4.2.8. Reductive Coupling 3109 5. Reaction of Aromatic Compounds 3110 5.1. Electrophilic Substitutions 3110 5.2. Radical Substitution 3111 5.3. Oxidative Coupling 3111 5.4. Photochemical Reactions 3111 6. Reaction of Carbonyl Compounds 3111 6.1. Nucleophilic Additions 3111 6.1.1. Allylation 3111 6.1.2. Propargylation 3120 6.1.3. Benzylation 3121 6.1.4. Arylation/Vinylation 3121 6.1.5. Alkynylation 3121 6.1.6. Alkylation 3121 6.1.7. Reformatsky-Type Reaction 3122 6.1.8. Direct Aldol Reaction 3122 6.1.9. Mukaiyama Aldol Reaction 3124 6.1.10. Hydrogen Cyanide Addition 3125 6.2. Pinacol Coupling 3126 6.3. Wittig Reactions 3126 7. Reaction of R,â-Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds 3127

Organic Reactions in Aqueous Media with a Focus on Carbon−Carbon Bond Formations: A Decade Update

1.1. General Reactivity of Alkyne-Gold(I) Complexes
For centuries, gold had been considered a precious, purely decorative inert metal. It was not until 1986 that Ito and Hayashi described the first application of gold(I) in homogeneous catalysis.1 More than one decade later, the first examples of gold(I) activation of alkynes were reported by Teles2 and Tanaka,3 revealing the potential of gold(I) in organic synthesis. Now, gold(I) complexes are the most effective catalysts for the electrophilic activation of alkynes under homogeneous conditions, and a broad range of versatile synthetic tools have been developed for the construction of carbon–carbon or carbon–heteroatom bonds.

Gold(I) complexes selectively activate π-bonds of alkynes in complex molecular settings,4−10 which has been attributed to relativistic effects.11−13 In general, no other electrophilic late transition metal shows the breadth of synthetic applications of homogeneous gold(I) catalysts, although in occasions less Lewis acidic Pt(II) or Ag(I) complexes can be used as an alternative,9,10,14,15 particularly in the context of the activation of alkenes.16,17 Highly electrophilic Ga(III)18−22 and In(III)23,24 salts can also be used as catalysts, although often higher catalyst loadings are required.

In general, the nucleophilic Markovnikov attack to η2-[AuL]+-activated alkynes 1 forms trans-alkenyl-gold complexes 2 as intermediates (Scheme 1).4,5a,9,10,12,25−29 This activation mode also occurs in gold-catalyzed cycloisomerizations of 1,n-enynes and in hydroarylation reactions, in which the alkene or the arene act as the nucleophile.



Scheme 1

Anti-Nucleophilic Attack to η2-[AuL]+-Activated Alkynes

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Gold(I)-Catalyzed Activation of Alkynes for the Construction of Molecular Complexity

Organocatalyzed reactions represent an attractive alternative to metal-catalyzed processes notably because of their lower cost and benign environmental impact in comparison to organometallic catalysis. In this context, N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) have been studied for their ability to promote primarily the benzoin condensation. Lately, dramatic progress in understanding their intrinsic properties and in their synthesis have made them available to organic chemists. This has resulted in a tremendous increase of their scope and in a true explosion of the number of papers reporting NHC-catalyzed reactions. Here, we highlight the ever-increasing number of reactions that can be promoted by N-heterocyclic carbenes.

N‐Heterocyclic Carbenes as Organocatalysts

The legacy of Gilbert Newton Lewis (1875-1946) pervades the lexicon of chemical bonding and reactivity. The power of his concept of donor-acceptor bonding is evident in the eponymous foundations of electron-pair acceptors (Lewis acids) and donors (Lewis bases). Lewis recognized that acids are not restricted to those substances that contain hydrogen (Bronsted acids), and helped overthrow the "modern cult of the proton". His discovery ushered in the use of Lewis acids as reagents and catalysts for organic reactions. However, in recent years, the recognition that Lewis bases can also serve in this capacity has grown enormously. Most importantly, it has become increasingly apparent that the behavior of Lewis bases as agents for promoting chemical reactions is not merely as an electronic complement of the cognate Lewis acids: in fact Lewis bases are capable of enhancing both the electrophilic and nucleophilic character of molecules to which they are bound. This diversity of behavior leads to a remarkable versatility for the catalysis of reactions by Lewis bases.

Lewis Base Catalysis in Organic Synthesis

With the exception of palladium-catalyzed cross-couplings, no other group of reactions has had such a profound impact on the formation of carbon-carbon bonds and the art of total synthesis in the last quarter of a century than the metathesis reactions of olefins, enynes, and alkynes. Herein, we highlight a number of selected examples of total syntheses in which such processes played a crucial role and which imparted to these endeavors certain elements of novelty, elegance, and efficiency. Judging from their short but impressive history, the influence of these reactions in chemical synthesis is destined to increase.

Metathesis Reactions in Total Synthesis

When the Pauson-Khand and Pauson-Khand type reactions go awry: a plethora of unexpected results

The Pauson-Khand cobalt-mediated cycloaddition has become a synthetically important reaction. Several modifications have increased the utility of the reaction, including reports that tertiary amine N-oxides greatly accelerate the rate of cycloaddition in both intra- and some intermolecular reactions. To date, there has been no direct evidence to support the mechanistic hypothese for either the thermal or amine oxide promoted reactions beyond complete identification of the hexacarbonyl alkyne complex. While the amine oxide promoted reaction is normally greatly accelerated over the analogous thermal one, in the presence of amine oxides, the rate of cycloaddition of a 1,6-enyne may be enhanced even further by the presence of sulfur, nitrogen, or oxygen in the homopropargylic or bishomopropargylic position

Effect of coordinating ligands on the Pauson-Khand cycloaddition: trapping of an intermediate

A variety of cyclic and acyclic α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds undergo α-iodination exclusively, in high yields, with I 2 in aqueous THF catalyzed by DMAP and quinuclidine.

A Convenient Protocol for the α-Iodination of α,β-Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds with I2 in an Aqueous Medium

The regioselectivity of the cobalt-mediated cocyclization of an alkene, an alkyne, and carbon monoxide has been shown to be directed by the use of a soft atom, either sulfur or nitrogen, tethered to the alkene partner by a carbon chain. Direction from the homoallylic position is more efficient thant from the allylic or bishomoallylic position. A rationale is proposed to explain this observation. Studies on the effect of different alkyl groups on the sulfur and nitrogen and other modifications are reported

The directed Pauson-Khand reaction

We have developed the Morita−Baylis−Hillman reaction to include, for the first time in a completely organomediated process, intramolecular examples bearing allylic leaving groups as the electrophilic partner providing a facile, high yielding, straightforward synthesis of densely functionalized cyclic molecules.

Marie E. Krafft

Papers

When the Pauson-Khand and Pauson-Khand type reactions go awry: a plethora of unexpected results

Effect of coordinating ligands on the Pauson-Khand cycloaddition: trapping of an intermediate

A Convenient Protocol for the α-Iodination of α,β-Unsaturated Carbonyl Compounds with I2 in an Aqueous Medium

The directed Pauson-Khand reaction

Organomediated Morita-Baylis-Hillman cyclization reactions.