Visible-light-driven NHC and organophotoredox dual catalysis for the synthesis of carbonyl compounds

• Vasudevan Dhayalan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2584–2603, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.200

• carbenes (NHCs) with photocatalysts. The review encompasses transition-metal-based photocatalytic reactions for C–C and C–HA cross-coupling reactions involving various acyl fluorides, amides, aldehydes, carboxylic acids, and esters, highlighting their broad applications in organic synthesis and medicinal

• , generating an N-centered radical species C. This species subsequently undergoes a rapid C–N cross-coupling with ketyl radical B. This cross-coupling method offers a transition-metal free route to highly substituted amides 3 from aldehydes 1 and imines 2, without the need for any external reductants or

• cross-coupling between the C-centered and N-centered radicals. These methods are expected to open new avenues for visible-light- and NHC/4CzIPN-catalyzed carbon–heteroatom bond-forming processes (Scheme 1) [51]. In 2021, Studer et al. developed a novel method for the 1,3-difunctionalization of

Palladium-catalyzed regioselective C1-selective nitration of carbazoles

• Vikash Kumar,
• Jyothis Dharaniyedath,
• Aiswarya T P,
• Sk Ariyan,
• Chitrothu Venkatesh and
• Parthasarathy Gandeepan

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2479–2488, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.190

• methodologies are greatly limited due to harsh reaction conditions that impact the scope of the reaction, poor yield, and regioselectivity issues. In sharp contrast, transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions promisingly improve the regioselectivity issues and substrate scope [25][26][27][28]. In

• addition to cross-coupling reactions, transition metal-catalyzed cyclization involving C–H activation approaches have also been reported [29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36]. Despite the significant advances in carbazole core constructions, the established protocols significantly lack access to selectively C1

Comparative analysis of complanadine A total syntheses

• Reem Al-Ahmad and
• Mingji Dai

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2334–2344, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.178

• reaction to rapidly establish the tetracyclic skeleton of complanadine A and an iridium-catalyzed site-selective pyridine C–H borylation followed by a Suzuki–Miyaura cross coupling to forge the C2–C3’ linkage. Their synthesis achieves a high degree of synergy between classic transformations and modern

• in 55% from 25 and 26 in three steps. Triflation of the pyridone gave 33 with a triflate at the C2 position for cross coupling to form the C2–C3’ linkage. At this stage, the Sarpong group needed to install a functional group at the C3 position of the pyridine. They creatively solved this challenge

• lycodine 34 underwent Ir-catalyzed C3–H borylation mainly guided by steric factors to provide boronic ester 35 in 75% yield. With the boronic ester handle at the C3 position, the subsequent Suzuki–Miyaura cross coupling between 35 and 33 occurred smoothly to deliver pseudo-dimer 36, which upon acidic

Recent advances in Norrish–Yang cyclization and dicarbonyl photoredox reactions for natural product synthesis

• Peng-Xi Luo,
• Jin-Xuan Yang,
• Shao-Min Fu and
• Bo Liu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2315–2333, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.177

• Norrish–Yang cyclization, followed by a strain-release Pd-catalyzed C–C cleavage/cross-coupling protocol [9][11]; the strategy was subsequently applied to the total synthesis of lycoplatyrine A (89) in 2021 [38]. Isolated by Low’s group [39], lycoplatyrine A (89) belongs to the lycodine-type Lycopodium

• to construct a β-lactam, an α-metallated piperidine equivalent, overcoming poor yields and stereoselectivity in traditional methods. Its palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling with 2-bromolycodine via β-lactam C–C cleavage enabled stereoretentive coupling, efficiently synthesizing lycoplatyrine A and its

• epimers. This strategy merges photochemical selectivity with cross-coupling efficiency, avoiding reactive metal incompatibility and enabling precise stereocontrol for chiral nitrogen heterocycles. 3 Antibiotics 3.1 Synthetic study toward γ-rubromycin Since 2017, Suzuki's group has developed a

Enantioselective radical chemistry: a bright future ahead

• Anna C. Renner,
• Sagar S. Thorat,
• Hariharaputhiran Subramanian and
• Mukund P. Sibi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2283–2296, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.174

• and NiCl2·diglyme, was used as the catalyst to obtain the coupling products 20 in good yield and high enantioselectivity. The first nickel-catalyzed asymmetric reductive cross-coupling reaction between acid chlorides 21 and secondary benzylic chlorides 22 was reported by Reisman and co-workers (Scheme

• and pyrrolidinone electrophiles. Organocatalyzed formal [3 + 2] cycloadditions affording substituted pyrrolidines. Synthesis of a hexacyclic compound via an organocatalyzed enantioselective polyene cyclization. Nickel-catalyzed asymmetric cross-coupling reactions. Chiral cobalt–porphyrin

Pd-catalyzed dehydrogenative arylation of arylhydrazines to access non-symmetric azobenzenes, including tetra-ortho derivatives

• Loris Geminiani,
• Kathrin Junge,
• Matthias Beller and
• Jean-François Soulé

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2234–2242, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.170

• the presence of water, highlighting its robustness. Keywords: azo compounds; cross-coupling; domino catalysis; palladium; phosphine ligands; Introduction Azobenzenes are a widely studied class of compounds known for their distinctive photoresponsive properties, rendering them valuable in a variety

• , most synthetic methods have focused on the preparation of symmetric derivatives [12][13]. Traditional approaches, such as oxidative coupling of anilines [14][15][16][17][18][19], reductive coupling of nitroarenes [20][21][22][23], or cross-coupling between anilines and nitroarenes have proven

• and co-workers developed a Chan–Evans–Lam-type oxidative cross-coupling reaction between N-arylphthalic hydrazides and arylboronic acids using copper catalysis [41]. Similarly, in 2003, Lee and co-workers introduced a desymmetrization approach employing simpler N=N precursors, specifically N-protected

The application of desymmetric enantioselective reduction of cyclic 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds in the total synthesis of terpenoid and alkaloid natural products

• Dong-Xing Tan and
• Fu-She Han

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 2085–2102, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.164

• and transformations of 43 produced hydroxyketone 44. Due to the steric hindrance of this substrate, the subsequent Suzuki cross coupling reaction with 3-boronophenol proceeded in low yield. To address this issue, Han′s group employed a novel palladacycle catalyst 45, previously developed by their

• -catalyzed Suzuki cross-coupling reaction of sterically hindered substrates developed by Han [35][36][37], the coupled product 57 was obtained in a satisfactory yield (72%) from 55 and pinacol boronate 56, along with trace amounts of the double bond migrated side product 58 (57:58 = ca. 15:1). Demethylation

• hydroxyketone 104 in excellent diastereoselectivity and enantioselectivity [9][11]. Ozonolysis of the double bond in 104 followed by Purdie methylation with Ag2O/MeI, base-mediated vinyl triflation, and Pd-catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura cross coupling with pinacol boronate 105 delivered diene 106. Next, The Et2AlCl

Measuring the stereogenic remoteness in non-central chirality: a stereocontrol connectivity index for asymmetric reactions

• Ivan Keng Wee On,
• Yu Kun Choo,
• Sambhav Baid and
• Ye Zhu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1995–2006, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.155

• –B [14] (Scheme 3E) bonds. In the case of an asymmetric cross-coupling reaction (Scheme 3C) [10], both sets of the substituents on individual aryl groups are considered because neither is involved in the bond formation/cleavage. Accordingly, the catalyst-controlled atroposelective Suzuki–Miyaura

• same procedure as in Scheme 5C. In analogy to Scheme 5B, the direct cyclization forging the planar chirality [24] in Scheme 6B is regarded as [31 10], in which two stereogenic arenes are proximate and the two distal arenes are considered diastereomeric. The desymmetrization cross-coupling of cavitands

Aryl iodane-induced cascade arylation–1,2-silyl shift–heterocyclization of propargylsilanes under copper catalysis

• Rasma Kroņkalne,
• Rūdolfs Beļaunieks,
• Armands Sebris,
• Anatoly Mishnev and
• Māris Turks

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1984–1994, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.154

• propargylsilane 7d halogenation–cyclization cascade and Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling in the second step [22]. Thus, we have developed a faster and palladium-free route towards tetrahydrofurans 8. The latter can still be modified further through silicon–halide exchange followed by cross-coupling chemistry as

• can arylate propargylsilanes and induce a 1,2-silyl shift to generate β-Si-stabilized allyl cations. Compared to the previously employed two-step halocyclization–cross-coupling sequence [22], this approach offers a shorter, [Pd]-free synthetic sequence to the modified styryl-containing tetrahydrofuran

Rhodium-catalysed connective synthesis of diverse reactive probes bearing S(VI) electrophilic warheads

• Scott Rice,
• Julian Chesti,
• William R. T. Mosedale,
• Megan H. Wright,
• Stephen P. Marsden,
• Terry K. Smith and
• Adam Nelson

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1924–1931, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.150

• -diazoamides 1. Finally, Pd-catalysed cross-coupling with warhead-substituted phenyl iodides gave, in low to moderate yield, the required α-diazoamide substrates 2 (referred to individually as D1–5 below). Whilst the Pd-catalysed arylation of α-diazoamides and esters is known [15][16][17][18][19], its

Photoswitches beyond azobenzene: a beginner’s guide

• Michela Marcon,
• Christoph Haag and
• Burkhard König

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1808–1853, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.143

• reductive cross-coupling of benzyl halides when substituents prone to reduction (CN, esters) are present (Scheme 12C). The Ullman–Goldberg coupling of 41b with Boc-hydrazine followed by deprotection and oxidation then affords 35 [55]. Asymmetric diazocines can be synthesised by Sonogashira cross-coupling

• methods for N-arylation depending on the aryl type: electron-rich and electron-neutral substituents are introduced via Chan–Lam coupling with an arylboronic acid, electron-poor aromatics via Cu(I)-catalysed cross-coupling with aryliodonium salts, and monosubstitution is achieved via Ullman–Goldberg

• aldehyde and, if required, N-functionalisation via nucleophilic substitution (for aliphatic substituents) or palladium-catalysed cross-coupling (for aromatic substituents) (Scheme 25) [77]. Hemithioindigo can be synthesised by treating phenylthioacetic acid (83) with triflic acid. Then, the product is

Fe-catalyzed efficient synthesis of 2,4- and 4-substituted quinolines via C(sp²)–C(sp²) bond scission of styrenes

• Prafull A. Jagtap,
• Manish M. Petkar,
• Vaishnavi R. Sawant and
• Bhalchandra M. Bhanage

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1799–1807, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.142

• cycloaddition, tandem annulation, intramolecular cyclization, and cross-coupling reactions are commonly employed under thermal conditions, utilizing metal catalysts based on Pd, Ru, Au, Cu, and Fe to access a wide array of substituted quinoline frameworks [29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]. Conversely, in

Synthesis of optically active folded cyclic dimers and trimers

• Ena Kumamoto,
• Kana Ogawa,
• Kazunori Okamoto and
• Yasuhiro Morisaki

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1603–1612, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.124

• –Hagihara cross-coupling [37][38] of (Sp)-1 with diiodotolane 2 afforded the corresponding ribbon-shaped compound (Sp)-3 in 39% isolated yield. Triisopropylsilyl (TIPS) groups in (Sp)-3 were removed using Bu4NF to afford diyne (Sp)-4 as a monomer in 45% isolated yield. The reaction of (Sp)-4 with

Thermodynamic equilibrium between locally excited and charge transfer states in perylene–phenothiazine dyads

• Issei Fukunaga,
• Shunsuke Kobashi,
• Yuki Nagai,
• Hiroki Horita,
• Hiromitsu Maeda and
• Yoichi Kobayashi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1577–1586, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.121

• -catalyzed cross-coupling reactions between bromo-substituted perylene or phenothiazine precursors and appropriate donor or linker units, followed by purification via column chromatography and gel permeation chromatography (Figures S18–S21 in Supporting Information File 1). The details of the syntheses are

Synthesis of an aza[5]helicene-incorporated macrocyclic heteroarene via oxidation of an o-phenylene-pyrrole-thiophene icosamer

• Yusuke Matsuo,
• Aoi Nakagawa,
• Shu Seki and
• Takayuki Tanaka

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1561–1567, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.119

• hybrid decamer 3 in a previous report [26], via a Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling reaction between dibromo precursor 1 and borylated precursor 2 (Scheme 1). The resulting mixture was successfully separated by column chromatography on silica using CH2Cl2/n-hexane as an eluent to give icosamer 4 in 6% yield

• common organic solvents. Conclusion A novel o-phenylene-pyrrole-thiophene hybrid macrocycle (icosamer 4) was synthesized via Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling and isolated in 6% yield. Oxidation of 4 with PIFA produced a partially fused aza[5]helicene-containing macrocycle 5 in 58% yield, which was also

Copper catalysis: a constantly evolving field

• Elena Fernández and
• Jaesook Yun

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1477–1479, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.109

• cross-coupling reactions of bifunctional boryl- and germyl-containing compounds. On the other hand, a Full Research Paper presented by Lee and co-workers introduces a highly regioselective formal hydrocyanation method of allenes [7]. The strategy is based on a copper-catalyzed hydroalumination of

Oxetanes: formation, reactivity and total syntheses of natural products

• Peter Gabko,
• Martin Kalník and
• Maroš Bella

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1324–1373, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.101

• transformation of alkenylstannanes into acetylated acyloins, Fürstner et al. [49] reported the synthesis of two 2-alkylideneoxetanes 57 via an unexpected Cu-catalysed intramolecular cross-coupling of hydroxyvinylstannanes 56 (Scheme 15). Besides the good yields, the stannane substrates were also readily prepared

• co-workers reported an unprecedented synthesis of 3-aryl-3-aminooxetanes 156 from amino acids 155 utilising a combination of photoredox and nickel cross-coupling catalysis (Scheme 39) [90]. The reaction uses low catalyst loadings, gives moderate to excellent yields and tolerates various functional

Recent advances and future challenges in the bottom-up synthesis of azulene-embedded nanographenes

• Bartłomiej Pigulski

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1272–1305, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.99

• cross-coupling reactions, such as the Suzuki sp2–sp2 coupling or Sonogashira sp2–sp coupling. These reactions enable the modular construction of complex precursors, which can then be transformed into azulene-embedded PAHs in the final step. Two main synthetic strategies are commonly employed: 1) The

• , the synthesis of more complex molecules may require elements of both strategies. Construction of the azulene moiety in the final step Oxidation of partially saturated precursors: With modern cross-coupling reactions providing access to larger precursors, a synthetic strategy involving the

• exceptionally high yield (97%). A Suzuki cross-coupling reaction between 47 and 45 gave compound 48 which was subjected to a final Scholl oxidation using DDQ. The target compound 49, containing two azulene subunits, was obtained in a relatively low yield (16%). Analysis of NICS values for 49 revealed similar

Recent advances in oxidative radical difunctionalization of N-arylacrylamides enabled by carbon radical reagents

• Jiangfei Chen,
• Yi-Lin Qu,
• Ming Yuan,
• Xiang-Mei Wu,
• Heng-Pei Jiang,
• Ying Fu and
• Shengrong Guo

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1207–1271, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.98

• enables the generation of alkyl radicals from alkyl chlorides, thus broadening the scope of substrates available for cross-coupling reactions. The substrate scope was thoroughly investigated, demonstrating broad compatibility with various N-methyl-N-phenylmethacrylamides and unactivated alkyl chlorides

• without the need for external oxidants. In 2018, Xu’s group reported an electrochemical dehydrogenative cyclization of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds (Scheme 11) [8]. The study focused on the electrochemical dehydrogenative cyclization of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds through intramolecular C(sp3)–H/C(sp2)–H cross

• -coupling, using Cp2Fe-catalyzed electrochemical oxidation. This method leveraged the selective activation of the acidic α-C–H bond within the 1,3-dicarbonyl moiety to generate a carbon-centered radical, which was crucial for the subsequent cyclization. The reaction was carried out under reflux conditions

A versatile route towards 6-arylpipecolic acids

• Erich Gebel,
• Cornelia Göcke,
• Carolin Gruner and
• Norbert Sewald

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1104–1115, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.88

• aryl modifications in C6 position by utilising the chiral pool of a non-proteinogenic amino acid in combination with transition metal-catalysed cross-coupling reactions. Moreover, we present an in-depth NMR analysis of the key intermediate steps, which illustrates the conformational constraints in

• accordance with coupling constants and resulting dihedral angles. Keywords: conformational restraints; dihedral angle NMR; half-chair conformation; modified amino acids; pipecolic acid; stereoselective hydrogenation; Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling; Introduction Non-proteinogenic amino acids play an

• structure of pipecolic acid is rather challenging and often necessitates early-stage derivatization followed by the formation of the six-membered ring [29][30][31][32]. An alternative is to utilise derivatization reactions such as Suzuki–Miyaura [33] or Sonogashira–Hagihara [34] cross-coupling reactions on

Recent advances in synthetic approaches for bioactive cinnamic acid derivatives

• Betty A. Kustiana,
• Galuh Widiyarti and
• Teni Ernawati

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1031–1086, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.85

• construction, alkyne hydrogenation, ylide and carbene reaction, metathesis, E/Z isomerization, and other methods, including Cα and Cβ functionalizations. Preparing various functional group-tethered aromatic groups can be achieved by directly installing an aromatic group via cross-coupling reactions and other

• interesting transformation of cinnamic acid to its derivatives can be achieved through decarboxylative cross-coupling. Recently, Wang and co-workers (2024) reported the Ag-catalyzed decarboxylative cross-coupling of cinnamic acids with isocyanide to give the corresponding amides 258–260. The reaction involves

• and using ylide 397 altered the stereoselectivity to E-isomeric products 400 and 401 [144]. Wu and co-workers (2020) employed Pd to mediate the cross-coupling reaction of sulfoxonium ylide 402 and benzyl bromides to give the corresponding (Z)-ethyl cinnamates 403–406 in good yields via carbene

Synthesis of pyrrolo[3,2-d]pyrimidine-2,4(3H)-diones by domino C–N coupling/hydroamination reactions

• Ruben Manuel Figueira de Abreu,
• Robin Tiedemann,
• Peter Ehlers and
• Peter Langer

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 1010–1017, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.82

• obtained for product 3e derived from 3-tolylacetylene. However, the yield for compound 3f dropped to 60% because of the more sterically hindered 2-tolylacetylene. The domino C–N cross-coupling/hydroamination reaction of 3a–h with various anilines was studied next (Scheme 2) [28][29]. The conditions were

• , 4l, and 4m in dichloromethane (c = 1·10−5 M). Synthesis of 3a–h. Conditions: i) Br2 (1.0 equiv), Ac2O (1.5 equiv), AcOH, 25 °C, 1 h [25]; ii) aryl acetylene (1.2 equiv), Pd(PPh3)Cl2 (5 mol %), CuI (5 mol %), NEt3 (10 equiv), DMSO, 25 °C, 6 h [26]. Yields of isolated products. C–N cross-coupling

On the photoluminescence in triarylmethyl-centered mono-, di-, and multiradicals

• Daniel Straub,
• Markus Gross,
• Mona E. Arnold,
• Julia Zolg and
• Alexander J. C. Kuehne

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 964–998, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.80

• iodine should break the symmetry; however, no effect on the absorption spectra and especially on the lower energy |D1⟩ transition has been reported [45]. Interestingly, substitution of one of the para-chlorines in TTM by iodine (I-TTM) has been reported to enable Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling, allowing

• precise C–C and C–N cross-coupling reactions only at the site of the iodine – donors were attached to TTM by radical-mediated nucleophilic aromatic substitution SRN1. The leaving group is the para-chlorine atom, of which a TTM molecule has three. It is therefore less than surprising that during this SRN1

Studies on the syntheses of β-carboline alkaloids brevicarine and brevicolline

• Benedek Batizi,
• Patrik Pollák,
• András Dancsó,
• Péter Keglevich,
• Gyula Simig,
• Balázs Volk and
• Mátyás Milen

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 955–963, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.79

• position 4 of β-carboline by cross-coupling reactions. Thanks to its scalability, this novel approach ensures a broad accessibility to the target compound for potential pharmacological measurements. Using detailed NMR studies, the NMR signals have been assigned for both the base and its dihydrochloride

• reactions: reduction of ring A of the β-carboline skeleton or trifluoroethylation of the pyrrole moiety occurred, leading to interesting and potentially useful derivatives. Keywords: alkaloid; β-carboline; Carex brevicollis DC; cross-coupling reaction; trifluoroethylation; Introduction Carex brevicollis

• , versatile key triflate intermediate 3, which allowed the introduction of substituents attached by a C–C bond to position 4 of the β-carboline scaffold by cross-coupling reactions. Sonogashira reaction of compound 3 with N-(3-butynyl)phthalimide (4) led to coupled compound 5. Cleavage of the phthalimide

Recent advances in controllable/divergent synthesis

• Jilei Cao,
• Leiyang Bai and
• Xuefeng Jiang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 890–914, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.73

• annulations of strained cyclic allenes with π-allyl palladium complexes and proposed mechanism [22]. Ring expansion of benzosilacyclobutenes with alkynes [23]. Photoinduced regiodivergent and enantioselective cross-coupling [24]. Catalyst-controlled regiodivergent and enantioselective formal hydroamination of