-Báez and
• Jesús Sandoval-Ramírez

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1713–1745, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.152

• of these compounds via an intramolecular [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction between (Z)-steroidal arylidene derivatives 42 and azomethine ylides (Scheme 13) [26]. The latter were generated in situ from sarcosine (MeNHCH2CO2H) and a mono- or dicarbonyl compound such as isatin, acenaphthenequinone, and

Rapid construction of tricyclic tetrahydrocyclopenta[4,5]pyrrolo[2,3-b]pyridine via isocyanide-based multicomponent reaction

• Xiu-Yu Chen,
• Ying Han,
• Jing Sun and
• Chao-Guo Yan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1436–1443, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.126

• -3,4b,5,6,7(1H)-pentacarboxylates in high yields and with high diastereoselectivity. The reaction was finished by in situ generation of activated 5-(alkylimino)cyclopenta-1,3-dienes from addition of alkyl isocyanide to two molecules of but-2-ynedioates and sequential formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition

• reaction with 5,6-unsubstituted 1,4-dihydropyridine. Keywords: [3 + 2] cycloaddition; cyclopenta-1,3-diene; cyclopenta[4,5]pyrrolo[2,3-b]pyridine; 1,4-dihydropyridine; electron-deficient alkyne; isocyanide; Introduction Isocyanide is a unique and attractive functional group in organic chemistry. The

(Bio)isosteres of ortho- and meta-substituted benzenes

• H. Erik Diepers and
• Johannes C. L. Walker

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 859–890, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.78

• tetrasubstituted BCHs was recently reported by Shi and co-workers [82]. They employed Hantzsch esters as catalysts in the [2π + 2σ] cycloaddition of alkenes and bicyclobutanes. The synthesis of bicyclohexyl ketones by formal (3 + 2) cycloaddition of bicyclobutane and ketenes was recently reported by Studer and co

Catalytic multi-step domino and one-pot reactions

• Svetlana B. Tsogoeva

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 254–256, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.25

• . Zhang, Ma, and W. Zhang reflects the state of the art in the α-amino acid-based [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of N–H-type azomethine ylides in multicomponent, one-pot, and stepwise reactions for the synthesis of diverse bioactive heterocyclic compounds and natural products [9]. Computational studies

Perspectives on push–pull chromophores derived from click-type [2 + 2] cycloaddition–retroelectrocyclization reactions of electron-rich alkynes and electron-deficient alkenes

• Michio Yamada

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 125–154, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.13

• reactions, yielding multicyanated ethenes [95]. Contrarily, alkenes bearing three or four ester substitutions partake in a [4 + 2]-type hetero-Diels–Alder (DA) reaction, yielding a third product, presumably through a [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction, followed by rearrangement. The [2 + 2] CA–RE reactions

• equivalents of TCNEO relative to the alkyne substrate for the generation of the TCBD products [100]. For the reaction, the formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction is postulated to initiate through the initial nucleophilic attack of the alkyne carbon on the electrophilic TCNEO carbon, yielding a zwitterionic

Aldiminium and 1,2,3-triazolium dithiocarboxylate zwitterions derived from cyclic (alkyl)(amino) and mesoionic carbenes

• Nedra Touj,
• François Mazars,
• Guillermo Zaragoza and
• Lionel Delaude

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1947–1956, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.145

• system (G) was first investigated by Albrecht et al. in 2008 [23]. Because the heterocyclic precursors needed to prepare 1,2,3-triazol-5-ylidenes are readily available through the [3 + 2] cycloaddition of an azide and an alkyne, these compounds are currently the most popular MICs for catalytic and other

• -disubstituted-1,2,3-triazole derivatives is readily achieved via the copper(I)-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition of an azide and a terminal alkyne (CuAAC) [63][64][65]. A further alkylation of the N3 position with an alkyl halide is an equally straightforward procedure that ultimately affords a large assortment

Trifluoromethylated hydrazones and acylhydrazones as potent nitrogen-containing fluorinated building blocks

• Zhang Dongxu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1741–1754, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.127

• presence of Brønsted acid. In their pioneering research, Tanaka et al. reported the [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of trifluoroacetaldehyde hydrazones and glyoxals to give 4-hydroxy-3-trifluoromethylpyrazoles. The resultant pyrazoles containing a free 4-hydroxy group were easily converted to a variety of

• group has attracted a significant level of attention, and many trifluoromethylated pyrazoles have been used in medicinal products or in pesticides [66]. The [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions are considered among the most powerful tools for the synthesis of versatile fluoroalkylated pyrazoles. Enol ethers

• trifluoromethylated 1,2,4-triazoles were synthesized with excellent regioselectivities in [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of trifluoromethylated hydrazonoyl chlorides with imidates, amidine and 1H-benzo[d]imidazole-2-thiols, all of which were individually reported by Wang, Deng and Cai, respectively [77][78][79

Decarboxylative 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of amino acids for the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds

• Xiaofeng Zhang,
• Xiaoming Ma and
• Wei Zhang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1677–1693, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.123

• with arylaldehydes are much less explored. The [3 + 2] adducts of α-amino acids could be used for a second [3 + 2] cycloaddition as well as for other post-condensation modifications. This article highlights our recent work on the development of α-amino acid-based [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of N–H

• -type AMYs in multicomponent, one-pot, and stepwise reactions for the synthesis of diverse heterocycles related to some bioactive compounds and natural products. Keywords: [3 + 2] cycloaddition; decarboxylation; 1,3-dipolar; double cycloaddition; one-pot synthesis; multicomponent reaction; semi

• anionic charge on the α-carbon connecting to the EWG. They are popular AMYs for 1,3-diploar [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions with alkenes to generate pyrrolidines 1a–d with high regio- and stereoselectivities. They have been reported in a huge number (1,000+) of publications [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25

Morpholine-mediated defluorinative cycloaddition of gem-difluoroalkenes and organic azides

• Tzu-Yu Huang,
• Mario Djugovski,
• Sweta Adhikari,
• Destinee L. Manning and
• Sudeshna Roy

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1545–1554, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.111

• plausible pathways. Attractive elements include the regioselective and straightforward direct synthesis of fully substituted 1,2,3-triazoles, which are otherwise difficult to access, from readily available starting materials. Keywords: [3 + 2] cycloaddition; defluorination; fully decorated 1,2,3-triazoles

• defluorinative processes in gem-difluoroalkenes. NiCl2(PCy3)2 and NiCl2(dppp)2 were chosen for our initial investigations since they have been used in both the defluorination of gem-difluoroalkenes and the coordination with the azides to promote [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions [2][31][32]. Based on our

• product 3a was obtained. This shows the synthetic utility of this method; however, additional investigations into process chemistry may be necessary to accommodate a larger reaction scale. Conclusion In conclusion, we have shown for the first time a [3 + 2] cycloaddition of gem-difluoroalkenes with

Application of N-heterocyclic carbene–Cu(I) complexes as catalysts in organic synthesis: a review

• Nosheen Beig,
• Varsha Goyal and
• Raj K. Bansal

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1408–1442, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.102

• diversity, low cost, and versatile applications. This article overviews applications of NHC–Cu(I) complexes as catalysts in organic synthesis over the last 12 years, which include hydrosilylation reactions, conjugate addition, [3 + 2] cycloaddition, A3 reaction, boration and hydroboration, N–H and C(sp2)–H

• addition; [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction; hydrosilylation reaction; N-heterocyclic carbenes; NHC–Cu complexes; NHC–Cu complexes as catalyst; Introduction N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) are a neutral species having the carbene carbon atom as a part of the nitrogen heterocyclic ring. The transient

• yield by reacting [Cu(CH3CN)4]BF4 with 2 equiv of benzimidazolium salt 38 in the presence of NaOt-Bu (Scheme 14) [28]. The catalytic activity of the complex 39 was studied in the [3 + 2] cycloaddition of azides with alkynes [28]. Coyle et al. reported the synthesis of a series of NHC and ADC (acyclic

One-pot nucleophilic substitution–double click reactions of biazides leading to functionalized bis(1,2,3-triazole) derivatives

• Hans-Ulrich Reissig and
• Fei Yu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1399–1407, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.101

• azide was combined with a subsequent copper-catalyzed (3 + 2) cycloaddition with terminal alkynes. This one-pot process was developed with a simple model alkyne, but then applied to more complex alkynes bearing enantiopure 1,2-oxazinyl substituents. Hence, the precursor compounds 1,2-, 1,3- or 1,4-bis

• discovery of the copper-catalyzed alkyne azide (3 + 2) cycloaddition (CuAAC) [3][4], has dramatically changed the approaches to many problems in chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, materials science, biological chemistry and related fields (selected reviews: [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15

• situ are possible [23]. Later, examples were published showing that these methods are also compatible with the conditions of CuAAC. The earliest case was probably published by Fokin et al. [24][25], one of the inventors of the original copper-catalyzed (3 + 2) cycloaddition. Many examples of

Nucleophile-induced ring contraction in pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzothiazines: access to pyrrolo[2,1-b][1,3]benzothiazoles

• Ekaterina A. Lystsova,
• Maksim V. Dmitriev,
• Andrey N. Maslivets and
• Ekaterina E. Khramtsova

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 646–657, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.46

• -benzothiazol-2-yl(diazo)acetates (Scheme 1, entry 3) [12], dearomative [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions of benzothiazoles with cyclopropanes (Scheme 1, entry 4) [13][14][15], multicomponent reactions (MCRs) of benzothiazoles, isocyanides and 2-methylidenemalonates (Scheme 1, entry 5) [16], 1,3-dipolar

Computational studies of Brønsted acid-catalyzed transannular cycloadditions of cycloalkenone hydrazones

• Manuel Pedrón,
• Jana Sendra,
• Irene Ginés,
• Tomás Tejero,
• Jose L. Vicario and
• Pedro Merino

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 477–486, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.37

• and co-workers demonstrated for transannular Diels–Alder cycloaddition reactions of symmetrically tethered large systems (10–18-membered rings) [29]. In this context, we have recently reported the transannular enantioselective (3 + 2) cycloaddition of cycloalkenone hydrazones under Brønsted acid

1,4-Dithianes: attractive C2-building blocks for the synthesis of complex molecular architectures

• Bram Ryckaert,
• Ellen Demeyere,
• Frederick Degroote,
• Hilde Janssens and
• Johan M. Winne

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 115–132, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.12

• reverse (3 + 2) cycloaddition which expels a heteroatomic anion via a β-elimination-type mechanism somewhat similar to a classical Grob-type fragmentation. Similarly, 1,3-dithiolanes undergo fragmentation at relatively low reaction temperatures, limiting their synthetic application to alkylation with

• dependence [95]. On the other hand, simple benzyl cations can undergo more controlled (3 + 2) annulations, as is illustrated by the long-known Friedel–Crafts-type acid-catalyzed cascade reaction of styrene leading to the cyclic styrene dimer 86 (Scheme 13c) [96][97]. This (3 + 2) cycloaddition reactivity of

• suppress homodimerization, via a stepwise (3 + 2) cycloaddition of the initially generated cumyl cation across the olefin in amylene. Our group became intrigued by the potential of dihydrodithiins to act as carbocation-stabilizing groups, as these would represent a synthetic equivalent of ‘naked’ allyl

A novel bis-triazole scaffold accessed via two tandem [3 + 2] cycloaddition events including an uncatalyzed, room temperature azide–alkyne click reaction

• Ksenia Malkova,
• Andrey Bubyrev,
• Vasilisa Krivovicheva,
• Dmitry Dar’in,
• Alexander Bunev and
• Mikhail Krasavin

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1636–1641, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.175

• molecular scaffold. Pondering various opportunities for post-condensational modifications of the 1,5-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazole core according to this strategy, we turned our attention to such powerful transformation as the azide–alkyne [3 + 2] cycloaddition (also known as the azide–alkyne click reaction

One-pot double annulations to confer diastereoselective spirooxindolepyrrolothiazoles

• Juan Lu,
• Bin Yao,
• Desheng Zhan,
• Zhuo Sun,
• Yun Ji and
• Xiaofeng Zhang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1607–1616, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.171

• 10.3762/bjoc.18.171 Abstract A novel four-component reaction in one pot as an atom- and step-economic process was developed to synthesize diastereoselectively spirooxindolepyrrolothiazoles through sequential N,S-acetalation of aldehydes with cysteine and decarboxylative [3 + 2] cycloaddition with olefinic

• (Table 1, entries 2–4) superior to 86% yield for 3 h (Table 1 entry 1), and followed by decarboxylative [3 + 2] cycloaddition with the second equivalent of compound 1a and olefinic oxindole 4a under reflux heating for 12 h. It indicates that the one-pot reaction process with EtOH and iPrOH afforded the

• purification from N,S-acetalation with 1.0:1.15 of 1a/2 at 25 °C for 6 h with EtOH as solvent, in situ followed by addition of 1.1:1.0 of 1a/4a for [3 + 2] cycloaddition at 90 °C for 9 h gave compound 5a with the 81% of LC yield. Next, the stepwise process was also carried out by using the thioproline 3a (1

Functionalization of imidazole N-oxide: a recent discovery in organic transformations

• Koustav Singha,
• Imran Habib and
• Mossaraf Hossain

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1575–1588, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.168

• cyanoacetate to generate ethyl 2-cyano-2-(1,3-dihydro-2H-imidazole-2-ylidene)acetates in the presence of aldehyde catalyst through a [3 + 2] cycloaddition [16]. Here, imidazole N-oxides behaved as 1,3-dipoles and nucleophiles in Michael-type addition reactions. The optimized reaction conditions were estimated

• . Based on some experimental results, a suitable mechanistic pathway has been proposed (Scheme 1). At first, imidazole N-oxide underwent a [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction with ylidene 5 to form unstable cycloadduct 6, which then rearomatized followed by ring opening to provide the intermediate 7. Finally

• of ethyl 2-cyano-2-(1,3-dihydro-2H-imidazole-2-ylidene)acetate derivatives via [3 + 2] cycloaddition reactions. C–H/C–Li coupling reaction of 2H-imidazole 1-oxides with pentafluorophenyllithium. Transition-metal-free coupling reaction of 2H-imidazole 1-oxides with polyphenols. Reaction conditions: 1