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

• of analogous substrates demonstrates that a bidentate nitrogen structure and a free N–H group are essential for this transformation. The catalytic cycle begins with the coordination of 8-aminoquinoline 71 to Cu(II) catalyst 74, providing an arylcopper complex 76 (Figure 13). This is followed by a

Evaluating the halogen bonding strength of a iodoloisoxazolium(III) salt

• Dominik L. Reinhard,
• Anna Schmidt,
• Marc Sons,
• Julian Wolf,
• Elric Engelage and
• Stefan M. Huber

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2401–2407, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.204

• iodolium salts like derivatives 5Z and 6Z (Figure 1) [14][15]. Their benchmark studies showed significant activity differences amongst them and superior performance compared to prototypical iodolium 1Z. Significant upgrades to DAI-based XB catalysts were made in the form of bidentate and dicationic XB

• abstractions, e.g. to activate gold chloride complexes [18][19]. Therefore, besides the development of new bidentate catalyst motifs, we were still interested in the optimization of these “simpler” derivatives. Thus, we designed a new catalyst motif [20] featuring an isoxazole ring, XB donor 7Z, and compared

• iodoloisoxazolium for halogen-bonding activation and catalysis. Studies on the synthesis and application of chiral and/or bidentate dicationic derivatives are currently underway in our laboratory. Set of literature-known monocationic cyclic diaryliodonium(III) salts that were applied as XB donors (Z = OTf, BArF24

Regioselective alkylation of a versatile indazole: Electrophile scope and mechanistic insights from density functional theory calculations

• Pengcheng Lu,
• Luis Juarez,
• Paul A. Wiget,
• Weihe Zhang,
• Krishnan Raman and
• Pravin L. Kotian

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1940–1954, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.170

• -3 as a bidentate ligand to the Na+ cation from NaH. The tight ion pair would direct alkylation under conditions A to N1. As this and other postulations exist, we explored the possible mechanisms of each reaction conditions computationally. All calculations were performed in implicit THF at the

• support the claim made by Alam and Keeting that a tight ion pair drives N1-selectivity when electron-withdrawing groups that can coordinate the cation are present at the 3-position. When 3-cyanoindazole is employed and no bidentate coordination is possible with N2, the nucleophilicity of N1 drives the

Benzylic C(sp³)–H fluorination

• Alexander P. Atkins,
• Alice C. Dean and
• Alastair J. J. Lennox

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1527–1547, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.137

• -(trifluoromethyl)aniline in conjunction with external ligand 5 facilitated the formation of a series of fluorinated α-amino acids. Xu and co-workers also disclosed a palladium-catalysed protocol for the fluorination of simple benzylic substrates bearing a bidentate directing group (Figure 8) [42]. Yields varied

• -catalysed bidentate-directed benzylic C(sp3)–H fluorination. Palladium-catalysed benzylic fluorination using a transient directing group approach. Ratio refers to fluorination (red) vs oxygenation (blue) product. Outline for benzylic C(sp3)–H fluorination via radical intermediates. Iron(II)-catalysed

Electrophotochemical metal-catalyzed synthesis of alkylnitriles from simple aliphatic carboxylic acids

• Yukang Wang,
• Yan Yao and
• Niankai Fu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1497–1503, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.133

• available CeCl3 (10 mol %) and Cu(OTf)2 (5.0 mol %) together with bidentate nitrogen ligands such as BPhen, Phen, dtbbpy, and bpy with TMSCN as the cyanating reagent promoted the direct conversion of flurbiprofen (1) to the desired product (2) in good yields (Table 1, entries 1 and 2). Cu ions are well

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

• bearing bidentate amine-based ligands and studied them in the N-alkylation of aromatic amines with benzylic alcohols (Scheme 17). Under the optimized reaction conditions (140 °C, 24 h), complex Mn8 (2 mol %) was successfully applied for the coupling of various electron-donating and withdrawing primary

• mechanism suggested that dearomatization–aromatization pathways operated for the dehydrogenation of the alcohol and C–C bond formations. After the successful attempt of bidentate N-heterocyclic carbene-manganese complex-catalyzed N-alkylation of amines with alcohols at room temperature [41], Liu and Ke's

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

• as ligand, because it was already known that catalysts derived from palladium(II) salts and bidentate nitrogen ligands were highly reactive systems for the reduction of o-nitrostyrenes [28][29][30]. The catalytic system Pd(OAc)2/1,10-phen worked better than Söderberg´s one (Pd(OAc)2/PPh3) under mild

• of the Pd(dba)2/dppp/1,10-phen catalyst system. Synthesis of indoles from o-nitrostyrenes by using Pd(OAc)2 and Pd(tfa)2 in conjunction with bidentate nitrogen ligands: 1,10-phen (1,10-phenanthroline) and tm-phen (3,4,7,8-tetramethyl-1,10-phenanthroline). Synthesis of substituted 3-alkoxyindoles via

Evaluation of the enantioselectivity of new chiral ligands based on imidazolidin-4-one derivatives

• Jan Bartáček,
• Karel Chlumský,
• Jan Mrkvička,
• Lucie Paloušová,
• Miloš Sedlák and
• Pavel Drabina

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 684–691, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.62

• copper(II) complexes is comparable with analogous complexes of bidentate ligands [5] (for TON and TOF parameters see Supporting Information File 1, part S5). The conversions were very high in almost all cases under set reaction conditions, except for pivalaldehyde. Here, the low conversions could be

• group). The copper complex bearing a ligand with trans-trans configuration (Ia) is less enantioselective than those bearing a bidentate ligand analogue (87–96% ee, see [5]). Interestingly, the introduction of a methyl group at position 2 of the imidazolidin-4-one ring, i.e., ligand IIa, led to an

• with the results obtained in the previous study [5], where the complex of the analogous bidentate ligand with cis configuration was found unsuccessful (≈25% ee; see Supporting Information File 1, part S5). According to expectations resulted from previous studies [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14], the

Switchable molecular tweezers: design and applications

• Pablo Msellem,
• Maksym Dekthiarenko,
• Nihal Hadj Seyd and
• Guillaume Vives

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 504–539, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.45

• are redshifted with respect to the open state, demonstrating the porphyrin–porphyrin interactions. Along with Lehn’s and Vives’ work [35][46], this example opens the way for new electroactive systems with a cation-controlled electrochemical behavior. The common bidentate 2,2’-bipyridine ligand [58

• ) addition because of a photoinduced energy transfer between porphyrins and the copper center. The fluorescence can be recovered by the addition of a bidentate pyrophosphate guest ligand, which disturbs the geometry of the system (octahedral complex) and thus lowers the energy transfer. Jang and co-workers

• using metal complexes as switching units (Figure 20). This concept named “weak link approach” (WLA) [78] uses square planar d8-transition metal complexes with two hemilabile bidentate ligands composed of a strong binding site (phosphorus) and a weaker one (generally sulfur, oxygen, selenium, or nitrogen

Green and sustainable approaches for the Friedel–Crafts reaction between aldehydes and indoles

• Periklis X. Kolagkis,
• Eirini M. Galathri and
• Christoforos G. Kokotos

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 379–426, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.36

• reaction of aldehydes and ketones with indole [93][94]. Bidentate halogen-bond donors are efficient catalysts, since they can form two halogen bonds with each substrate, instead of just one. Thus, compounds 24, 25 and 26 were screened for their catalytic activity with 26 emerging as the optimum choice

• produce a wide range of bis(indolyl)methanes 28 in good to excellent yields (62–93%) [93][94]. Regarding the mechanism of action of this methodology, two halogen bonds are formed between the bidentate halogen-bond donor 26 and the oxygen of the carbonyl group (Scheme 12). This increases the

Metal-catalyzed coupling/carbonylative cyclizations for accessing dibenzodiazepinones: an expedient route to clozapine and other drugs

• Amina Moutayakine and
• Anthony J. Burke

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 193–204, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.19

• effective ligand in a variety of highly efficient aminocarbonylation reactions with Mo(CO)6 due to its strong basicity and accelerated release of CO from this reagent [21]. The reaction was then screened using two different bidentate ligands, XPhos and XantPhos, and using the previous reaction conditions

• delighted to obtain the final dibenzodiazepine in 80% yield. Next, we tested another bidentate ligand, XantPhos, which led to the obtention of the desired product 4a in an excellent yield of 90% (entry 5, Table 3). This result implied that diphosphine ligands were essential for the success of this reaction

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

• featuring monodentate [44][45], chelating bidentate [46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55], or bridging bidentate NHC·CS2 ligands [45][51][52]. Small bimetallic clusters [51][52][56], coordination polymers [57], self-assembled monolayers [58], and nanoparticles [45] based on these zwitterions were also

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

• anionic hybrid NHC, “IMes-acac” consisting of fused diaminocarbene and acetylacetonato units. The latter afforded a series of representative Cu(I) complexes through bidentate coordination (Scheme 16) [30]. 1.2 Deprotonation of NHC-precursors with Cu2O Another important and facile method involves heating

• substrates and alkylboranes. Later in 2012, Hoveyda and co-worker [63] used chiral bidentate NHC–Cu complexes bearing sulfonates, which was critical to regioselectivity and resulted in high selectivity for the γ-position. Thus, allenyl-containing products were generated in up to 95% yield and 99:1 er. The

• with >98% site-selectivity, in up to 98% yield and er = 96.5:3.5. Reactions involved a wide range of acyclic 1,1-disubstituted aryl olefins. Several C1-symmetric bidentate ligands derived from enantiomerically pure imidazolinium salts were examined for their efficiency. For example, a remarkable

Non-noble metal-catalyzed cross-dehydrogenation coupling (CDC) involving ether α-C(sp³)–H to construct C–C bonds

• Hui Yu and
• Feng Xu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1259–1288, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.94

• with Fe2(CO)9 as a catalyst and N1,N1,N2,N2-tetramethylethane-1,2-diamine (TMEDA) as bidentate ligand. A gram-scale alkylation reaction showed that the new procedure has excellent potential for synthetic applications. The mechanism study shows that radicals are the starting point of the coupling

• )–H and C(sp3)–H bonds by the ortho-alkylation reaction of aromatic carboxamides containing (pyridin-2-yl)isopropylamine (PIP–NH2) as an N,N-bidentate directing group (Scheme 32) [97]. The mechanism study showed that these reactions were a Co(III/IV/II) catalytic cycle, and the coordination of Co with

Pyridine C(sp²)–H bond functionalization under transition-metal and rare earth metal catalysis

• Haritha Sindhe,
• Malladi Mounika Reddy,
• Karthikeyan Rajkumar,
• Akshay Kamble,
• Amardeep Singh,
• Anand Kumar and
• Satyasheel Sharma

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 820–863, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.62

• including transition metals and rare earth metals has been described and some other organometallic systems also were shown to have catalytic reactivity. Adopting this catalytic reactivity of organometallics and also the special bidentate nature of phosphinoamide ligands, in 2021, Chen and group [58

• strong coordination of the pyridyl N-atom with Pd in the presence of a bidentate ligand was reported by Yu and co-workers [83]. They showcased the C3-selective olefination of pyridines using 1,10-phenanthroline, a bis-dentate ligand that weakens the coordination of the Pd catalyst with the pyridyl N-atom

• . The usage of a bidentate ligand will enhance the trans-effect and shift the coordination towards the ring (Scheme 18b). There are numerous studies reported for directing group or chelate-assisted metal-catalyzed C–H functionalization reactions. However, non-chelate-assisted or undirected C–H

C3-Alkylation of furfural derivatives by continuous flow homogeneous catalysis

• Grédy Kiala Kinkutu,
• Catherine Louis,
• Myriam Roy,
• Juliette Blanchard and
• Julie Oble

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 582–592, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.43

• (Scheme 1b). Results and Discussion First optimization with a home-made pulsed-flow setup We undertook the optimization of this flow strategy for the C3-alkylation reaction (Murai reaction) [37][38] of the furfurylimine 1 bearing a removable N,N'-bidentate directing group. In a previous study, this

• furfural derivatives by C–H activation, a) in batch: previous works, and b) in continuous flow: this work. C3-alkylation of bidentate imine 1 performed in batch. Optimization of the heating for the alkylation reaction on the homemade pulsed-flow setup. Proposed reaction mechanism for the alkylation

Transition-metal-catalyzed C–H bond activation as a sustainable strategy for the synthesis of fluorinated molecules: an overview

• Louis Monsigny,
• Floriane Doche and
• Tatiana Besset

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 448–473, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.35

• -promoted trifluoromethylthiolation of benzamide derivatives 1 at the ortho-position by C–H bond activation [114]. Indeed, using a bidentate directing group (amide derived from the 8-aminoquinoline), the mono- and difunctionalized compounds were obtained when Cu(OAc)2 (0.5 equiv) and the toxic and volatile

• were obtained in 30% and 20% yields, respectively. Several mechanistic experiments revealed that the C(sp2)–H bond activation step was reversible and represented the rate-determining step (KIE = 2.4). First, the chelation of the palladium(II) catalyst with the bidentate directing group, followed by the

• primary C(sp3) centers by transition-metal-catalyzed C–H activation with the Munavalli or the Billard reagents as the trifluoromethylthiolation source (Scheme 14) [126]. Using a bidentate directing group, this methodology allowed the functionalization of a large range of aliphatic amides with a primary β

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

• )aminoalkanoic acids 86 (Scheme 15) [35][36]. This is a convenient way to synthesize γ-phosphonolactams 85. They further extended their method to synthesize cyclic O,O- and O,S-bidentate ligands with a P–N–P backbone. The substitution reaction of 3-bromopropylamine hydrogen bromide (87) and chloroethoxyphosphine

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

• % selectivity. According to the authors, the reaction mechanism involves the formation of an active selenium peroxo species. Additionally, they mentioned that the catalyst was easily separated from the reaction mixture by simple filtration [56]. Serindağ and co-workers disclosed the bidentate tertiary

Amamistatins isolated from Nocardia altamirensis

• Till Steinmetz,
• Wolf Hiller and
• Markus Nett

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 360–367, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.40

• metallic ions depends on the presence of suitable ligand groups. Hydroxamates, 2,3-dihydroxybenzoates, and α-hydroxycarboxylates make excellent bidentate ligand groups, as their negatively charged oxygen atoms can maintain strong interactions with ferric iron [3]. But there are also many siderophores

• structural features of these molecules. Amamistatin B (5) exhibits three bidentate ligand groups and can thus form an octahedral complex with ferric iron. The removal of one of these groups (e.g., the hydroxamate function at the ε terminus of the lysine residue) already leads to a considerable loss of iron

• affinity, as observed for compound 2. This trend continues in 1, 3, and 4, each of which features only a single bidentate ligand group. Compound 6 possesses the least iron affinity with a DC50 value of 5008 ± 222 μM. The results show a clear correlation between the number of ligands in a molecule and its

A Se···O bonding catalysis approach to the synthesis of calix[4]pyrroles

• Qingzhe Tong,
• Zhiguo Zhao and
• Yao Wang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 325–330, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.36

• interactions between catalysts Ch1, Ch2 and acetone were examined by 13C NMR experiments in CD2Cl2. The interaction between bidentate catalyst Ch1 or monodentate catalyst Ch2 and acetone could result in a variation of the 13C signal of the carbonyl group. Analysis of a 1:1 mixture of Ch1 and acetone in CD2Cl2

• monodentate and bidentate catalysts could activate ketones. Accordingly, either a single activation or a double activation mode could be an effective driving force to promote this transformation, albeit with distinct catalytic activity. Conclusion In summary, we developed a Se···O bonding catalysis approach

• to the synthesis of calix[4]pyrroles. In the presence of 5 mol % selenide catalyst, calix[4]pyrrole products were obtained in moderate to good yields at room temperature. The experimental results showed that both bidentate and monodentate catalysts were catalytically active in the condensation

Biological properties and conformational studies of amphiphilic Pd(II) and Ni(II) complexes bearing functionalized aroylaminocarbo-N-thioylpyrrolinate units

• Samet Poyraz,
• Samet Belveren,
• Sabriye Aydınoğlu,
• Mahmut Ulger,
• Abel de Cózar,
• Maria de Gracia Retamosa,
• Jose M. Sansano and
• H. Ali Döndaş

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2812–2821, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.192

• , C. tropicalis, and C. glabrata standard strains. A deep conformational survey was monitored using DFT calculations with the aim to explain the importance of the final conformation in the biological experimental results. Keywords: antituberculosis; bidentate ligands; DFT; nickel; palladium

Copper-catalyzed monoselective C–H amination of ferrocenes with alkylamines

• Zhen-Sheng Jia,
• Qiang Yue,
• Ya Li,
• Xue-Tao Xu,
• Kun Zhang and
• Bing-Feng Shi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2488–2495, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.165

• groups. Kumar and co-workers developed a Cu-mediated C–H chalcogenation and sulfonation of ferrocenes [27][28][29]. The use of a bidentate 1,10-phenathroline ligand was critical to achieve mono-selectivity in the chacogenation reactions [28]. Meanwhile, Co(III)-catalyzed ortho-C–H amidation of ferrocene

Halides as versatile anions in asymmetric anion-binding organocatalysis

• Lukas Schifferer,
• Martin Stinglhamer,
• Kirandeep Kaur and
• Olga García Macheño

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2270–2286, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.145

• C1 position. Analogously to the Pictet–Spengler cyclization, the group initially speculated that the thiourea catalyst 6 interacts with the carbonyl function of the amide intermediate I and, thus, a SN2-type mechanism via hydrogen bonding catalysis was proposed. A similar bidentate carbonyl

• % ee [63]. Evolution of catalyst designs: from bidentate to supramolecular multidentate anion-binding catalysts Despite the evident potential that anion-binding catalysis showed in the pioneering publications – especially in regard to exerting high stereocontrol –, the strategy was still faced with

• example highlighting the importance of sidechain catalyst design was given by Jacobsen et al. in the tail-to-head cyclization of neryl chloride and derivatives 59 (Scheme 13) [17]. Mechanistic studies and DFT calculations revealed that an extended π-system in the sidechain of the bidentate urea catalyst

On the application of 3d metals for C–H activation toward bioactive compounds: The key step for the synthesis of silver bullets

• Renato L. Carvalho,
• Amanda S. de Miranda,
• Mateus P. Nunes,
• Roberto S. Gomes,
• Guilherme A. M. Jardim and
• Eufrânio N. da Silva Júnior

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 1849–1938, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.126