Cu–Bpin-mediated dimerization of 4,4-dichloro-2-butenoic acid derivatives enables the synthesis of densely functionalized cyclopropanes

• Patricia Gómez-Roibás,
• Andrea Chaves-Pouso and
• Martín Fañanás-Mastral

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 877–883, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.71

• a mixture of Z:E isomers (Table 1, entry 8). Having identified the proper combination of base and solvent, we then screened different copper catalysts. Different NHCs, bisphosphines and phosphines were tested (Table 1, entries 9–14) and excellent chemo- and diastereoselectivity was observed in all

Chitosan-supported CuI-catalyzed cascade reaction of 2-halobenzoic acids and amidines for the synthesis of quinazolinones

• Xuhong Zhao,
• Weishuang Li,
• Mengli Yang,
• Bojie Li,
• Yaoyao Zhang,
• Lizhen Huang and
• Lei Zhu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 839–844, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.67

• ]. Furthermore, dicopper(I) complexes can also be used as an effective catalyst in Ullmann-type N-arylation/cyclization of 2-bromobenzoic acids with amidines, providing the corresponding quinazolinones in good yields [15]. Despite the high efficiency of the above-mentioned copper catalysts in the synthesis of

• quinazolinones, and the wide application of the chitosan-supported copper catalyst in various organic transformations [19][20][21], the use of chitosan-supported copper for quinazolinone synthesis has not been reported. As part of our ongoing research interest in chitosan and chitosan-supported copper catalysts

• , entry 6), while a ratio of iPrOH/H2O = 9:1 resulted in an 89% yield (Table 1, entry 7). In the optimal solvent (iPrOH/H2O = 9:1), other chitosan-supported copper catalysts, such as chitosan-supported on CuBr (CS@CuBr), chitosan-supported on Cu(OAc)2 (CS@Cu(OAc)2), chitosan-supported on Cu(acac)2 (CS@Cu

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

• iridium (Scheme 1b) [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. Notably, dioxazolones have primarily been studied in directed carbon–hydrogen amidation processes, which can circumvent the need for tedious prefunctionalizations. Copper catalysts have gained recognition and attracted

• -phosphorylation of dioxazolones using organic phosphines and copper catalysts [91]. As shown in Scheme 6, a variety of dioxazolones 14 were explored for the synthesis of N-acyl iminophosphoranes 16. Dioxazolones containing aryl and heteroaryl groups were successfully transformed into the desired products in high

• widely used as N-acylamide sources in amidation processes of challenging substrates, typically employing precious transition metals. However, these catalytic systems often present several challenges associated with cost, toxicity, stability, and recyclability. Among the 3d transition metals, copper

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

• ], however, no comprehensive review focusing on Cu-catalyzed electrochemistry has been reported to date. Copper catalysts are potential candidates for pharmaceutical applications owing to their abundance, low cost, and lower toxicity compared with noble transition metals such as palladium [39]. In terms of

• reactions of copper catalysts without ligands face limitations owing to slow electron transfer kinetics, irreversible copper plating, and competing substrate oxidation. To overcome these challenges, Sevov et al. developed a ligand-free, Cu-catalyzed electrochemical Chan–Lam coupling using a ferrocenium salt

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

• emerged among copper catalysts because it can act as a precursor to triflic acid in addition to a powerful copper-catalytic effect. Indeed, Cu(OTf)2 has proven to be an excellent surrogate for triflic acid compared with other metal triflates because it is inexpensive and exhibits high activity with low

Copper-catalyzed yne-allylic substitutions: concept and recent developments

• Shuang Yang and
• Xinqiang Fang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2739–2775, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.232

• substitutions of 5-ethynylthiophene esters. A series of C-, N-, O-, and S-nucleophiles could react smoothly to obtain various thiophene derivatives with different functional groups (Scheme 29, 28a–t). Control experiments showed that terminal alkyne and copper catalysts are crucial for the smooth progress of the

• ethynylethylene carbonates and copper catalysts (Scheme 37). He et al. [77] completed formal [4 + 1] and [4 + 2] annulations and obtained two types of seldomly studied heterocycles of thieno[2,3-c]pyrrole (Scheme 38, 36a–j) and thieno[2,3-d]pyridazine (Scheme 39, 38a–h) in high yields. It is worth noting that the

Synthetic applications of the Cannizzaro reaction

• Bhaskar Chatterjee,
• Dhananjoy Mondal and
• Smritilekha Bera

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1376–1395, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.120

• enantioselective intramolecular Cannizzaro reaction of aryl and alkyl glyoxals 1a–h and alcohol 2 using trisoxazoline (TOX) ligand (4)/copper catalysts to furnish the requisite mandelic esters 3a–h in good yields (greater than 90%) and high enantioselectivity. This was observed in the wide substrate scope as

• represented below (Scheme 2) [34]. Morken and coworkers [36] set forth an intramolecular Lewis acid-mediated Cannizzaro reaction of aryl glyoxals 7 at room temperature using appropriate chromium or copper catalysts. The strategy afforded moderate to good yields of Mandelic esters 8 in the presence of Cr(ClO4

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

• -workers [61] extended the application of NHC–copper catalysts to the conjugate addition of boronates to acyclic α,β-unsaturated carboxylic esters, ketones, and thioesters leading to the enantioselective formation of boron-substituted quaternary carbon stereogenic centers (Scheme 43). All transformations

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

• significantly different reactivity and chemical selectivity from noble metals (Ru, Rh, Pd). Compared with noble metals, copper catalysts are cheaper and easier to obtain, making Cu more advantageous for industrial applications of C–H functionalization reactions. The Glaser–Hay reaction may be one of the oldest

Copper-catalyzed N-arylation of amines with aryliodonium ylides in water

• Kasturi U. Nabar,
• Bhalchandra M. Bhanage and
• Sudam G. Dawande

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1008–1014, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.76

• straightforward and efficient method for the N-arylation of primary arylamines and secondary amines with 1,3-cyclohexanedione-derived aryliodonium ylides in the presence of copper catalysts in water as a solvent. Results and Discussion To test our hypothesis, we commenced our studies by treatment of aniline (1a

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

• 1,4-dioxane the transformations performed the best (Table 1, entries 3–5). A series of copper catalysts such as CuI, CuCN, and Cu2O was screened, in which some showed good catalytic activity (Table 1, entries 6–9), and Cu2O was identified as the most effective catalyst for the desired transformation

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

• -metal-catalyzed dehydrogenative 2,2,2-trifluoroethoxylation reactions have been reported. In 2021, the palladium-catalyzed ortho-2,2,2-trifluoroethoxylation of 3-arylcoumarins was depicted by the group of Kumar (6 examples, up to 69% yield) [162]. Further developments unveiled the use of copper

• catalysts for such functionalization. In 2013, the group of Daugulis described the copper-catalyzed ortho-2,2,2-trifluoroethoxylation of a 3-trifluoromethylated benzamide derived from 8-aminoquinoline, giving the corresponding product in 73% yield [149]. The group of Baidya showed that the dehydrogenative

CuAAC-inspired synthesis of 1,2,3-triazole-bridged porphyrin conjugates: an overview

• Dileep Kumar Singh

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 349–379, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.29

• than other copper catalysts, as it provided higher yields of the desired products (Scheme 4). In 2010, Shetti and Ravikanth [28] nicely utilized the "click reaction" approach for the preparation of a series of triazole-bridged porphyrin-ferrocene dyads 37a–d in 48–52% yield by the reaction between two

• copper catalysts have been used for the CuAAC-based synthesis of these porphyrin conjugates, the majority of the reports using CuSO4 with either ascorbic acid or sodium ascorbate, and Cu(OAc)2 with sodium ascorbate under an organic solvent or a mixture of organic solvents and water. In addition, other Cu

• (I)-catalysts such as CuI, (SIMes)CuBr, Cu(MeCN)4PF6, and CuBr(PPh3)3 have been also used in some reactions. Furthermore, a few reports describe the use of ligands like DIPEA, TBTA, NMP, Et3N, etc. along with copper catalysts to stabilize the Cu(I)-oxidation state and speed up the click reaction. It

Synthesis of meso-pyrrole-substituted corroles by condensation of 1,9-diformyldipyrromethanes with pyrrole

• Baris Temelli and
• Pinar Kapci

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 1403–1409, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.145

• positive effect on the reaction yield (Table 1, entries 14 and 15), p-chloranil formed a product with a lower yield than DDQ (Table 1, entries 16–18). The activities of different copper catalysts were also tested in the model reaction. Only CuCl2 formed the product in 5% yield and the other salts did not

Synthesis of 3,4,5-trisubstituted isoxazoles in water via a [3 + 2]-cycloaddition of nitrile oxides and 1,3-diketones, β-ketoesters, or β-ketoamides

• Md Imran Hossain,
• Md Imdadul H. Khan,
• Seong Jong Kim and
• Hoang V. Le

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2022, 18, 446–458, doi:10.3762/bjoc.18.47

• alkynes to activate them for a decent yield of the isoxazole products, thus limiting the scope of the substrates in this method. In addition, this method requires high heat and produces very poor regioselectivity of the products [17][18]. The addition of copper catalysts in this route can help the

• highly substituted non-terminal alkynes does not proceed with copper catalysts at room temperature. As an alternative, the usage of ruthenium(II) catalysts enables the reaction to proceed smoothly at room temperature and produces high yields and regioselectivity for both, 3,5-disubstituted and 3,4,5

Catalyzed and uncatalyzed procedures for the syntheses of isomeric covalent multi-indolyl hetero non-metallides: an account

• Ranadeep Talukdar

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 2102–2122, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.137

• the desired product 101 in 49% yield [82]. Other copper catalysts such as CuCl or CuBr gave low yields, even when used with 2,2’-bipyridyl as the ligand. First, oxidation of copper(I) takes place, which interacts with elemental sulfur to “activate” it. A nucleophilic attack from N-methylindole (1) to

A comprehensive review of flow chemistry techniques tailored to the flavours and fragrances industries

• Guido Gambacorta,
• James S. Sharley and
• Ian R. Baxendale

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2021, 17, 1181–1312, doi:10.3762/bjoc.17.90

Recent developments in enantioselective photocatalysis

• Callum Prentice,
• James Morrisson,
• Andrew D. Smith and
• Eli Zysman-Colman

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2020, 16, 2363–2441, doi:10.3762/bjoc.16.197

Copper-catalysed alkylation of heterocyclic acceptors with organometallic reagents

• Yafei Guo and
• Syuzanna R. Harutyunyan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2020, 16, 1006–1021, doi:10.3762/bjoc.16.90

• strategies that target the synthesis of chiral heterocyclic motives [12][13][14]. Among these, methodologies based on the copper-catalysed asymmetric addition of organometallics are especially valuable because of i) the compatibility between copper catalysts and heteroatoms present in the starting materials

• copper catalysts to activate both the organometallics and heterocyclic acceptors for the reaction. The development of a wide variety of chiral ligands allowed an impressive scope of heterocycles to undergo reactions with organometallics. However, the current state of the field is certainly incomplete

A systematic review on silica-, carbon-, and magnetic materials-supported copper species as efficient heterogeneous nanocatalysts in “click” reactions

• Pezhman Shiri and
• Jasem Aboonajmi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2020, 16, 551–586, doi:10.3762/bjoc.16.52

• oxidized to Cu(II) species. Without using a ligand or a reducing agent, Cu(II) can oxidize alkynes to produce an undesired byproduct. Active copper catalysts can be prepared by reducing copper(II) sources, oxidizing copper metal, comproportionation of Cu(II) and Cu(0), or combination of copper salts and

• of product separation, catalyst recovery, simplifying the production process, and cleaner operation conditions [18][19][20]. Thus far, several heterogeneous catalysts have been explored for CuAAC and RuAAC processes. The catalytic activities of heterogeneous copper catalysts as novel catalysts are

Allylic cross-coupling using aromatic aldehydes as α-alkoxyalkyl anions

• Akihiro Yuasa,
• Kazunori Nagao and
• Hirohisa Ohmiya

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2020, 16, 185–189, doi:10.3762/bjoc.16.21

• )CuCl (53%) in terms of the chemical yield. Notably, the allylic cross-coupling reaction did not occur at all without Pd(OCOCF3)2–DPPF or (SIPr)CuCl, and thus the palladium and copper catalysts cooperatively acted in the allylic cross-coupling. Scheme 3 shows the substrate range of aromatic aldehydes 1

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

• , recyclable catalyst in the N-arylation of indoles [45][46]. Copper catalysts have shown exceptional enantioselectivity for reactions such as hydrosilylation, hydroboration, and heterogeneous as well as homogeneous hydrogenation [47][48][49]. Also, the copper salts found used as oxidants in a number of

A general and atom-efficient continuous-flow approach to prepare amines, amides and imines via reactive N-chloramines

• Katherine E. Jolley,
• Michael R. Chapman and
• A. John Blacker

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2018, 14, 2220–2228, doi:10.3762/bjoc.14.196

• ][33]. Improved methods for the formation of amides remain an important goal for the pharma industry. In this regard, the reaction of N-chloramine with aldehydes, t-BuO2H and iron or copper catalysts to give secondary and tertiary amides was reported in batch recently [33][34], though safety concerns

Cationic cobalt-catalyzed [1,3]-rearrangement of N-alkoxycarbonyloxyanilines

• Itaru Nakamura,
• Mao Owada,
• Takeru Jo and
• Masahiro Terada

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2018, 14, 1972–1979, doi:10.3762/bjoc.14.172

• para-isomer 3a was obtained as a major product when the reaction of 1a was conducted using trivalent metal salts, such as FeCl3 and RuCl3, and tetravalent salts, such as ZrCl4, as a catalyst (Table 1, entries 15–18). Although we quite recently disclosed that cationic NHC-copper catalysts efficiently

Synthesis of trifluoromethylated 2H-azirines through Togni reagent-mediated trifluoromethylation followed by PhIO-mediated azirination

• Jiyun Sun,
• Xiaohua Zhen,
• Huaibin Ge,
• Guangtao Zhang,
• Xuechan An and
• Yunfei Du

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2018, 14, 1452–1458, doi:10.3762/bjoc.14.123

• higher temperature was unsuccessful (Table 1, entry 7). Replacing the catalyst CuI with other commonly used copper catalysts including CuCl, CuBr and CuOAc led to a decreased yield in each case (Table 1, entries 8–10). In addition the other commonly employed hypervalent iodine(III) reagents, namely, PIDA