Efficient Z-Selective Olefin-Acrylamide Cross-Metathesis Enabled by Sterically Demanding Cyclometalated Ruthenium Catalysts

Zhang S., Neumann H., Beller M.

Carbonylation reactions represent one of the most important tool box for the synthesis of α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds which are key building blocks in organic chemistry. This paper summarizes the most important advances in this field.

Liu Z., Xu C., del Pozo J., Torker S., Hoveyda A.H.

Despite notable progress, olefin metathesis methods for preparation of ( Z)-α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds, applicable to the synthesis of a large variety of bioactive molecules, remain scarce. Especially desirable are transformations that can be promoted by ruthenium-based catalysts, as such entities would allow direct access to carboxylic esters and amides, or acids (in contrast to molybdenum- or tungsten-based alkylidenes). Here, we detail how, based on the mechanistic insight obtained through computational and experimental studies, a readily accessible ruthenium catechothiolate complex was found that may be used to generate many α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds in up to 81% yield and ≥98:2 Z/ E ratio. We show that through the use of a complex bearing an unsaturated N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand, for the first time, products derived from the more electron-deficient esters, acids, and Weinreb amides (vs primary or secondary amides) can be synthesized efficiently and with high stereochemical control. The importance of the new advance to synthesis of bioactive compounds is illustrated through two representative applications: an eight-step, 15% overall yield, and completely Z-selective route leading to an intermediate that may be used in synthesis of stagonolide E (vs 11 steps, 4% overall yield and 91% Z, previously), and a five-step, 25% overall yield sequence to access a precursor to dihydrocompactin (vs 13 steps and 5% overall yield, formerly).

Małecki P., Gajda K., Gajda R., Woźniak K., Trzaskowski B., Kajetanowicz A., Grela K.

Second-generation ruthenium olefin metathesis catalysts were investigated with systematic variation of the unsymmetrical uNHC ligands. Depending on the uNHC steric bulk, the catalysts exhibited dif...

Li J., Ahmed T.S., Xu C., Stoltz B.M., Grubbs R.H.

Δ12-Prostaglandin J family is recently discovered and has potent anticancer activity. Concise syntheses of four Δ12-prostaglandin J natural products (7-8 steps in the longest linear sequences) are reported, enabled by convergent stereoretentive cross-metathesis. Exceptional control of alkene geometry was achieved through stereoretention.

Nomura D.K., Maimone T.J.

There are countless natural products that have been isolated from microbes, plants, and other living organisms that have been shown to possess therapeutic activities such as antimicrobial, anticancer, or anti-inflammatory effects. However, developing these bioactive natural products into drugs has remained challenging in part because of their difficulty in isolation, synthesis, mechanistic understanding, and off-target effects. Among the large pool of bioactive natural products lies classes of compounds that contain potential reactive electrophilic centers that can covalently react with nucleophilic amino acid hotspots on proteins and other biological molecules to modulate their biological action. Covalently acting natural products are more amenable to rapid target identification and mapping of specific druggable hotspots within proteins using activity-based protein profiling (ABPP)-based chemoproteomic strategies. In addition, the granular biochemical insights afforded by knowing specific sites of protein modifications of covalently acting natural products enable the pharmacological interrogation of these sites with more synthetically tractable covalently acting small molecules whose structures are more easily tuned. Both discovering binding pockets and targets hit by natural products and exploiting druggable modalities targeted by natural products with simpler molecules may overcome some of the challenges faced with translating natural products into drugs.

Dumas A., Tarrieu R., Vives T., Roisnel T., Dorcet V., Baslé O., Mauduit M.

A ruthenium catalyst for Z-selective olefin metathesis has been synthesized from a readily accessible N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand that is prepared using an efficient, practical, and scalable multicomponent synthesis. The desired ruthenium complex with cyclometalated NHC ligand is obtained by means of selective C(sp3)-H activation at the adamantyl fragment and X-ray diffraction analysis unambiguously confirmed the structure of the precatalyst. The catalyst demonstrated attractive catalytic performance in self- and cross-metathesis at low catalyst loading to afford the desired internal olefins with high conversion and very high Z-selectivity (up to >99%). The versatility of the chelated catalyst is illustrated by the high cis-selectivity (up to >98%) and high tacticity control (up to >98% syndiotactic) achieved in ring-opening polymerization, allowing for the production of highly microstructurally controlled norbornene-, norbornadiene-, and cyclopropene-derived polymers.

Froese R.D., Lombardi C., Pompeo M., Rucker R.P., Organ M.G.

Over the past decade, the use of Pd-NHC complexes in cross-coupling applications has blossomed, and reactions that were either not previously possible or possible only under very forcing conditions (e.g., > 100 °C, strong base) are now feasible under mild conditions (e.g., room temperature, weak base). Access to tools such as computational chemistry has facilitated a much greater mechanistic understanding of catalytic cycles, which has enabled the design of new NHC ligands and accelerated advances in cross-coupling. With these elements of rational design, highly reactive Pd-NHC complexes have been invented to catalyze the selective formation of single products in a variety of transformations that have the potential to afford multiple compounds (e.g., isomers). Pd-NHC catalysts may be prepared as stable Pd(II) precatalysts that are readily reduced to the active Pd(0) species in the presence of an organometallic cross-coupling partner or nucleophile possessing β-hydrogens. It has been found from computational and experimental results that Pd-NHC complexes bearing a single bulky NHC ligand are well-suited to tackle challenging cross-coupling reactions. N-Aryl-substituted imidazole-2-ylidenes with branched alkyl chains at the ortho positions of the aryl group are effective for the challenging couplings of hindered biaryls, secondary alkyl organozincs, electron-deficient anilines, α-amino esters, primary alkylamines, and ammonia. The bulk of the NHC has been tuned by increasing the size of the alkyl groups at the ortho positions and substituting the NHC core with chlorine substituents. All of the cross-coupling transformations studied benefit from the increased bulk when the ortho groups are changed from methyl to 2-propyl to 3-pentyl. However, there is a limit to the positive effect of steric bulk, as some reactions do not benefit from the increased size of the 4-heptyl group compared with 3-pentyl. Thus, there is an optimum size for the NHC ligand that depends upon whether reactivity (turnover frequency and turnover number), selectivity, or both are needed to obtain the desired reaction outcome. In the cases that we have studied, reactivity and selectivity increase together (i.e., the fastest catalyst is also the most selective), allowing cross-couplings to be carried out under mild conditions to obtain one product with high selectivity. This Account focuses on seminal literature reports that have disclosed new Pd-NHC complexes that have led to significant breakthroughs in efficacy for challenging couplings while demonstrating high selectivity for the desired target. These catalysts have been used widely in materials science, pharmaceutical, and agrochemical applications.

Xu C., Shen X., Hoveyda A.H.

In situ methylene capping is introduced as a practical and broadly applicable strategy that can expand the scope of catalyst-controlled stereoselective olefin metathesis considerably. By incorporation of commercially available Z-butene together with robust and readily accessible Ru-based dithiolate catalysts developed in these laboratories, a large variety of transformations can be made to proceed with terminal alkenes, without the need for a priori synthesis of a stereochemically defined disubstituted olefin. Reactions thus proceed with significantly higher efficiency and Z selectivity as compared to when other Ru-, Mo-, or W-based complexes are utilized. Cross-metathesis with olefins that contain a carboxylic acid, an aldehyde, an allylic alcohol, an aryl olefin, an α substituent, or amino acid residues was carried out to generate the desired products in 47-88% yield and 90:10 to >98:2 Z:E selectivity. Transformations were equally efficient and stereoselective with a ∼70:30 Z-:E-butene mixture, which is a byproduct of crude oil cracking. The in situ methylene capping strategy was used with the same Ru catechothiolate complex (no catalyst modification necessary) to perform ring-closing metathesis reactions, generating 14- to 21-membered ring macrocyclic alkenes in 40-70% yield and 96:4-98:2 Z:E selectivity; here too, reactions were more efficient and Z-selective than when the other catalyst classes are employed. The utility of the approach is highlighted by applications to efficient and stereoselective syntheses of several biologically active molecules. This includes a platelet aggregate inhibitor and two members of the prostaglandin family of compounds by catalytic cross-metathesis reactions, and a strained 14-membered ring stapled peptide by means of macrocyclic ring-closing metathesis. The approach presented herein is likely to have a notable effect on broadening the scope of olefin metathesis, as the stability of methylidene complexes is a generally debilitating issue with all types of catalyst systems. Illustrative examples of kinetically controlled E-selective cross-metathesis and macrocyclic ring-closing reactions, where E-butene serves as the methylene capping agent, are provided.

Montgomery T.P., Ahmed T.S., Grubbs R.H.

Olefin metathesis is an incredibly valuable transformation that has gained widespread use in both academic and industrial settings. Lately, stereoretentive olefin metathesis has garnered much attention as a method for the selective generation of both E- and Z-olefins. Early studies employing ill-defined catalysts showed evidence for retention of the stereochemistry of the starting olefins at low conversion. However, thermodynamic ratios E/Z were reached as the reaction proceeded to equilibrium. Recent studies in olefin metathesis have focused on the synthesis of catalysts that can overcome the inherent thermodynamic preference of an olefin, providing synthetically useful quantities of a kinetically favored olefin isomer. These reports have led to the development of stereoretentive catalysts that not only generate Z-olefins selectively, but also kinetically produce E-olefins, a previously unmet challenge in olefin metathesis. Advancements in stereoretentive olefin metathesis using tungsten, ruthenium, and molybdenum catalysts are presented.

Sinclair F., Alkattan M., Prunet J., Shaver M.P.

The use of olefin cross metathesis in preparing functional polymers, through either pre-functionalisation of monomers or post-polymerisation functionalisation is growing in both scope and breadth. The broad functional group tolerance of olefin metathesis offers a wealth of opportunities for introducing a broad range of functional groups into the polymer backbone, tuning polymer properties and expanding potential applications. Similarly, ring-closing metathesis offers the ability to tune the polymer macrostructure and microstructure to similar effect. In this review, we explore the importance of understanding selectivity in olefin cross metathesis in designing functional polymers, the manipulation of this reactivity to prepare (multi)functional polymers, and show how polymer systems can be constructed to favour ring closing and change backbone structure and properties.

Gómez-Suárez A., Nelson D.J., Nolan S.P.

This Feature Article presents and discusses the use of different methods to quantify and explore the steric impact of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands.

Ahmed T.S., Grubbs R.H.

Ruthenium-based olefin metathesis catalysts bearing dithiolate ligands have been recently employed to generate olefins with high E-selectivity (>99% E) but have been limited by low to moderate yields. In this report, 1H NMR studies reveal that a major contributing factor to this low activity is the extremely low initiation rates of these catalysts with trans olefins. Introducing a 2-isopropoxy-3-phenylbenzylidene ligand in place of the conventional 2-isopropoxybenzylidene ligand resulted in catalysts that initiate rapidly under reaction conditions. As a result, reactions were completed in significantly less time and delivered higher yields than those in previous reports while maintaining high stereoselectivity (>99% E).

Yu E.C., Johnson B.M., Townsend E.M., Schrock R.R., Hoveyda A.H.

Kinetically controlled catalytic cross-metathesis reactions that generate (Z)-α,β-unsaturated esters selectively are disclosed. A key finding is that the presence of acetonitrile obviates the need for using excess amounts of a more valuable terminal alkene substrates. On the basis of X-ray structure and spectroscopic investigations a rationale for the positive impact of acetonitrile is provided. Transformations leading to various E,Z-dienoates are highly Z-selective as well. Utility is highlighted by application to stereoselective synthesis of the C1-C12 fragment of biologically active natural product (-)-laulimalide.

Johns A.M., Ahmed T.S., Jackson B.W., Grubbs R.H., Pederson R.L.

The first kinetically controlled, highly trans-selective (>98%) olefin cross-metathesis reaction is demonstrated using Ru-based catalysts. Reactions with either trans or cis olefins afford products with highly trans or cis stereochemistry, respectively. This E-selective olefin cross-metathesis is shown to occur between two trans olefins and between a trans olefin and a terminal olefin. Additionally, new stereoretentive catalysts have been synthesized for improved reactivity.

Engle K.M., Lu G., Luo S., Henling L.M., Takase M.K., Liu P., Houk K.N., Grubbs R.H.

A series of second-generation ruthenium olefin metathesis catalysts was investigated using a combination of reaction kinetics, X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, and DFT calculations in order to determine the relationship between the structure of the chelating o-alkoxybenzylidene and the observed initiation rate. Included in this series were previously reported catalysts containing a variety of benzylidene modifications as well as four new catalysts containing cyclopropoxy, neopentyloxy, 1-adamantyloxy, and 2-adamantyloxy groups. The initiation rates of this series of catalysts were determined using a UV/vis assay. All four new catalysts were observed to be faster-initiating than the corresponding isopropoxy control, and the 2-adamantyloxy catalyst was found to be among the fastest-initiating Hoveyda-type catalysts reported to date. Analysis of the X-ray crystal structures and computed energy-minimized structures of these catalysts revealed no correlation between the Ru-O bond length and Ru-O bond strength. On the other hand, the initiation rate was found to correlate strongly with the computed Ru-O bond strength. This latter finding enables both the rationalization and prediction of catalyst initiation through the calculation of a single thermodynamic parameter in which no assumptions about the mechanism of the initiation step are made.

Shaff A.B., Hazra A., Gardner B.W., Lalic G.

Krzesiński P., Gajda K., Vendier L., Kajetanowicz A., Grela K., Bastin S., César V.

AbstractA novel reactivity of 5‐barbiturate imidazo[1,5‐a]pyridinium 1⋅H with [Ru(2‐methylallyl)2(COD)] was explored which led to the formation of an uncommon, zwitterionic complex [Ru(1’)(1⋅H)], composed of the NHC ligand 1’, cyclometallated at one ortho‐methyl position of the N‐mesityl substituent, and the zwitterionic precursor 1⋅H. Barbiturate moieties coordinate either through a η3 mode or through coordination of the anionic oxygen atom to ensure the coordination saturation and stability to the complex. The addition of pivalic acid results in the protonolysis of the Ru‐Calkyl bond and demetallation of the N‐mesityl, while triphenylphosphine and pyridine are able to displace the rather labile 1⋅H ligand. Attempts to incorporate an alkylidene fragment from these complexes led to the isolation of a rare complex 7 bearing an alkylidene tethered to a η5‐cyclopentadienyl ligand formed by phenylacetylene tetramerization.

Reim I., Occhipinti G., Törnroos K.W., Jensen V.R.

Cheng-Sánchez I., Moya-Utrera F., Sarabia F.

Baumann J.E., Chung C.P., Lalic G.

AbstractAlkenes are an important class of organic molecules found among synthetic intermediates and bioactive compounds. They are commonly synthesized through stoichiometric Wittig‐type olefination of carbonyls and imines, using ylides or their equivalents. Despite the importance of Wittig‐type olefination reactions, their catalytic variants remain underdeveloped. We explored the use of transition metal catalysis to form ylide equivalents from readily available starting materials. Our investigation led to a new copper‐catalyzed olefination of imines with alkenyl boronate esters as coupling partners. We identified a heterobimetallic complex, obtained by hydrocupration of the alkenyl boronate esters, as the key catalytic intermediate that serves as an ylide equivalent. The high E‐selectivity observed in the reaction is due to the stereoselective addition of this intermediate to an imine, followed by stereospecific anti‐elimination.

Baumann J.E., Chung C.P., Lalic G.

AbstractAlkenes are an important class of organic molecules found among synthetic intermediates and bioactive compounds. They are commonly synthesized through stoichiometric Wittig‐type olefination of carbonyls and imines, using ylides or their equivalents. Despite the importance of Wittig‐type olefination reactions, their catalytic variants remain underdeveloped. We explored the use of transition metal catalysis to form ylide equivalents from readily available starting materials. Our investigation led to a new copper‐catalyzed olefination of imines with alkenyl boronate esters as coupling partners. We identified a heterobimetallic complex, obtained by hydrocupration of the alkenyl boronate esters, as the key catalytic intermediate that serves as an ylide equivalent. The high E‐selectivity observed in the reaction is due to the stereoselective addition of this intermediate to an imine, followed by stereospecific anti‐elimination.

Wang Y., Zhang Z., Xu Y.

Li S., Feng S., Zhou Y., Liu C., Chen B., Xing X.

Diaz-González V., Paredes-Gil K.

Recently, sterically demanding N-heterocyclic cyclometalated ruthenium were reported as efficient Z-selective catalysts for cross-metathesis, showing a different reactivity in the function of the auxiliary ligand and the bulky ligand. To understand the origin of this behavior, we carried out density functional (M06-L) calculations to explore the reaction mechanism and insight from the energetic contributions into the determinant step. We emphasize the differences that occur when the 2,6-diisopropylphenyl (Dipp) and 2,6-diisopentylphenyl (Dipep) are employed. The results show that the barrier energies, ΔG‡, increase when the bulky ligand is greater, using nitrate as an auxiliary ligand, while the opposite behavior is obtained when pivalate is the auxiliary ligand. This tendency has its origin in the low reorganization energy and the less steric hindrance (%Vbur) obtained in catalysts that involve nitrate ligand and Dipep group. Moreover, by scrutinizing the energy decomposition analysis (EDA), it is found that the electronic contributions are also dominant and are not uniquely the steric effects that control the Z-selectivity.

Kundu K., Musso J.V., Benedikter M.J., Frey W., Gugeler K., Kästner J., Buchmeiser M.R.

AbstractThe first neutral and cationic Mo imido alkylidene cyclic alkyl amino carbene (CAAC) complexes of the general formulae [Mo(N−Ar)(CHCMe2Ph)(X)2(CAAC)] and [Mo(N−Ar)(CHCMe2Ph)(X)(CAAC)][B(ArF)4] (X=Br, Cl, OTf, OC6F5; CAAC=1‐(2,6‐iPr2‐C6H3)‐3,3,5,5‐tetramethyltetrahydropyrrol‐2‐ylidene) have been synthesized from molybdenum imido bishalide alkylidene DME precursors. Different combinations of the imido and “X” ligands have been employed to understand synthetic peculiarities. Selected complexes have been characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray analysis. Due to the pronounced σ‐donor/π‐acceptor characteristics of CAACs, the corresponding neutral and cationic molybdenum imido alkylidene CAAC complexes do not require the presence of stabilizing donor ligands such as nitriles. Calculations on the PBE0‐D3BJ/def2‐TZVP level for PBE0‐D3BJ/def2‐SVP optimized geometries revealed partial charges at molybdenum similar to the corresponding molybdenum imido alkylidene N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) complexes with a slightly higher polarization of the molybdenum alkylidene bond in the CAAC complexes. All cationic complexes have been tested in olefin metathesis reactions and showed improved activity compared to the analogous NHC complexes for hydrocarbon‐based substrates, allowing for turnover numbers (TONs) up to 9500 even at room temperature. Some Mo imido alkylidene CAAC complexes are tolerant towards functional groups like thioethers and sulfonamides.

Zhao F., Li Y., Houk K.N., Lu Q., Liu F.

Kempel S.J., Hsu T., Nicholson J.L., Michaudel Q.

Gajda K., Sytniczuk A., Vendier L., Trzaskowski B., Lugan N., Kajetanowicz A., Bastin S., Grela K., César V.

AbstractThree Hoveyda‐Grubbs complexes supported by N‐(9‐alkylfluorenyl)imidazol‐2‐ylidene ligands (alkyl=methyl, ethyl or benzyl) have been synthesized. With the aim to generate chelating, cyclometalated (C,CNHC) ruthenium complexes for Z‐selective olefin metathesis, the C(sp3)‐H activation of the dangling alkyl group has been studied. While the methyl derivative leads to the expected cyclometalated complex, a C(sp2)‐H activation of the fluorenyl moiety and no evolution/transformation are observed for the ethyl and benzyl derivatives, respectively. Although highly fragile under catalytic conditions, the cyclometalated complex leads to Z/E stereoselectivity up to 94/6. An unprecedented insertion of the alkylidene moiety into the Ru‐CNHC bond leading to ruthenium N‐heterocyclic olefin complexes is also observed and supported by calculations of the corresponding reaction pathway.

Morvan J., Bouëtard D., Kong L., Chou Y., Vives T., Albalat M., Roisnel T., Crévisy C., Nava P., Humbel S., Vanthuyne N., Clavier H., Mauduit M.

Penk D.N., Endres E.J., Nuriye A.Y., Macdonald J.E.

Modern bottom-up synthesis to nanocrystalline solid-state materials often lacks the reasoned product control that molecular chemistry boasts from having over a century of research and development. In this study, six transition metals including iron, cobalt, nickel, ruthenium, palladium, and platinum were reacted with the mild reagent didodecyl ditelluride in their acetylacetonate, chloride, bromide, iodide, and triflate salts. This systematic analysis demonstrates how rationally matching the reactivity of metal salts to the telluride precursor is necessary for the successful production of metal tellurides. The trends in reactivity suggest that radical stability is the better predictor of metal salt reactivity than hard–soft acid–base theory. Of the six transition-metal tellurides, the first colloidal syntheses of iron and ruthenium tellurides (FeTe2 and RuTe2) are reported.