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

• activation, atroposelective aza-Michael addition, and intramolecular aldol reaction to form the cationic intermediate Int-6. Release of the catalyst C2, reduction with NaBH4, and dehydration with acetic acid leads to the desired product 6. Recently, an organocatalytic atroposelective intramolecular (4 + 2

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

• under Brønsted base conditions. The authors claimed that the reactions to obtain the complex fused polycyclic diastereomeric products is proceeding through a cascade Michael addition–aza-Michael addition, however, they did not propose a plausible reaction pathway for the transformations. In order to

Synthesis of extended fluorinated tripeptides based on the tetrahydropyridazine scaffold

• Thierry Milcent,
• Pascal Retailleau,
• Benoit Crousse and
• Sandrine Ongeri

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3174–3181, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.262

• strategy, the control of the stereoselectivity of the intramolecular aza-Michael addition could be envisaged with various chiral catalysts in further studies. These heterocyclic hydrazino acids, when incorporated into the peptidic structure, appear to confer an extended conformation. These interesting

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

• aza-Michael addition, leading to the benzoxazepinium triflate salt 89. To broaden the scope of the reaction, 2-aminopyrazine and 2-aminoquinoline were also introduced to the one-pot process, furnishing 6-7-5-6 and 6-7-5-6-6 polycycles, respectively (not shown). Chen et al. [63] developed an

Primary amine-catalyzed enantioselective 1,4-Michael addition reaction of pyrazolin-5-ones to α,β-unsaturated ketones

• Pooja Goyal,
• Akhil K. Dubey,
• Raghunath Chowdhury and
• Amey Wadawale

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1518–1526, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.136

• who reported a chiral amine-catalysed aza-Michael addition reaction of pyrazolin-5-ones with α,β-unsaturated ketones to access β-(3-hydroxypyrazol-1-yl)ketones (Scheme 1a) [22]. The developed reaction was restricted to α,β-unsaturated ketones with aliphatic substituents (Scheme 1a) [22]. Ji and Wang

Additive-controlled chemoselective inter-/intramolecular hydroamination via electrochemical PCET process

• Kazuhiro Okamoto,
• Naoki Shida and
• Mahito Atobe

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 264–271, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.27

• , entry 3); thus, the phosphate base plays a crucial role in N-alkylation, while its basicity is insufficient to promote aza-Michael addition (pKa of the conjugate acid of the phosphate base is 1.72 in H2O) [12]. Furthermore, N-alkylation proceeded in a divided cell (anodic chamber); thus, the possibility

Synthesis of 7-azabicyclo[4.3.1]decane ring systems from tricarbonyl(tropone)iron via intramolecular Heck reactions

• Aaron H. Shoemaker,
• Elizabeth A. Foker,
• Elena P. Uttaro,
• Sarah K. Beitel and
• Daniel R. Griffith

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1615–1619, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.118

• number of alkaloid natural products can be accessed from commercially available tropone in as little as five steps: 1) formation of tricarbonyl(tropone)iron, 2) aza-Michael addition, 3) amine protection, 4) photodemetallation, and 5) intramolecular Heck reaction (two steps – aza-Michael addition and

Metal catalyst-free N-allylation/alkylation of imidazole and benzimidazole with Morita–Baylis–Hillman (MBH) alcohols and acetates

• Olfa Mhasni,
• Jalloul Bouajila and
• Farhat Rezgui

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1251–1258, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.93

• reflux with an azeotropic distillation, was successfully carried out with no catalysts or additives, affording the corresponding N-substituted imidazole derivatives in good yields. On the other hand, in refluxing toluene or methanol, the aza-Michael addition of imidazole onto acyclic MBH alcohols was

• performed using DABCO as an additive, leading to the corresponding 1,4-adducts in 70–84% yields. Keywords: allylic substitution; aza-Michael addition; imidazole; Morita–Baylis–Hillman; Introduction Morita–Baylis–Hillman (MBH) adducts are multifunctionalized compounds having both a hydroxy moiety and a

Aromatic C–H bond functionalization through organocatalyzed asymmetric intermolecular aza-Friedel–Crafts reaction: a recent update

• Anup Biswas

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 956–981, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.72

• of the Boc-protecting group with the Teoc group then gave phenol 136. Compound 136 was then subjected to a highly diastereoselective oxidative phenolic coupling giving fused tetracyclic architecture 137. Follow-up acid-mediated intramolecular aza-Michael addition and subsequent alkene reduction

Synthetic strategies for the preparation of γ-phostams: 1,2-azaphospholidine 2-oxides and 1,2-azaphospholine 2-oxides

• Jiaxi Xu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 889–915, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.90

• 1-substituted 2-ethoxy-1,2-azaphospholidine-4-carboxylate 2-oxides 203 were synthesized in 70% and 39% yields, respectively, from ethyl 2-((chloro(ethoxy)phosphoryl)methyl)acrylate (202) and benzyl- and adamantylmethylamines via aza-Michael addition and intramolecular nucleophilic substitution. The

• synthetic method showed very limited substrate scope. Only less bulky primary amines underwent the first aza-Michael addition and then intramolecular nucleophilic substitution. However, aromatic amines, aniline, 2,3-dihydro-1H-inden-4-amine, and the bulky aliphatic primary amine adamantylamine did not

• -phenylphosphonamidates 240a (R’ = OEt) and diaryl-N-phenylphosphinamides 240b–d (R’ = Ar), respectively, with methyl acrylate (241) via the rhodium-catalyzed oxidative coupling and subsequent intramolecular aza-Michael addition. Methyl acrylate (241) could be replaced by various electron-deficient olefins 244, including

Regioselectivity of the S_EAr-based cyclizations and S_EAr-terminated annulations of 3,5-unsubstituted, 4-substituted indoles

• Jonali Das and
• Sajal Kumar Das

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 293–302, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.33

• assigned as 1-alkyl-3,5,5-trimethyl-5,6-dihydro-1H-azepino[4,3,2-cd]indoles 8. The authors proposed that aza-Michael addition of 4-aminoindoles 7 to in situ generated mesityl oxide gives compound 9 which undergoes a regioselective intramolecular cyclization–dehydration sequence to furnish 8. In 2019, Zou

• [4,3,2-cd]indoles via indole C3 regioselective aza-Michael addition/cyclization/dehydration sequence. Indole C3 regioselective Pictet−Spengler reaction of 2-(1H-indol-4-yl)ethanamines. Indole C3 regioselective hydroindolation of cis-β-(α′,α′-dimethyl)-4′-methindolylstyrenes. Indole C3 regioselective

Highly stereocontrolled total synthesis of racemic codonopsinol B through isoxazolidine-4,5-diol vinylation

• Lukáš Ďurina,
• Anna Ďurinová,
• František Trejtnar,
• Ľuboš Janotka,
• Lucia Messingerová,
• Jana Doháňošová,
• Ján Moncol and
• Róbert Fischer

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2781–2786, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.188

• racemic codonopsinol B (1) and its N-nor-methyl analogue 2 starting from achiral materials. Four consecutive stereocenters in the target molecules were accomplished sequentially by the organocatalytic aza-Michael addition of N-Cbz-protected hydroxylamine to (E)-4-methoxycinnamaldehyde, the trans

Recent advances in organocatalytic asymmetric aza-Michael reactions of amines and amides

• Pratibha Sharma,
• Raakhi Gupta and
• Raj K. Bansal

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2585–2610, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.173

• subsequently deprotonates pyrrole to provide the stronger nucleophilic pyrrolide anion [27]. Similarly, Liu et al. accomplished an asymmetric intramolecular aza-Michael addition of various enone carbamates 10 using a chiral cinchona-based primary-tertiary diamine as catalyst to obtain 2-substituted piperidines

• appears that in this case, both activation mechanisms, namely through hydrogen bonding and iminium ion formation are operating. Using the same chiral cinchona-based primary-tertiary diamine as catalyst (cat. 11), Zhai et al. developed a highly efficient intramolecular enantioselective aza-Michael addition

• aza-Michael addition of 4-nitrophthalimide (17) with α,β-unsaturated ketones 18 using 9-epi-9-amino-9-deoxyquinine 19 as the catalyst, the corresponding Michael adducts being obtained in moderate to good yields (49–98%) with excellent ee (95–99%) (Table 4) [32]. Jakkampudi et al. [33] adopted a

Recent advances in the tandem annulation of 1,3-enynes to functionalized pyridine and pyrrole derivatives

• Yi Liu,
• Puying Luo,
• Yang Fu,
• Tianxin Hao,
• Xuan Liu,
• Qiuping Ding and
• Yiyuan Peng

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2462–2476, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.163

• yield. Aliphatic amines were also tolerated, providing the desired products in only moderate yield. The plausible mechanism involves a tandem base-promoted aza-Michael addition, 1,2-iodocyclization, and iodine-mediated oxidative aromatization. In 2017, Zhang and co-workers reported a silver-catalyzed

• standard conditions. The proposed catalytic cycle included aza-Michael addition of arylamines, Lewis acid copper(II)-catalyzed intramolecular 5-endo-dig cyclization, protonation, and oxidation to provide the final products, tetrasubstituted pyrroles 39. The introduction of a trifluoromethyl group into

Methodologies for the synthesis of quaternary carbon centers via hydroalkylation of unactivated olefins: twenty years of advances

• Thiago S. Silva and
• Fernando Coelho

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 1565–1590, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.112

• cascade aza-Michael addition/olefin hydroalkylation reaction between N-tosylallylamines and α,β-unsaturated ketones using a catalytic system of a gold(I) complex and a silver salt [45]. The spiro compound 25, which was obtained in moderate yield and with poor diastereoselectivity after a 20 h reaction

• the aza-Michael addition and that only the cationic gold(I) complex was associated with the intramolecular hydroalkylation reaction. These observations justified the use of a three-fold excess of AgOCl in relation to the gold complex since the silver salt participated both as a source of a non

Coupling biocatalysis with high-energy flow reactions for the synthesis of carbamates and β-amino acid derivatives

• Alexander Leslie,
• Thomas S. Moody,
• Megan Smyth,
• Scott Wharry and
• Marcus Baumann

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 379–384, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.33

• utilizing electron-poor alkenes as the reaction partners that would undergo aza-Michael addition reactions on the Cbz-carbamates (Scheme 4). Driven by the desire to develop readily scalable routes towards the target products 8, continuous flow processing was again exploited. In a first approach the use of

• -based aza-Michael addition reactions. This novel approach allows for the creation of important chemical building blocks whilst demonstrating a new use of biocatalysts in continuous flow processes. Scope of Cbz-carbamate products obtained via flow process (*tRes = 60 min, **T = 80 °C; isolated yields

Recent advances on the transition-metal-catalyzed synthesis of imidazopyridines: an updated coverage

• Gagandeep Kour Reen,
• Ashok Kumar and
• Pratibha Sharma

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2019, 15, 1612–1704, doi:10.3762/bjoc.15.165

• -benzenedicarboxylate), Puthiaraj and co-workers have unprecedently discovered the catalytic activity of this metal-organic framework (MOF) for the synthesis of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines [100]. The three-component, one-pot reaction between 1, 3 and nitromethane (10, Scheme 5) involved an intermolecular aza-Michael

• addition with a subsequent intramolecular cyclization catalyzed by Cu(BDC)MOF. Further, the LC–MS study of the reaction mixture has shown the imine formation to be the major pathway rather than β-nitrostyrene. The reaction involved a two-step reaction mechanism in which aza-Michael adduct 13 was formed in

5-Aminopyrazole as precursor in design and synthesis of fused pyrazoloazines

• Ranjana Aggarwal and
• Suresh Kumar

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2018, 14, 203–242, doi:10.3762/bjoc.14.15

• = tert-butyl) the reaction results in the formation of pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine derivative 90 as an additional product. The authors proposed that the bulky group had significantly slowed down the rate of electrophilic aromatic substitution at C-4 on 1H-pyrazol-5-amine due to which the aza-Michael

• addition becomes competitive at N-1 which ultimately provides pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine derivative 90 as additional product (Scheme 25). The synthesized pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridines 89 were found to be good mGluR5 positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) and therefore can be used to develop antipsychotic drugs to

Dialkyl dicyanofumarates and dicyanomaleates as versatile building blocks for synthetic organic chemistry and mechanistic studies

• Grzegorz Mlostoń and
• Heinz Heimgartner

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2017, 13, 2235–2251, doi:10.3762/bjoc.13.221

• perhydroquinoxaline derivative 73. Synthesis of ethyl 7-aminopteridin-6-carboxylates 75 via a domino reaction. Synthesis of morhpolin-2-ones 80 from E-1 and β-aminoalcohols 78 through an initial aza-Michael addition and subsequent heterocyclization step. Reaction of 3-amino-5-arylpyrazoles 81 with dialkyl

Practical synthetic strategies towards lipophilic 6-iodotetrahydroquinolines and -dihydroquinolines

• David R. Chisholm,
• Garr-Layy Zhou,
• Ehmke Pohl,
• Roy Valentine and
• Andrew Whiting

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2016, 12, 1851–1862, doi:10.3762/bjoc.12.174

• intermediate 7. Synthesis of THQ 10, by initial aza-Michael addition, followed by formation of the tertiary alcohol 9, which was then cyclised with H2SO4. Synthesis of THQ 14 by initial acylation, cyclisation with H2SO4 and reduction with borane·dimethyl sulphide complex. N-Alkylation of 13 and 14. Facile

Muraymycin nucleoside-peptide antibiotics: uridine-derived natural products as lead structures for the development of novel antibacterial agents

• Daniel Wiegmann,
• Stefan Koppermann,
• Marius Wirth,
• Giuliana Niro,
• Kristin Leyerer and
• Christian Ducho

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2016, 12, 769–795, doi:10.3762/bjoc.12.77

• this producing organism, L-arginine is diastereoselectively hydroxylated to afford (3S)-3-hydroxy-L-arginine. The ring-closure reaction then occurs with formal inversion of the β-stereocenter (but quite likely through an aza-Michael addition to the α,β-unsaturated intermediate) [119][120][121]. The

• studies [123][124]. It should also be noted that a biomimetic domino guanidinylation–aza-Michael-addition reaction for the synthesis of the capreomycidine scaffold has been developed, which only furnished the target structures as stereoisomeric mixtures though [125]. The epicapreomycidine-derived

Diastereoselective and enantioselective conjugate addition reactions utilizing α,β-unsaturated amides and lactams

• Katherine M. Byrd

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2015, 11, 530–562, doi:10.3762/bjoc.11.60

• environment for the reaction to occur. The first part of this section will focus on the asymmetric 1,4-addition of carbon nucleophiles and the next two parts will discuss the addition of amines (aza-Michael addition) and phosphorous compounds. 2.4.1 Asymmetric 1,4-addition of carbon nucleophiles: Since its

• -unsaturated amides or other carboxylic acid derivatives. This section will focus on the most significant findings that have been reported on the Lewis acid catalyzed aza-Michael additions of α,β-unsaturated amides and lactams [231][232]. One of the first examples of an aza-Michael addition to α,β-unsaturated

• Jørgensen group reported the first aza-Michael addition of secondary aryl amines [234]. The authors obtained the 1,4-addition products in moderate to high yields and enantioselectivities by using a nickel–DBFOX–Ph [235][236] catalyst (Scheme 30). Other chiral ligands have been used in addition to chiral

Organocatalytic cascade aza-Michael/hemiacetal reaction between disubstituted hydrazines and α,β-unsaturated aldehydes: Highly diastereo- and enantioselective synthesis of pyrazolidine derivatives

• Zhi-Cong Geng,
• Jian Chen,
• Ning Li,
• Xiao-Fei Huang,
• Yong Zhang,
• Ya-Wen Zhang and
• Xing-Wang Wang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2012, 8, 1710–1720, doi:10.3762/bjoc.8.195

• explored by several groups [72][73]. In 2007, Jørgensen et al. reported that the organocatalyzed asymmetric aza-Michael addition of hydrazones to cyclic enones had been achieved in good yield and stereoselectivity [74]. In 2011, the Deng group developed a highly enantioselective organocatalytic synthesis

Coupled chemo(enzymatic) reactions in continuous flow

• Ruslan Yuryev,
• Simon Strompen and
• Andreas Liese

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2011, 7, 1449–1467, doi:10.3762/bjoc.7.169

• and solvent-free environment [38]. In the first noncatalyzed thermal aza-Michael addition performed at 80 °C, the racemic ester rac-46 is formed from cheap starting materials benzylamine (44) and trans-ethylcrotonate (45) (Scheme 14). Subsequently, Novozym 435 is applied for the kinetic resolution of

Amines as key building blocks in Pd-assisted multicomponent processes

• Didier Bouyssi,
• Nuno Monteiro and
• Geneviève Balme

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2011, 7, 1387–1406, doi:10.3762/bjoc.7.163

• used. A proper choice of catalyst and reaction conditions is also needed to improve the efficiency of each reaction (Scheme 18) [18]. Consecutive one-pot transformations initiated by Heck reaction and terminated by intramolecular aza–Michael addition were developed by Hanson and coworkers to access a

• sulfur dioxide. However, this Pd-catalyzed aminosulfonylation process proved inefficient with primary amines (Scheme 20) [20]. Multicomponent synthesis of nitrogen-containing heterocycles may also be initiated by an aza-Michael addition and terminated by a palladium-catalyzed ring-closure process [21