Synthesis of 4-Substituted 7-Azaindole Derivatives via Pd-Catalyzed C-N and C-O Coupling

Discovery of novel dual inhibitors of receptor tyrosine kinases EGFR and IGF-1R

Novel 4-benzylamino benzo-anellated pyrrolo[2,3-b]pyridines have been synthesized with varied substitution patterns both at the molecular scaffold of the benzo-anellated ring and at the 4-benzylamino residue. With a structural similarity to substituted thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidines as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors, we characterized the inhibition of EGFR for our novel compounds. As receptor heterodimerization gained certain interest as mechanism of cancer cells to become resistant against novel protein kinase inhibitors, we additionally measured the inhibition of insulin-like growth factor receptor IGF-1R which is a prominent receptor for such heterodimerizations with EGFR. Structure–activity relationships are discussed for both kinase inhibitions depending on the varied substitution patterns. We discovered novel dual inhibitors of both receptor tyrosine kinases with interest for further studies to reduce inhibitor resistance developments in cancer treatment.

Palladium-catalyzed C-N and C-O bond formation of N-substituted 4-bromo-7-azaindoles with amides, amines, amino acid esters and phenols

Simple and efficient procedures for palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of N-substituted 4-bromo-7-azaindole (1H-pyrrole[2,3-b]pyridine), with amides, amines, amino acid esters and phenols through C-N and C-O bond formation have been developed. The C-N cross-coupling reaction of amides, amines and amino acid esters takes place rapidly by using the combination of Xantphos, Cs(2)CO(3), dioxane and palladium catalyst precursors Pd(OAc)(2)/Pd(2)(dba)(3). The combination of Pd(OAc)(2), Xantphos, K(2)CO(3) and dioxane was found to be crucial for the C-O cross-coupling reaction. This is the first report on coupling of amides, amino acid esters and phenols with N-protected 4-bromo-7-azaindole derivatives.

Palladium-catalyzed amination of unprotected halo-7-azaindoles

Simple and efficient procedures for the Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling of primary and secondary amines with halo-7-azaindoles(pyrrolo[2,3-b]pyridine) are presented. Previously, no general method was available to ensure the highly selective reaction of the heteroaryl halide in the presence of the unprotected azaindole N-H. Using palladium precatalysts recently reported by our group, such reactions are easily accomplished under mild conditions that can be applied to cross-coupling reactions with a wide array of aliphatic and aromatic amines.

Organometallic methods for the synthesis and functionalization of azaindoles

Azaindoles (also called pyrrolopyridines) constitute essential subunits in many pharmaceutically important compounds. The synthesis of azaindoles has been a great synthetic challenge for chemists. Many classical methods for indole synthesis (such as Fischer and Madelung cyclizations) often cannot be effectively applied to the synthesis of the corresponding azaindoles. In recent years, advances in organometallic chemistry have enabled a number of novel and efficient methodologies for azaindole formation as well as for the further functionalization of azaindole templates. In this tutorial review, we have surveyed the recent development of organometallic chemistry-based methods for azaindole synthesis.