Earth-abundant iron catalysis enables access to valuable dialkylated compounds

March 08, 2024

A research team led by Associate Professor KOH Ming Joo, from the NUS Department of Chemistry have conceived a new strategy that harnesses an earth-abundant (terpyridine) iron catalyst to combine alkenes with sp3-hybridised organohalides and organozinc reagents. This approach allows them to add different-sized alkyl groups to the alkene, resulting in a library of drug-like molecules with congested cores containing either carbon- or heteroatom-substituted stereocentres. The method is useful for creating valuable but challenging C(sp3)-rich molecules. 
C(sp3)-C(sp3) bonds are single, strong bonds formed between two carbon atoms. They form the backbones of many biologically active natural products and synthetic molecules, which can improve potency and selectivity in drugs. However, developing methods to construct C(sp3)-rich scaffolds is an important but challenging goal in organic synthesis. This is because reactions involving sp3-hybridised substrates are typically inefficient and prone to undesired product formation.
The findings were published in Nature Catalysis on 23 February 2024.
The research team is leveraging the newly discovered iron-catalysed system to transform other classes of organic starting materials into useful compounds for various applications, including drug development.

From: EurekAlert!