Recent Advances in the Catalytic Synthesis of α-Ketoamides

α-Ketoamides are privileged chemical entities featuring a carbonyl group bonded to an amide. Bearing two pronucleophilic and two proelectrophilic sites, this structural scaffold exhibits distinct chemical properties and unparalleled biological activity. Owing to its wide application in medicinal, agricultural, and synthetic chemistry, methods for assembling this distinct moiety are ever-growing in demand. With the increasing focus on green synthesis, traditional routes to α-ketoamides have faded in recent years giving rise to the development of photocatalytic, electrosynthetic, and microwave-assisted catalytic protocols. We hereby provide a comprehensive and critical summary of all the catalytic advancements witnessed in this field from 2016 to the present.

An expeditious one-pot synthesis of pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines using Fe3O4–ZnO–NH2–PW12O40 nanocatalyst

An efficient protocol for the facile synthesis of a series of pyrido[2,3- d]pyrimidine derivatives has been developed applying Fe3O4–ZnO–NH2–PW12O40 nanocatalyst in water. This novel method has the benefits of operational simplicity, green aspects by avoiding toxic solvents and high to excellent yields of products. Fe3O4–ZnO–NH2–PW12O40 was synthesized and characterized by Fourier transform infrared, X-ray diffraction, vibrating sample magnetometer, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy analyses. The nanocatalyst is readily isolated and recovered from the reaction mixture by an external magnet.

Selective synthesis of aryl thioamides and aryl-α-ketoamides from α-oxocarboxylic acids and tetraalkylthiuram disulfides: an unexpected chemoselectivity from aryl sulfonyl chlorides

Tosyl chloride-controlled generation of thioamides and α-ketoamides via base-promoted decarboxylative reaction of α-oxocarboxylic acids with tetraalkylthiuram disulfides has been established.