We describe herein the assembly of the cis-decalin framework through radical cyclization initiated by metalcatalyzedh ydrogen atom transfer (MHAT), further applied it in the asymmetric synthesis of dankasterones Aa nd Ba nd periconiastone A. Position-selective C À Hoxygenation allowed for installation of the necessary functionality.Aradical rearrangement was adopted to create 13(14!8)abeo-8-ergostane skeleton. Interconversion of dankasterone Ba nd periconiastone Awas realized through biomimetic intramolecular aldol and retro-aldol reactions.T he MHAT-based approach, serves as an ew dissection means,i sc omplementary to the conventional ways to establish cis-decalin framework.

We describe herein a palladium-catalyzed Heck-type reaction of O-acetyl ketoximes and allylic alcohols to synthesise pyridines. This protocol allows the robust synthesis of pyridines and azafluorenones in good to excellent yields with tolerance of various functional groups under mild conditions. The reaction is supposed to go through an oxidative addition of oximes to palladium(0) complexes, generating an alkylideneamino-palladium(II) species, which is utilized as a key intermediate to capture the nonbiased alkenes for carbon-carbon bond formation.

The first example for the generation of carbonyl ylides from palladium carbenes is reported. Systematic investigation of the substituents attached to the carbonyl group indicates that the employment of trifluoromethyl group as the substituent is very critical for the success of this transformation. The remarkable fluorine effect on the reactivity is very impressive, which allows the construction of various trifluoromethylated oxiranes in high yields and diastereoselectivities.magnified image

A Pd-catalyzed highly regioselective hydrocarboxylation of alkynes with carbon dioxide has been established. By the combination of Pd(PPh 3 ) 4 and 2,2′-bis(diphenylphosphino)-1,1′binaphthalene (binap), a variety of functionalized alkynes, including aryl alkynes, aliphatic alkynes, propargylamines, and propargyl ethers, could be leveraged to provide a wide array of αacrylic acids in high yields with high regioselectivity under mild reaction conditions. Experimental and DFT mechanistic studies revealed that this reaction proceeded via the cyclopalladation process of alkynes and carbon dioxide in the presence of binap to generate a five-membered palladalactone intermediate and enabled the formation of Markovnikov adducts. Moreover, this strategy provided an effective method for the late-stage functionalization of alkyne-containing complicated molecules, including natural products and pharmaceuticals.

Cyclopropanation of 2-aminoacrylates with N-tosylhydrazones could proceed smoothly under transition-metal-free conditions via a [3 + 2] cycloaddition process. This robust protocol exhibits excellent generality, delivering a wide spectrum of cyclopropane α-amino acid esters bearing contiguous quaternary carbon centers in high yields and diastereoselectivities. With these readily available products, the steric convergence of cyclopropane α-amino acids could be readily obtained.

A palladium-catalyzed cyclopropanation of internal alkenes with N-tosylhydrazones is presented. This gram-scale cyclopropanation reaction of maleimides provides a wide spectrum of 3-azabicyclo[3.1.0]hexane derivatives in high yields and diastereoselectivities. The major diastereoisomers could be easily isolated by chromatography on silica gel. This protocol provides a practical route to the mu opioid receptor antagonist CP-866,087.

A catalyst-free oxidative radical sulfonylation of haloalkynes with sulfonyl hydrazides is reported. It represents an example of C(sp)-S bond formation using sulfonyl hydrazides as sulfonyl radical sources. Various alkynyl sulfones were synthesized in moderate to good yields. Having MnO as the oxidant is very critical for this transformation. Remarkably, the self-coupling reaction of haloalkynes through C(sp)-C(sp) bond formation is significantly inhibited under the standard reaction conditions.

The first example of the epoxidation reaction of trifluoromethylketones with N-tosylhydrazones under transition-metal free conditions is reported. This epoxidation reaction provided tetrasubstituted trifluoromethylated oxiranes with excellent yields and diastereoselectivities. The salient features of this reaction include readily available starting materials, mild conditions, broad substrate scope, high efficiency, and valuable further applications. Remarkably, this reaction proceeded through an unprecedented nucleophilic addition process, and the ammonium O-anion intermediate was detected and characterized by NMR and HRMS analysis.