Formaldehyde surrogates in multicomponent reactions

• Cecilia I. Attorresi,
• Javier A. Ramírez and
• Bernhard Westermann

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 564–595, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.45

• –Alder reaction between an imine and an alkene (Scheme 6). Very successfully, the multicomponent version of the Povarov reaction using aldehydes, anilines, and alkenes has been explored in a three-component cascade reaction to quinolines [28][29][30][31] (Scheme 6). Furthermore, protocols have been

• separation processes are required [32][35][36]. In this context, DMSO has been used as an alternative to formaldehyde for the MCR synthesis of a wide variety of quinolines and related compounds. For example, Zhang et al. showed that starting from anilines and substituted styrenes while using K2S2O8 for the

• substituted styrene under copper(I) catalysis to give the target compounds via a Povarov reaction. A further aromatization process yields product I (Scheme 8, path I). In a closely related approach, the same group reported on the synthesis of quinolines from anilines and alkynes [37]. In this case, the alkyne

Study of the interaction of 2H-furo[3,2-b]pyran-2-ones with nitrogen-containing nucleophiles

• Constantine V. Milyutin,
• Andrey N. Komogortsev and
• Boris V. Lichitsky

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 556–563, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.44

• considered transformation using 2H-furo[3,2-b]pyran-2-ones 1 without electron-donating substituents at the aromatic ring. Also, the considered protocol failed for interactions of furanone 1a with diverse anilines. In this case a complex mixture of products was obtained after 24 h reflux in AcOH (Scheme 2d

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

• redox properties similar to those of squaraine derivatives, enabling key transformations such as the cyclization of anilines with maleimides and the reduction of Umemoto salts for trifluoromethylation of alkenes. With an excited-state reduction potential around 0.80 V, 46 demonstrates the capability to

Dioxazolones as electrophilic amide sources in copper-catalyzed and -mediated transformations

• Seungmin Lee,
• Minsuk Kim,
• Hyewon Han and
• Jongwoo Son

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 200–216, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.12

• condensation of carboxylic acids with anilines, often promoted by activating agents such as thionyl chloride or peptide coupling agents [86][87][88][89]. However, these protocols rely on environmentally harmful reagents and produce unwanted byproduct wastes. Recently, the research group of Son showcased a

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

• primary anilines using a copper catalyst and dual Cu-electrode system to form C–N bonds (Figure 19) [79]. This catalytic system demonstrates a broad substrate scope, including electron-deficient boronic acids, which are typically regarded as challenging substrates because of their low reactivity in Chan

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

• the triple bond furnishes the furo-ring and the final oxidation affords the tricyclic product 22. Substituted quinolines 23 were obtained in a convenient solvent-free multicomponent reaction starting from electron-rich or electron-poor anilines, alkyl or arylaldehydes and terminal alkynes, performing

• obtain cyclic ether-fused tetrahydroquinolines 24 has been reported starting from secondary anilines, cyclic ethers and paraformaldehyde (Scheme 18) [35]. In addition to Cu(OTf)2 as a catalyst, the most effective reaction conditions required a substoichiometric amount of p-nitrobenzoic acid as an

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

• be carried out in a one-pot fashion with comparable results and without significant variation from the two-step procedure. Utilization of the Povarov reaction and subsequent oxidation by DDQ was also done by Wang et al. in 2020 [54]. In situ-formed imines from anilines 91 and benzaldehydes 92 were

• a gram scale gave the product with analogous yield and enantioselectivity (73%, 96% ee). Hydrogen-bond-stabilized axially chiral N-arylquinones 133 were prepared by reaction of quinone esters 131 with anilines 132 mediated by CPA (R)-C23 (Scheme 39) [67]. Apart from respectable yields and remarkable

• it with another aromatic moiety such as phenyl or 2-thiophenyl led to no product being formed. An organocatalytic atroposelective three-component cascade heteroannulation was done by Wang et al. [87]. It was a reaction of ketoesters 192, anilines 193, and cyclohexadiones 194 catalyzed by SPINOL

Multicomponent reactions driving the discovery and optimization of agents targeting central nervous system pathologies

• Lucía Campos-Prieto,
• Aitor García-Rey,
• Eddy Sotelo and
• Ana Mallo-Abreu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3151–3173, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.261

• obtain α-acylaminoamides. Innovation in recent years with alternative reagents, like N-hydroxyimides or nitric acid in place of an acid, N-alkylated hydrazines, or nitrobenzene derivatives (reduced in situ to anilines) instead of amines, and in situ-prepared isocyanides, makes it a versatile method for

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

• ) using substituted anilines 101 and t-BuONO (Figure 18). The reactions were conducted under light irradiation (blue light/sunlight) for 30 minutes in DMSO within an inert atmosphere. All corroles demonstrated catalytic activity with only 0.5% loading, while control experiments without a catalyst or light

N-Glycosides of indigo, indirubin, and isoindigo: blue, red, and yellow sugars and their cancerostatic activity

• Peter Langer

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2840–2869, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.240

• of β-16a with 3-acetoxy-5-chloroindole. Anomerically pure indirubin-N-glucoside β-18a, indirubin-N-riboside β-19a, indirubin-N-galactoside β-20a, and indirubin-N-mannoside β-21a were prepared in good yields starting from the corresponding sugars and anilines [12][13]. In case of the indoxyl moiety

• corresponding acetyl-protected N-glycosyl anilines with oxalyl chloride was not possible. The failure of this reaction can be explained by electronic deactivation of the aromatic ring and steric hindrance which resulted in competing Claisen-type side-reactions of the acetyl groups. However, reactions of

• pivaloyl-protected N-glycosyl anilines also proved to be unsuccessful, which pointed to steric reasons. Therefore, we studied in our group the use of the less sterically hindered formyl instead of acetyl or pivaloyl protective groups. The reaction of glucose (22a) with aniline afforded anomerically pure N

Synthesis of spiroindolenines through a one-pot multistep process mediated by visible light

• Francesco Gambuti,
• Jacopo Pizzorno,
• Chiara Lambruschini,
• Renata Riva and
• Lisa Moni

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2722–2731, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.230

• efficient methods for the synthesis of heterocycles by multicomponent processes and domino reactions [16][17][18][19][20], here we disclosed the oxidative one-pot four-step synthesis of 2-amino-3,3’-spiroindolenines using readily available tertiary amines, electron-rich anilines and isocyanides as starting

• -pot multistep synthesis of unprecedent 2,3-diaminoindolenines using graphene oxide (GO) as heterogeneous catalyst [21]. The protocol involves the three-component Ugi (3C-Ugi) reaction between aldehydes, isocyanides and 2 equivalents of electron-rich anilines to give α-aminoamidines, which undergo a C

• two anilines are incorporated in the final product, we speculated that the diversification of them could lead to different products. Anyway, first attempts to use two different anilines in the reaction failed, giving complex mixtures of α-aminoamidines even using sequential or slow addition of

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

Heterocycle-guided synthesis of m-hetarylanilines via three-component benzannulation

• Andrey R. Galeev,
• Maksim V. Dmitriev,
• Alexander S. Novikov and
• Andrey N. Maslivets

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2208–2216, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.188

• the possible substitution patterns, meta-substituted anilines hold a special place. These compounds are difficult to access due to the inherent ortho-/para-directional reactivity of the amino group, at the same time they are widely used in medicinal chemistry, resulting in several marketed drugs

• key fragment [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26]. The aforementioned features have led to an extensive development of novel methods to access meta-substituted anilines which can be divided into two main strategies (Scheme 1A) [27]. The first strategy focuses on the decoration of the aromatic ring

• situ-generated acetone imines in a (3 + 3) manner to afford meta-substituted anilines (Scheme 1C) [53][54]. Various EWGs (ester, carbamoyl, ketone, trifluoromethyl) have been successfully employed which motivated us to evaluate other possible EWGs. Results and Discussion Based on the fact, that many

From perfluoroalkyl aryl sulfoxides to ortho thioethers

• Yang Li,
• Guillaume Dagousset,
• Emmanuel Magnier and
• Bruce Pégot

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2108–2113, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.181

• ][16], anilines [17], carbonyls [18][19][20][21], propargyl/allylsilanes [22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34], ynamides [35][36][37], and alkyl nitriles [38][39][40], were found to be suitable for this process. Whereas the addition of fluorine atoms to molecules is a well-established

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

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

• ]. Synthesis of pyrazolo[4,3-c]quinoline derivatives [40]. Synthesis of 1,3,4-oxadiazoles and Δ3-1,3,4-oxadiazolines [41]. Synthesis of 1,3,4-oxadiazoles [43]. Synthesis of 2-(1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)anilines [44]. Synthesis of fused s-triazolo perchlorates [45]. Synthesis of 1-aryl and 1,5-disubstitued 1,2,4

A facile three-component route to powerful 5-aryldeazaalloxazine photocatalysts

• Ivana Weisheitelová,
• Radek Cibulka,
• Marek Sikorski and
• Tetiana Pavlovska

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1831–1838, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.161

• has been successfully applied as photoredox catalyst in the synthesis of secondary or primary anilines via light-dependent desulfonylation or desulfonylation/dealkylation procedures [19]. Thus, the design of novel and efficient routes for the synthesis of 5-aryldeazaalloxazines 2 has become a

• (1H,3H)-dione) by refluxing with thionyl chloride [20][23]. However, the preparation of partially hydrogenated 5,10-dihydropyrimido[4,5-b]quinolinediones has been repeatedly reported by one-pot condensation of substituted anilines, aldehydes and barbituric acids, usually in protic solvents (alcohols

• of photocatalysts by tuning their redox and photophysical properties. Thus, we successfully developed a one-pot, three-component synthetic method with those substituents in 5-aryldeazaflavins 1 on the deazaisoalloxazine core or on the phenyl ring by condensation of N-substituted anilines, aromatic

Ugi bisamides based on pyrrolyl-β-chlorovinylaldehyde and their unusual transformations

• Alexander V. Tsygankov,
• Vladyslav O. Vereshchak,
• Tetiana O. Savluk,
• Serhiy M. Desenko,
• Valeriia V. Ananieva,
• Oleksandr V. Buravov,
• Yana I. Sakhno,
• Svitlana V. Shishkina and
• Valentyn A. Chebanov

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1773–1784, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.156

• 1, which contains a chlorine atom in the β-position, with convertible isocyanides 4a–d, para-substituted anilines 2a–e and monochloroacetic acid (3) as the smallest building blocks in a four-component reaction leads to the formation of the Ugi bisamides 5–8 (Table 1). Their structures offer several

• NMR spectra of the reaction mixtures and the various mother liquors, the signals of the 2-chloroacetamides 13a–d (Scheme 6) [41] were clearly recognizable in many cases and were sometimes isolated individually. In addition, the hydrochlorides of the corresponding para-substituted anilines were

• 10d. Based on the above facts, we have proposed a plausible transformation sequence for the formation of amides 10 and ketobisamides 12 (Scheme 6). Conclusion Thus, in this work, the multicomponent reaction of pyrrole-containing β-chlorovinylaldehyde, para-substituted anilines, monochloroacetic acid

Electrocatalytic hydrogenation of cyanoarenes, nitroarenes, quinolines, and pyridines under mild conditions with a proton-exchange membrane reactor

• Koichi Mitsudo,
• Atsushi Osaki,
• Haruka Inoue,
• Eisuke Sato,
• Naoki Shida,
• Mahito Atobe and
• Seiji Suga

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1560–1571, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.139

• anilines were obtained. The quinoline reduction was efficiently promoted by adding a catalytic amount of p-toluenesulfonic acid (PTSA) or pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate (PPTS). Pyridine was also reduced to piperidine in the presence of PTSA. Keywords: cyanoarene; nitroarene; PEM reactor; pyridine

• smoothly to afford benzylamines, anilines, tetrahydroquinolines, and piperidines using a PEM reactor under ambient conditions. Results and Discussion Reduction of cyanoarenes to benzylamines Benzonitrile (1a) was chosen as the model substrate, and the electroreductive hydrogenation of 1a was performed with

• due to the oligomerization of the substrate. Reduction of nitroarenes to anilines Next, we reduced nitroarenes using a PEM reactor. First, the electrocatalyst and solvent were optimized (Table 3). While 6.0 F mol−1 of electricity should be required for the reduction of nitrobenzene (4a) to aniline (5a

Synthesis of 2-benzyl N-substituted anilines via imine condensation–isoaromatization of (E)-2-arylidene-3-cyclohexenones and primary amines

• Lu Li,
• Na Li,
• Xiao-Tian Mo,
• Ming-Wei Yuan,
• Lin Jiang and
• Ming-Long Yuan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1468–1475, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.130

• additive-free synthesis of 2-benzyl N-substituted anilines from (E)-2-arylidene-3-cyclohexenones and primary amines has been reported. The reaction proceeds smoothly through a sequential imine condensation–isoaromatization pathway, affording a series of synthetically useful aniline derivatives in

• additives in the petrochemical industry [3]. Besides, 2-benzylanilines also serve as valuable building blocks in synthetic chemistry [4]. The classical route to this kind of aniline derivatives usually starts from parent anilines, which undergo Friedel–Crafts reaction with acyl halides followed by carbonyl

• reduction. This electrophilic aromatic substitution usually needs harsh reaction conditions, tedious synthetic procedures and sometimes encounters the trouble of separating positional isomers caused by orientation or steric effects of the pre-existed amino group on the aryl moiety. Nevertheless, anilines

Synthesis and optical properties of bis- and tris-alkynyl-2-trifluoromethylquinolines

• Stefan Jopp,
• Franziska Spruner von Mertz,
• Peter Ehlers,
• Alexander Villinger and
• Peter Langer

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1246–1255, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.107

• methyl groups and are known to protect from metabolic oxidation [16]. Fluorine-containing arenes are metabolically more stable as compared to non-fluorinated arenes and they show a higher lipophilicity. Known synthetic approaches towards 2-trifluoromethylquinolines include the cyclisation of anilines

Manganese-catalyzed C–C and C–N bond formation with alcohols via borrowing hydrogen or hydrogen auto-transfer

• Mohd Farhan Ansari,
• Atul Kumar Maurya,
• Abhishek Kumar and
• Saravanakumar Elangovan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1111–1166, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.98

• generation of manganese PNP pincer complexes for the N-methylation of aromatic amines with methanol [35]. Various primary anilines were methylated selectively with good yields using Mn2 (2 mol %) and t-BuOK (0.5 equiv) as a base at 100 °C for 16 h (Scheme 4). Compared to their previous report, the N

• condenses with hydrazine followed by reduction and condensation with another aldehyde to afford the N-substituted hydrazones (Scheme 8). Balaraman and co-workers established a phosphine-free manganese catalyst generated in situ from a manganese precursor and a ligand for the N-alkylation of anilines with

• alcohols [39]. Various ligands were screened for the N-alkylation of m-toluidine with benzyl alcohol using Mn(CO)5Br (5 mol %) and t-BuOK (1 equiv) in toluene at 140 °C (Scheme 9). Among these, L1 and L2 showed better activity for the N-alkylation reactions. Different substituted anilines and alcohols

Carbonylative synthesis and functionalization of indoles

• Alex De Salvo,
• Raffaella Mancuso and
• Xiao-Feng Wu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 973–1000, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.87

• the formation of N-substituted indole derivatives from N-substituted anilines. The direct PdI2/KI oxidative carbonylation of 2-alkynylanilines does not lead to the formation of indole-3-carboxylic esters but to the formation of acyclic carbamates. For this reason, they performed the reaction in the

• ) and the corresponding urea derivatives as byproducts. In the middle of the same year, Wu’s group succeeded in using N-(2-bromobenzoyl)indoles in the reaction with alcohols and anilines to achieve a Pd-catalyzed diasteroselective carbonylative cyclodearomatization [62]. The synthesis proceeded best

• when the reaction was performed in the presence of 10 mol % of Pd(OAc)2 and dppp as catalyst system, Na2WO4∙2H2O (1 or 2 equiv) as base and an excess of nucleophile (alcohols or anilines) in toluene as reaction solvent under 5 bar of CO at 100 °C. Also, 20 mol % of LiBr were added as additive when

Innovative synthesis of drug-like molecules using tetrazole as core building blocks

• Jingyao Li,
• Ajay L. Chandgude,
• Qiang Zheng and
• Alexander Dömling

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 950–958, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.85

• efficiently scaled-up to gram scale. Noteworthy, 1-substituted tetrazole-5-carbaldehydes are almost elusive from chemical literature [25][26][27][28][29]. Moreover, all synthesis routes described so far are lengthy and involve dangerous chemicals. The 4-step procedure of Sun et al. starts from anilines and

Regioselective quinazoline C2 modifications through the azide–tetrazole tautomeric equilibrium

• Dāgs Dāvis Līpiņš,
• Andris Jeminejs,
• Una Ušacka,
• Anatoly Mishnev,
• Māris Turks and
• Irina Novosjolova

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 675–683, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.61

• reactions of substituted anilines VI, VII or N-arylamidines VIII are frequently employed for synthesizing C2-substituted quinazolines (Scheme 1), thereby influencing the spatial arrangement of the desired substituents [13][14]. Moreover, there have been recent advancements in efficient C–H activation