Exploration of the P1 residue in 3CL protease inhibitors leading to the discovery of a 2-tetrahydrofuran P1 replacement

The virally encoded 3C-like protease (3CLpro) is a well-validated drug target for the inhibition of coronaviruses including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Most inhibitors of 3CLpro are peptidomimetic, with a γ-lactam in place of Gln at the P1 position of the pseudopeptide chain. An effort was pursued to identify a viable alternative to the γ-lactam P1 mimetic which would improve physicochemical properties while retaining affinity for the target. Discovery of a 2-tetrahydrofuran as a suitable P1 replacement that is a potent enzymatic inhibitor of 3CLpro in SARS-CoV-2 virus is described herein.

Stereospecific pd-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of secondary alkylboron nucleophiles and aryl chlorides

We report the development of a Pd-catalyzed process for the stereospecific cross-coupling of unactivated secondary alkylboron nucleophiles and aryl chlorides. This process tolerates the use of secondary alkylboronic acids and secondary alkyltrifluoroborates and occurs without significant isomerization of the alkyl nucelophile. Optically active secondary alkyltrifluoroborate reagents undergo cross-coupling reactions with stereospecific inversion of configuration using this method.

Palladium-catalyzed borylation of primary alkyl bromides

A mild Pd-catalyzed process for the borylation of alkyl bromides has been developed using bis(pinacolato)diboron as a boron source. This process accommodates the use of a wide range of functional groups on the alkyl bromide substrate. Primary bromides react with complete selectivity in the presence of a secondary bromide. The generality of this approach is demonstrated by its extension to the use of alkyl iodides and alkyl tosylates, as well as borylation reactions employing bis(neopentyl glycolato)diboron as the boron source.

The Use of Tertiary Alkylmagnesium Nucleophiles in Ni-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling Reactions

Nickel-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of unactivated tertiary alkyl nucleophiles and aryl bromides have been developed using N-heterocyclic carbene ligands. These processes are reviewed alongside earlier attempts to employ unactivated tertiary alkyl nucleophiles in cross-coupling reactions. Potential mechanisms for the transformations, and future challenges in this field are discussed.

Nickel-catalyzed Kumada cross-coupling reactions of tertiary alkylmagnesium halides and aryl bromides/triflates

We report a Ni-catalyzed process for the cross-coupling of tertiary alkyl nucleophiles and aryl bromides. This process is extremely general for a wide range of electrophiles and generally occurs with a ratio of retention to isomerization >30:1. The same procedure also accommodates the use of aryl triflates, vinyl chlorides, and vinyl bromides as the electrophilic component.

Nickel-catalyzed Negishi cross-coupling reactions of secondary alkylzinc halides and aryl iodides

A general Ni-catalyzed process for the cross-coupling of secondary alkylzinc halides and aryl/heteroaryl iodides has been developed. This is the first process to overcome the isomerization and β-hydride elimination problems that are associated with the use of secondary nucleophiles, and that have limited the analogous Pd-catalyzed systems. The impact of salt additives was also investigated. It was found that the presence of LiBF(4) dramatically improves both isomeric retention and yield for challenging substrates.