Author Archive

On the cover of Issue 3: high yield domino reactions for nitro alkenes

Welcome to Issue 3!  On the front cover we have work from Lucio Pellacani and colleagues on their one-pot method to α-substituted nitro alkenes. They devised a domino condensation-dehydration process to give α-nitro acrylates or cinnamates, α-nitro α,β-unsaturated ketones and aromatic and heteroaromatic (E)-2-nitro allylic alcohols, compounds with anticancer activity, in high yields and high diastereomeric purity which has not previously been achieved.

Domino reactions for the synthesis of various α-substituted nitro alkenes
Stefania Fioravanti, Lucio Pellacani and Maria Cecilia Vergari
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06260C

As with all our cover articles, this one is free to access for 6 weeks – so why not take a look?

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Hot emerging area: Transition metal-catalysed (4 + 3) cycloaddition reactions involving allyl cations

Israel Fernández and José Luis Mascareñas review novel intramolecular (4 +3)-cycloaddition reactions of allenedienes in this Emerging Area article, focussing on recent examples where the allene acts as an allylic-cation surrogate.  These methodologies overcome problems with previous strategies involving unstable allyl cation precursors or the need for stoichiometric activators and conformationally restricted dienes.

Areas covered include:

  • (4 + 3)-Cycloaddition reactions mediated by platinum(II) and gold(I) complexes
  • Aromaticity in the (4 + 3)-cycloaddition
  • Concerted vs. stepwise reaction mechanisms

As with all our hot research, this article will be free to access for 4 weeks – so take a look today:

Transition metal-catalysed (4 + 3) cycloaddition reactions involving allyl cations
Israel Fernández and José Luis Mascareñas
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06604H

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Emerging area: classifying one-pot catalysis

Take a look at this Emerging Area article from Nitin Patil et al. who propose a classification system to update the definition of one-pot catalysis.   They give readers recent examples of metal-metal, metal-organo and organo-organo catalytic systems that fall into the three categories of cooperative, relay and sequential one-pot catalysis.

The article will be free to access for the next four weeks:

A one-pot catalysis: the strategic classification with some recent examples
Nitin T. Patil, Valmik S. Shinde and Balakrishna Gajula
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06432K

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Nominations for the 2012 RSC Prizes and Awards now open

Nominations for the 2012 RSC Prizes and Awards close on the 15 January 2012

Our Prizes and Awards represent the dedication and outstanding achievements and are a platform to showcase inspiring science to gain the recognition deserved. Don’t forget to nominate colleagues who have made a significant contribution to advancing the chemical sciences.

View our full list of Prizes and Awards and use the online system to nominate a colleague.

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OBC Issue 1 now published!

Welcome to Issue 1 of OBC, 2012!

On the front cover we have an article from Brian Stolz and team on the synthesis of enantioenriched γ-quaternary cycloheptenones, with potential for the preparation of non-natural analogs of cycloheptanoid natural products.

Synthesis of enantioenriched γ-quaternary cycloheptenones using a combined allylic alkylation/Stork–Danheiser approach: preparation of mono-, bi-, and tricyclic systems
Nathan B. Bennett, Allen Y. Hong, Andrew M. Harned and Brian M. Stoltz
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06189E

On the inside front cover is an article from Robert Stockman and coworkers.  They report the synthesis of an advanced intermediate, an azaspirocyclic aldehyde, in the route to halichlorine developed by Clive and coworkers, shortening the synthetic route by 15 steps.

Combining two-directional synthesis and tandem reactions: a short formal synthesis of halichlorine
Camille Gignoux, Annabella F. Newton, Alexandre Barthelme, William Lewis, Marie-Lyne Alcaraz and Robert A. Stockman
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06380D

Incredibly 2012 will be our 10th year of publication and we would like to thank all our authors, referees, readers and Board members for their support over the last decade. Read the Editorial introduction to the next volume from Chair Jeffrey Bode and Editor Richard Kelly for the changes we’ve seen and what we have to look forward to in the coming year.

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Glyco-hydantoin conjugate synthesis and mimicking GFP to improve fluorophores on the cover of Issue 24

On the front cover of our last 2011 issue is work from Alessandro Volonterio and colleagues developing a multi-component one-pot synthetic route to novel glyco-hydantoin conjugates, which may be used as synthons for glyco-pseudopeptides.

Three-component, one-pot sequential synthesis of glyco-hydantoin conjugates
Maria Cristina Bellucci, Alessandra Ghilardi and Alessandro Volonterio
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06312J

On the inside front cover is work from Stefan Matile and colleagues, applying principles from green and red fluorescent proteins from jellyfish and corals to develop the properties of core-substituted naphthalenediimide and perylenediimide fluorophores. Some these newly synthesized fluorophores are able to cover all primary colours upon pH changes, and as such may find practical use in naked-eye sensing arrays.

Naphthalene- and perylenediimides with hydroquinones, catechols, boronic esters and imines in the core
Andrea Fin, Irina Petkova, David Alonso Doval, Naomi Sakai, Eric Vauthey and Stefan Matile
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB05702B

View the rest of Issue 24 here

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Challenges in Organic Chemistry and Chemical Biology Symposium

The first of the International Symposia on Advancing the Chemical Sciences (ISACS) series next year is to be Challenges in Organic Chemistry and Chemical Biology (ISACS7) on 12 – 15 June at the University of Edinburgh, UK.

See the excellent list of confirmed speakers and details of the abstract submission process here.

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HOT: indolizinones investigated

Alison R. Hardin Narayan and Richmond Sarpong have investigated the fundamental reactivity of indolizinones, relatively unexplored 6,5-N-fused bicycles.  They find that these bicycles have excellent ability to transfer stereochemistry  from the ring fusion position to other stereocenters, as well as readily undergoing Diels-Alder cycloadditions and selective hydrogenation, among other reactions.

To read more on the potential applications of indolizinones download the article now – it’s free to access for the next four weeks:

Indolizinones as synthetic scaffolds: fundamental reactivity and the relay of stereochemical information
Alison R. Hardin Narayan and Richmond Sarpong
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06423A

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HOT: Systematic (chemical) space exploration – a challenge for synthetic chemists

Scaffold diversity of the organic chemistry universe

‘Chemists’ historical exploration of chemical space has been highly uneven and unsystematic’ write Adam Nelson and coworkers.  In this Perspective article they seek to pull together  synthetic strategies that have been designed to allow a more systematic discovery of biologically active small molecules, with particular emphasis on combinatorial strategies.

Areas covered:

  • The “build–couple–pair” approach
  • Ambiphile pairing reactions
  • Folding and branching pathways
  • Oligomer-based approaches to scaffold diversity

This hot article is free to access for the next four weeks – download today to read more on the ‘challenge for synthetic chemists in the twenty-first century’:

Towards the systematic exploration of chemical space
Mark Dow, Martin Fisher, Thomas James, Francesco Marchetti and Adam Nelson
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06098H

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Benzothiazines and clavaminols on the cover of Issue 23

The article from Ahmed M. Zaed and Andrew Sutherland reporting the first total synthesis of clavaminol A, C and H features on the front cover of Issue 23.  Clavaminols are 2-amino-3-alkanols recently isolated from the Mediterranean ascidian Clavelina phlegraea (see cover) and have an unusual stereochemistry of (2R,3S).  Despite this they still show some cytotoxic activity.

Total synthesis of clavaminol A, C and H
Ahmed M. Zaed and Andrew Sutherland
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06060K


On the inside front cover is work from Michael Harmata and coworkers on the synthesis of benzothiazines for use as fluorescent sensors.  The fluorescent 7-amino-2,1-benzothiazines were prepared using the palladium-catalyzed reaction of 4-amino-2-chlorobenzaldehydes with a sulfoximine or the reaction of 7-fluoro-2,1-benzothiazines with amines.

Benzothiazines in organic synthesis. Synthesis of fluorescent 7-amino-2,1-benzothiazines
Nattawut Yongpruksa, Siddharth Pandey, Gary A. Baker and Michael Harmata
DOI: 10.1039/C1OB06051A

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