Copper-Catalyzed Trifluoromethylalkynylation of Isocyanides

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/acs.orglett.5b00730

The title reaction proceeds with acetylenic triflones and isocyanides under mild conditions using copper as a catalyst. This transformation provides an efficient access to (E)-N-alkyl trifluoromethyl alkynyl ketoimines, which are useful building blocks for the synthesis of CF₃-containing N-heterocycles, propargylamines, etc.

Full text of DOI:10.1021/acs.orglett.5b00730

Letter
pubs.acs.org/OrgLett
Copper-Catalyzed Trifluoromethylalkynylation of Isocyanides
Jian Lei, Xiaoxing Wu,* and Qiang Zhu*
State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 190
Kaiyuan Avenue, Guangzhou 510530, China
S
* Supporting Information
ABSTRACT: The title reaction proceeds with acetylenic triflones
and isocyanides under mild conditions using copper as a catalyst. This
transformation provides an efficient access to (E)-N-alkyl trifluor-
omethyl alkynyl ketoimines, which are useful building blocks for the
synthesis of CF3-containing N-heterocycles, propargylamines, etc.
he last two decades have witnessed remarkable progress in
trifluoromethylation reactions due to the great importance
insertion to CnF2n+1I through imidoyl radical intermediate.11
Recent independent research by Studer, Zhou, and Yu employed
biaryl isocyanides in sequential trifluoromethylation and intra-
molecular arylation through homolytic aromatic substitution
(HAS) to construct heteroarenes.12
T
of trifluoromethyl-containing molecules in pharmaceutical and
agrochemical studies.1 From the view of bond-forming efficiency,
trifluoromethylation with installation of additional function
groups is more attractive than those transformations in which
only one C−CF3 bond is formed. Simultaneous C−CF3 and C−
X (X = O,2 N,3 C,4 etc.) formation across the C−C double bond
has been extensively studied using Umemoto’s or Togni’s
reagent. However, the transformability of the resulting CF3-
substituted alkanes is limited depending on the nature of the
substituent X. Undoubtedly, alkyne is one of the most versatile
functionalities for further transformations.5 In 1996, Fuchs
reported an elegant work on trifluoromethylalkynylation of
alkenes with acetylenic triflones in which the SO2 unit was
released under radical conditions (left, Scheme 1).6 Further
study using acetylenic triflone as a trifluoromethylalkynylating
agent is not reported in the literature.7
Inspired by Fuchs’ work,6 a relevant desulfonylative
trifluoromethylalkynylation taking place on the geminal carbon
of isocyanide is designed. In this hypothesized process,
isocyanide formally replaces the sulfone moiety (SO2) in
acetylenic triflones to produce N-alkyl trifluoromethyl alkynyl
ketoimines which are multidiversifiable synthons for the
synthesis of CF3-containing N-heterocycles of pharmaceutical
importance (e.g., celecoxib, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory
drug, and DPC 961,13 a potential non-nucleoside reverse
transcriptase inhibitors of HIV-1). The previous method of
preparing trifluoromethyl alkynyl ketoimines mainly depends on
coupling of alkynes with in situ generated trifluoroacetimidoyl
halides which are moisture sensitive.14 Moreover, they are not
accessible by condensation of trifluoroacetyl acetylenes with
amines due to the competing Michael addition.15 Thus, this
unprecedented trifluoromethylalkynylation of isocyanides (right,
Scheme 1) will provide a practical synthesis of N-alkyl
trifluoromethyl alkynyl ketoimines.
Scheme 1. Trifluoromethylalkynylation Using Acetylenic
Triflone
We commenced the study with a reaction between cyclohexyl
isocyanide 1a and phenylacetylenic triflone 2a under argon. As
shown in Table 1, Cu(OAc)2 (20 mol %) was essential for the
formation of the desired ketoimine 3a in MeCN as a solvent
(entries 1−3). Only a complicated reaction mixture of
unidentified products was detected in the absence of Cu(OAc)2.
Other copper-, manganese-, zinc-, and palladium-based catalysts
were ineffective or less efficient for this transformation (see
details in the Supporting Information). Performing the reaction
in other solvents including dioxane, ether, THF, or dichloro-
methane gave much lower yields of 3a (entries 4−7). Lowering
the initial reaction temperature to 0 °C and then warming
gradually to 15 °C could improve the yield of 3a to 78%,
determined by 19F NMR of the crude product (entry 8). When
On the other hand, isocyanide (RNC) is widely applied in
different types of reactions, such as the well-known Passerini and
Ugi multicomponent reactions,8 transition-metal-catalyzed
imidoylations,9 as well as radical-chain reactions.10 The result
of isocyanide-involved reactions is that two groups are added
geminally to the divalent carbon to form normal tetravalent
imine derivatives as stable products or reactive intermediates.
Early research demonstrated that isocyanide was an ideal class of
one-carbon synthon used for perfluoroalkyliodination by
Received: March 12, 2015
© XXXX American Chemical Society
A
DOI: 10.1021/acs.orglett.5b00730
Org. Lett. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX

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Letter
a
However, extreme electron-deficient CF3-substituted acetylenic
triflone gave 3g in a significant lower yield of 41%. o-Chloro-
substituted product 3j was obtained in even higher yield (68%)
than those analogues with chloride on meta (3h, 60%) or para
(3e, 60%) positions, indicating that addition of the imidoyl
moiety at the acetylenic carbon far away from the aryl ring was
more likely taking place (vide infra). Thienyl- and naphthyl-
substituted acetylenic triflones were also applicable in the current
desulfonylative trifluoromethylalkynylation reaction (3k, 3l).
Most importantly, only one isomer was detected in all of these
reactions. The configuration of the ketoimine product was
determined unambiguously to be the E-form by the crystal
structure of p-phenyl-substituted 3m.
Table 1. Optimization of the Reaction Conditions
b
entry
catalyst
solvent
temp (°C)
yield (%)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Cu(OAc)2
MeCN
MeCN
MeCN
dioxane
ether
25
25
63
0
c
NaOAc
25
0
Cu(OAc)2
Cu(OAc)2
Cu(OAc)2
Cu(OAc)2
Cu(OAc)2
Cu(OAc)2
25
40
23
8
25
THF
25
CH2Cl2
MeCN
MeCN
25
29
d
Then, the generality of isocyanides was investigated (Scheme
3). Besides secondary isocyanide 1a, primary and tertiary
0−15
0−15
78 (72)
e
9
0
a
Reaction conditions: 1a (0.2 mmol), 2a (0.1 mmol), Cu(OAc)2 (20
a
b
Scheme 3. Scope of Isocyanides
mol %), MeCN (1.0 mL), 12 h, in Ar. The yield of 3a was
determined by 19F NMR spectroscopy using α,α,α-trifluorotoluene as
c
d
e
an internal standard. 0.2 equiv. Isolated yield in the parentheses. In
O2.
the reaction was conducted in O2, the formation of 3a was
completely inhibited (entry 9).
With the optimized reaction conditions established, the scope
of acetylenic triflones was examined first (Scheme 2). During
substrate exploration, it was found the isolating yields of 3 could
be improved at lower concentration for most of the substrates
(3e−m).16 Functional groups of varied electronic nature
including OMe, Me, t-Bu, F, Cl, and Br tolerated the reaction
conditions well to furnish the corresponding N-cyclohexyl
trifluoromethyl arylalkynyl ketoimines in 60−78% yields.
a
Scheme 2. Scope of Acetylenic Triflones
a
Reaction conditions: 1 (0.2 mmol), 2a (0.1 mmol), Cu(OAc)2 (20
b
c
mol %), MeCN, isolated yields of 4. At 0 °C. 50 mol % of
Cu(OAc)2. In 1,4-dioxane. At 25 °C.
d
e
isocyanides were also viable in this transformation, delivering
the corresponding (E)-N-alkyl trifluoromethyl alkynyl ketoi-
mines 4a−c in 55−64% yields. Optically pure amine derived
isocyanide with an alkyl alpha-chiral center was also tested. No
racemization took place during the reaction by careful HPLC
analysis of the product 4d, which could be used for further
diastereoselective transformations at the imidoyl carbon. Methyl
2-isocyanoacetate reacted with 2a to give product 4e from the
desired difunctionalization reaction rather than [3 + 2]
annulation,17 albeit in low yield at higher catalyst loading. The
reaction of cholesterol-derived isocyanide with 2a was run in
dioxane due to its poor solubility in CH3CN, and the
corresponding ketoimine 4f was obtained in 31% yield. Notably,
gram-scale synthesis of 4c was achieved successfully, demon-
strating the synthetic practicality of the reaction. Unfortunately,
when aryl isocyanide was applied, no desired product could be
isolated in the complicated reaction mixture.
The ketoimine products containing multiple functionalities
including imine, alkyne, and CF3 are versatile building blocks for
the synthesis of more complicated F-bearing molecules (Scheme
4). For example, when 4c reacted with n-BuLi at −78 °C in ether,
1,1-difluoromethylene product 5, as a result of SN2′-type
reaction, was isolated in 71% yield together with neglectable
amount of secondary propargylamine 6 (2% 19F NMR).
Intriguingly, the chemoselectivity was completely inversed by
a
Reaction conditions: 1a (0.2 mmol), 2 (0.1 mmol), Cu(OAc)2 (20
b
c
mol %), MeCN, isolated yields of 3. At 0 °C. 4.0 equiv of 1a.
B
DOI: 10.1021/acs.orglett.5b00730
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Organic Letters
Letter
unidentified byproducts (Scheme 5). However, when the
amount of isocyanide dropped to 20 mol %, only the alkene
Scheme 4. Diversified Transformations of Trifluoromethyl
Alkynyl Ketoimines
a
Scheme 5. Mechanistic Studies
insertion product 11 was produced in 48% NMR yield.
Interestingly, none of the products were formed in the absence
of isocyanide 1a, indicating the importance of the Cu(OAc)2/
isocyanide combination for the initiation of the reaction (see the
Supporting Information for details). These results of radical trap
experiments as well as the fact that the reaction can be inhibited
by O2 suggested that trifluoromethyl radical was involved in this
reaction. Finally, substrate 2a′ with one of the acetylenic carbons
13C labeled was used in a standard reaction with 1a.6b The
corresponding 13C-labeled products 3a′ and 3a″ were produced
in a ratio of about 92:8 determined by 13C NMR, demonstrating
that 1,2-aryl migration was a minor reaction pathway.
a
Reaction conditions: (a) NaBH3CN (1.5 equiv), HOAc (1.5 equiv),
MeCN, rt, 4 h; (b) 0.5 M H2SO4 (1.5 equiv), THF, rt, 30 min; (c)
benzamidine hydrochloride hydrate (3 equiv), NaHCO3 (6 equiv),
MeCN, 120 °C, 24 h; (d) step 1: 4-hydrazinobenzene-1-sulfonamide
hydrochloride (1 equiv), DMSO/H2O, rt, 2 h; step 2: Cu(OAc)2 (20
mol %), NEt3 (1 equiv), DMSO/H2O, rt, 1 h.
Based on these observations, a plausible mechanism was
proposed in Scheme 6. Initially, the complex of Cu(OAc)2 and
simply changing the reaction solvent to THF, delivering 6
exclusively in 85% yield. Although the exact reason for the
excellent selectivity controlled by solvent was not clear at this
stage, it provided a practical route to 1,1-difluoroenamine and
trifluoromethyl propargyl amine from the common substrate.18
Selective one-pot reduction of the imine moiety was realized by
adding NaBH3CN and HOAc directly to the reaction mixture of
t-BuNC (1d) and 2a, generating secondary propargyl amine 7 in
63% total yield. Hydrolysis of the ketoimine intermediate in
acidic media led to related trifluoromethyl alkynyl ketone 8 in
modest yield. In addition, both of the alkyne and imine
functionalities could react with bisnucleophiles to provide
trifluoromethyl-substituted heterocycles. For instance, 2,6-
diphenyl-4-(trifluoromethyl)pyrimidine 9 was synthesized in
one pot through condensation of the crude reaction mixture with
benzamidine in the presence of NaHCO3 in good isolating
yield.19 More importantly, regioselective condensation of 4-
hydrazinobenzene-1-sulfonamide hydrochloride with unpurified
ketoimine intermediate by sequential nucleophilic addition and
cyclization under the help of extra 20 mol % of Cu(OAc)2 and 1
equiv of NEt3 to furnish celecoxib 10, a nonsteroidal anti-
inflammatory drug, in a 53% total yield from acetylenic triflone
2n.20
Scheme 6. Proposed Mechanism
isocyanide promotes the decomposition of acetylenic triflone to
trifluoromethyl radical and SO2 via intermediate II probably
through single electron transfer (SET). Subsequently, trifluor-
omethyl radical is trapped by isocyanide to form imidoyl radical
III which prefers the more stable E configuration. Addition of the
imidoyl radical to acetylenic triflone at α or β carbon may take
place. Both the 13C-labeling experiment and the substitution
effect on the phenyl ring agree with α-addition as a major
pathway. β-Elimation of intermediate IV delivers the desired
ketoimine product and regenerates the trifluoromethyl radical via
species II. β-Addition followed by α-elimination gives carbene
intermediate VI. 1,2-Phenyl migration furnishes the same
product, however, which is a minor process indicated by 13C-
labeled product 3a″.
To gain insights into the reaction mechanism, a control
experiment between 1a and 2a in the presence of 1.2 equiv of
TEMPO was performed under otherwise identical conditions.
Neither 3a nor CF3 adduct of TEMPO was detected in 19F NMR
of the reaction mixture. Actually, even 5 mol % of TEMPO was
enough to shut off the reaction. When 2.0 equiv of 1-octene was
present as a competitive radical trap of isocyanide 1a,6a,21 18% of
alkene difunctionalization product 11 and 16% of isocyanide
insertion product 3a were detected by 19F NMR together with
C
DOI: 10.1021/acs.orglett.5b00730
Org. Lett. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX

Organic Letters
Letter
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In summary, we developed a novel copper-catalyzed
trifluoromethylalkynylation of aliphatic isocyanides with aryla-
cetylenic triflones to generate (E)-N-alkyl trifluoromethyl
alkynyl ketoimines under mild conditions. This is a new type
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ASSOCIATED CONTENT
* Supporting Information
■
S
Experimental procedures and characterization data for products.
This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Authors
■
*E-mail: wu_xiaoxing@hotmail.com.
*E-mail: zhu_qiang@gibh.ac.cn.
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Notes
The authors declare no competing financial interest.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are grateful for financial support of this work by the National
Science Foundation of China (21202168, 21472190).
■
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