Enrique Gómez‐Bengoa

A mechanistic and computational study on the reductive cleavage of C-OMe bonds catalyzed by Ni(COD)(2)/PCy(3) with silanes as reducing agents is reported herein. Specifically, we demonstrate that the mechanism for this transformation does not proceed via oxidative addition of the Ni(0) precatalyst into the C-OMe bond. In the absence of an external reducing agent, the in-situ-generated oxidative addition complexes rapidly undergo β-hydride elimination at room temperature, ultimately leading to either Ni(0)-carbonyl- or Ni(0)-aldehyde-bound complexes. Characterization of these complexes by X-ray crystallography unambiguously suggested a different mechanistic scenario when silanes are present in the reaction media. Isotopic-labeling experiments, kinetic isotope effects, and computational studies clearly reinforced this perception. Additionally, we also found that water has a deleterious effect by deactivating the Ni catalyst via formation of a new Ni-bridged hydroxo species that was characterized by X-ray crystallography. The order in each component was determined by plotting the initial rates of the C-OMe bond cleavage at varying concentrations. These data together with the in-situ-monitoring experiments by (1)H NMR, EPR, IR spectroscopy, and theoretical calculations provided a mechanistic picture that involves Ni(I) as the key reaction intermediates, which are generated via comproportionation of initially formed Ni(II) species. This study strongly supports that a classical Ni(0)/Ni(II) for C-OMe bond cleavage is not operating, thus opening up new perspectives to be implemented in other related C-O bond-cleavage reactions.

Discriminating reactions: While no self-aldol reaction is observed in the reaction shown, catalyst 1 promotes the Michael addition of aldehydes to nitroalkenes with the lowest catalyst loading and lowest stoichiometric ratio of reactant aldehyde that have been reported so far for this type of reaction. Supporting information for this article is available on the WWW under http://www.wiley-vch.de/contents/jc_2002/2006/z602207_s.pdf or from the author. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.

The reaction of 3-cyclopropyl propargylic carboxylates with Au(I) and Au(III) catalysts affords selectively 5-(E)-alkylidenecyclopentenyl acetates via [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement of the carboxylic moiety followed by cyclopropyl ring opening and cyclization. DFT calculations have been performed, supporting a two-step no-intermediate mechanism along the cyclization coordinate. The stereoselective formation of the exocyclic alkenes is kinetically controlled in the first of these events. Although stereospecific in nature through a gold-stabilized nonclassical carbocation, the chirality transfer in these cyclopentannulations is not complete. Computational and experimental evidence is provided for a Au-promoted cyclopropyl ring opening/epimerization/ring closure in both cis- and trans-cyclopropyl settings, which competes with the cyclization event, thus eroding the stereochemical information transfer. When tertiary acetates were used, products of both 1,2- and 1,3-acyloxy migration processes could be isolated, supporting the competitive coexistence of these two pathways along the reaction profile, as suggested also by DFT calculations.

Chiral trans-cyclohexanediamine-benzimidazole organocatalysts promote the conjugate addition of a wide variety of 1,3-dicarbonyl compounds such as malonates, ketoesters, and 1,3-diketones to nitroolefins in the presence of TFA as cocatalyst in toluene as solvent at rt or 0 degrees C. The Michael adducts are obtained in high yield and enantioselectivity, using the chiral 2-aminobenzimidazole 7b as hydrogen-bond-mediated chiral organocatalyst. This catalyst can be recovered by acid-base extractive workup in 94% yield. The proposed bifunctional Brønsted acid-base activation role of the catalyst and the origin of the stereoselectivity of the process is in agreement with DFT calculations. According to these calculations, the protonated tertiary amine from the cyclohexanediamine backbond activates the nitroolefin, while the benzimidazole unit activates the 1,3-dicarbonyl nucleophile.

An efficient catalytic asymmetric aza-Henry reaction under phase transfer conditions is presented. The method is based on the reaction of the respective nitroalkane with alpha-amido sulfones effected by CsOH x H2O base in toluene as solvent and in the presence of cinchone-derived ammonium catalysts. This direct aza-Henry reaction presents as interesting features its validity for both nonenolizable and enolizable aldehyde-derived azomethines and the tolerance of nitroalkanes, other than nitromethane, for the production of beta-nitroamines. The synthetic value of the methodology described is demonstrated by providing (a) a direct route for the asymmetric synthesis of differently substituted 1,2-diamines and (b) a new asymmetric synthesis of gamma-amino alpha,beta-unsaturated esters through a catalytic, highly enantioselective formal addition of functionalized alkenyl groups to azomethines. Finally, a preferred TS that nicely fits the observed enantioselectivity has been identified. Most remarkable, an unusual hydrogen bond pattern for the catalyst-nitrocompound-imine complex is predicted, where the catalyst OH group interacts with the NO2 group of the nitrocompound.