Photo-oxidative Ruthenium(II)-Catalyzed Formal [3 + 2] Heterocyclization of Thioamides to Thiadiazoles

Recent Developments on the Synthesis of Oxygen- and Sulfur-containing Heterocycles and their Derivatives under Visible Light Induced Reactions

Visible-light-mediated reactions have recently emerged as a powerful strategy for the synthesis of diverse organic molecules under mild reaction conditions. Usually, the reactions are performed at room temperature and thus sensitive functional groups remain unaffected. Thus, this protocol has received intense interest from academia as well as industries. The heterocycles, in general, are of much interest because of their biological activities and application in therapeutics. The Oxygen- and Sulfur-containing heterocyclic compounds have recently attracted attention as these compounds showed promising activities as anti-cancer drugs, antibiotics, antifungal and anti-inflammatory agents among other applications. The synthesis of this class of compounds by efficient and greener routes has become an important target. This review highlights the various procedures for the synthesis of these compounds and their derivatives under visible light-induced reactions. The green aspects and mechanism of each procedure have been discussed.

LiBr-Promoted Reaction of β-Ketodithioesters and Thioamides with Sulfoxonium Ylides to Synthesize Functionalized Thiophenes

An operationally simple and highly efficient synthesis of functionalized thiophenes has been developed by LiBr promoted heteroannulation of β-ketodithioesters and thioamides with bench-stable sulfoxonium ylides in open air for the first time. This one-pot strategy involves formal Csp3-H bond insertion/intramolecular cyclization cascade, featuring readily accessible starting materials, TM and additive-free condition, broad substrate scope, high functional group compatibility, and scalability. Moreover, the carbonyl, thiomethyl, and amino groups in the resulting thiophene provide a good handle on downstream transformations.

PIDA-promoted metal-free [3 + 2] heteroannulation of β-ketothioamides with 4-hydroxy coumarins: chemo-/regioselective access to furo[3,2-c]chromen-4-ones at room temperature

Herein, we report a viable protocol to access furo[3,2-c]chromen-4-ones by engaging easily accessible 4-hydroxy coumarins as a three-atom CCO unit and thioamides as a C2 coupling partner, mediated by phenyliodine(III) diacetate (PIDA) at room temperature in a highly efficient and pot-/step-economical manner. This strategy not only avoids potential toxicity and tiresome workup conditions, but also features operational simplicity, a broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, high yields, easy scalability and exclusive selectivity. A mechanistic study has shown that this metal-free reaction is triggered by PIDA via activation of the β-carbon of 4-hydroxy coumarin, followed by a nucleophilic addition/intramolecular cyclization/dethiohydration cascade. High-resolution mass spectra (HRMS) study confirms the key intermediates involved during the course of the reaction, elucidating the reaction pathways, and demonstrates the excellent regio- and chemoselectivity of this approach.

Chemodivergent Synthesis of Benzothiadiazin-3-one 1-Oxides and Benzisothiazol-3-ones via Visible Light-Promoted Intramolecular N-S Bond Formation

We reported a versatile protocol to chemodivergently construct significant heterocyclic scaffolds of benzothiadiazin-3-one 1-oxides and benzisothiazol-3-ones by visible light-promoted photocatalysis. This substrate-dependent chemoselective strategy enables N-(2-mercaptophenyl)-N'-substituted ureas through the N-S bond coupling/oxidation cascade to selectively produce benzothiadiazin-3-one 1-oxides; however, the transformation of 2-mercaptobenzamides only occurs via N-S bond coupling to access benzisothiazol-3-ones with moderate to good yields. This strategy features mild conditions, excellent chemoselectivity, and functional group compatibility, which has potential applications in organic and medicinal chemistry.

Access to Functionalized Thiazolothiadiazoles via the Chemoselective Cascade Heteroannulation of Thioamides with Hypervalent Iodine Reagents

We describe herein a chemo- and regioselective cascade annulation between β-ketothioamides and diazo-substituted hypervalent iodine reagents under transition-metal-free and base-free conditions at room temperature. Thus, a divergent construction of fused-heterocyclic scaffold thiazolothiadiazoles has been achieved with the advantages of operational simplicity, scalability, broad substrate compatibility, and mild reaction conditions. This one-pot strategy not only avoids potential toxicity but also broadens the arsenal of synthetic methods to obtain fused N,S-heterocyclic frameworks.

Synthesis of pyrrole disulfides via umpolung of β-ketothioamides

A Na₂CO₃-promoted reaction of β-ketothioamides (KTAs) and cyanoacetates was developed for the synthesis of pyrrole disulfides using air as a green oxidant. This protocol features a broad substrate scope and mild reaction conditions. Preliminary mechanistic studies indicate that the reaction involves a tandem unusual umpolung of KTAs, N-cyclization, tautomerization and oxidative coupling process.

Tandem Synthesis of 1,2,3-Thiadiazoles with 3,4-Dichloroisothiazoles and Hydrazines under External Oxidant- and Sulfur-Free Conditions

1,2,3-Thiadiazoles are among the most important heterocyclic motifs, with wide applications in natural products and medicinal chemistry. Herein, we disclose a tandem reaction for the synthesis of structurally diverse 1,2,3-thiadiazoles from 3,4-dichloroisothiazol-5-ketones and hydrazines. This method is characterized by mild external oxidant- and sulter-free reaction conditions, a broad substrate scope, and easy purification.

Metal-Free One-Pot Annulative Coupling of 2-Hydroxybenzaldehydes with β-Ketothioamides: Access to Diverse 2-Arylimino-2H-Chromenes

A concise and practical one-pot sustainable approach for expedient synthesis of 2-arylimino-2H-chromenes by two-component cascade [4 + 2] annulative coupling of easily available 2-hydroxybenzaldehydes with β-ketothioamides has been developed in good yields for the first time. Remarkably, metal- and additive-free conditions, use of simple K₂CO₃ as a mild base, open atmosphere, exclusive regioselectivity, step/atom economy, nonhazardous reagents, and easy purification are added characteristics to the strategy. This annulative protocol will not only provide an efficient method to access diverse chromene scaffolds, but also enrich the research domain of β-ketothioamides.

Pyridine vs DABCO vs TBAB in Annulations of δ-Acetoxy Allenoates with Thioamides Leading to Dihydrothiophene, Thiopyran, and Thiazole Scaffolds

The same δ-acetoxy allenoates and thioamides, under DABCO, pyridine, or tetra-n-butyl ammonium bromide (TBAB) catalysis, undergo distinctly different annulations giving chemoselective routes to dihydrothiophene, thiopyran, or thiazole motifs. Thus, using pyridine in [3 + 2] annulation, dihydrothiophenes are obtained as essentially single diastereomers. By contrast, under DABCO catalysis, allenoates deliver thiopyran motifs in good to high yields through 6-exo-dig cyclization. In the thiazole forming [3 + 2] annulation, tetra-n-butyl ammonium bromide (TBAB) facilitates addition-elimination and 5-exo-trig cyclization in which β- and γ-carbons of allenoates participate to deliver thiazole cores exclusively with a Z-isomeric exocyclic double bond. A possible rationale for these observations is delved into.

Electrochemical Synthesis of 1,2,3-Thiadiazoles from α-Phenylhydrazones

We have developed an electrochemical approach for the synthesis of fully substituted 1,2,3-thiadiazoles from α-phenylhydrazones at room temperature, which is very challenging and complementary to the conventional thermal reactions. The key step involves anodic oxidation of phenylhydrazone derivatives at a constant current followed by N,S-heterocyclization. The protocol is remarkable in that it is free of a base and free of an external oxidant and can be converted to a gram scale for postsynthetic drug development with functional thiadiazoles. Most importantly, the electrochemical transformation reflected efficient electro-oxidation with an operationally friendly easy procedure with ample functional molecules. Cyclic voltammograms support the mechanism of this electro-oxidative cyclization process.

Stereoselective sulfenylation of oxindole-derived propargyl alcohols to access sulfenylated-3-alkenyloxindoles

A Ca-catalyzed, tetrasubstituted alkenyl-sulfenylation was achieved using readily available aryl/alkyl thiols and easily prepared oxindole-derived propargyl alcohols under solvent-free conditions. The reaction proceeded with hydrogen bonding assisted regioselective α-thiolation and subsequent calcium catalyzed stereoselective alkenylation to yield E-alkenyl thioethers with high diastereoselectivity.