CobaltLSF · Cobalt-catalyzed late-stage functionalization of arenes through metal-ligand cooperation
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2021-05-01 → 2024-04-30
- EU contribution
- €246,669
- Participants
- 2
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Cobalt-catalyzed late-stage functionalization of arenes through metal-ligand cooperation
The depleting reserves of precious metals within the Earth’s crust has made their replacement with more abundant first-row transition metals of signifcant importance. This project aimed to develop catalytic transformations using first-row metals such as cobalt for the functionalization of organic molecules. Such reactions, which previously have relied on precious metal catalysts, have application in the synthesis of derivatives of bioactive small molecule drugs relevant to the pharmaceutical industry.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
The depleting reserves of precious metals within the Earth’s crust has made their replacement with more abundant first-row transition metals of paramount importance. Pincer-ligated cobalt complexes have shown a unique ability to recapitulate the reactivity of commonly employed iridium catalysts for arene C–H borylation but, notably, with complementary ortho-to-fluorine site selectivity. However, the lower activity and functional group tolerance of cobalt catalysts has precluded their use in more demanding late-stage applications, depriving chemists of the possibility to selectively functionalize fluoroarenes within complex molecules. “CobaltLSF” aims to unlock the full potential of Co-catalyzed arene C–H functionalization with the use of a novel carbene-containing NCN-pincer ligand that is designed to promote metal-ligand cooperation to address three main challenges: (1) chemoselectivity, by facilitating key steps such as C–H bond cleavage and bond-forming reductive elimination, improving the efficiency of desired catalytic processes over competing side-reactions; (2) site selectivity, through ligand-assisted C–H activation which is predicted to result in a rapidly reversible process that would reinforce ortho-to-fluorine selectivity; (3) direct C–H alkylation using olefin coupling partners, with the aim of expanding the bond-forming capabilities of cobalt catalysis beyond C–H borylation in the context of a green, waste-free method for installing alkyl chains. Alongside the development of (NCN)Co catalysts, their application to the late-stage functionalization (LSF) of fluoroarene-containing drugs will be examined and their chemo- and site selectivity benchmarked against known LSF methods, providing useful comparative data for end-users, such as medicinal chemists. Overall, the successful realization of the proposal is expected to have far-reaching implications for the use of carbene-containing pincer ligands in C–H functionalization with earth-abundant metals.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- MAX PLANCK INSTITUT FUER KOHLENFORSCHUNG · Muelheim An Der RuhrCoordinatorGermany
- TRUSTEES OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY · Princeton, NjUnited States
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union