Synthesis of aliphatic α-ketoamides from α-substituted methyl ketones via a Cu-catalyzed aerobic oxidative amidation

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.

Selective Synthesis of Amides and α-Ketoamides via Electrochemical Decarboxylation and Dehydration

An electrochemical and selective decarboxylation and dehydration using α-keto acids with amines is accomplished, which leads to the easy accessibility of amides and α-ketoamides, which are not only ubiquitous and valuable structure motifs found in pharmaceuticals, but also versatile building blocks in synthetic chemistry. Notably, for this efficient and green protocol, neither metal catalysts nor external oxidants are required. The process exhibits a broad scope and functional group tolerance to deliver various amides and α-ketoamides. Moreover, these two reactions have also been applied to late-stage derivatization and can be safely conducted on gram scale.