A condition-tuned unorthodox approach to indole-3-carboxylic acids and anthranilic acids via carbon atom translocation.

We describe a robust one-pot cascade method for the synthesis of indole-3-carboxylic acids using isatins and DMSO via a one-carbon translocation involving in situ generation of α,ß-unsaturated methylvinylsulfoxide followed by amide bond cleavage and ring closure. The methodology has been extended to afford anthranilic acid derivatives by tuning the reaction conditions in the presence of molecular oxygen. Importantly, easy access to commercially available drugs, including tropisetron, is demonstrated.

A radical-radical cross-coupling reaction of xanthene with sulfonyl hydrazides: facile access to xanthen-9-sulfone derivatives.

A straightforward strategy for direct incorporation of sulfonyl units into a xanthene moiety for accessing xanthen-9-sulfone derivatives in good to excellent yields has been established via metal-free radical-radical cross-coupling reaction of xanthenes and sulfonyl hydrazides. Using easily accessible starting materials, this methodology proceeds efficiently with a high degree of functional group compatibility and with a wide scope of both xanthenes and sulfonyl hydrazides under operationally simple reaction conditions. Mechanistic investigations revealed that sulfonyl radicals could be generated from sulfonyl hydrazides in the presence of TBHP under an oxygen atmosphere.

Copper-Catalyzed Direct sp2 C-H Silylation of Arylamides Using Disilanes.

A copper-catalyzed method for direct intermolecular ortho-silylation of benzamides has been developed that affords organosilane products in moderate to high yields. The key features include: (i) use of commercially available disilanes as a silicon source with 8-aminoquinoline as a bidentate directing group, (ii) use of earth-abundant first-row transition metal, (iii) operationally simple conditions without the need of an inert atmosphere, and (iv) tolerance of a wide range of functional groups. The practicality and effectiveness of this method have been demonstrated by a gram-scale experiment. This strategy, therefore, constitutes a convenient way of constructing C-Si bonds useful for synthetic organic chemistry.

Straightforward Access to Anthrone Functionalized Benzylic Amines via Organocatalytic 1,2-Addition of Anthrones to Imines at Ambient Temperature.

Activation of anthrone via benzylic deprotonation in the presence of triethylamine paves the way for the 1,2-addition reaction with imines to provide the desired functionalized anthrones in good to excellent yields under mild and operationally simple reaction conditions with a broad range of substrate scopes without using any external additives or toxic stoichiometric reagents.

Iridium-catalyzed direct C-H arylation of cyclic N-sulfonyl ketimines with arylsiloxanes at ambient temperature.

An iridium-catalyzed ortho-selective C-H arylation of cyclic N-sulfonyl ketimines has been achieved with environmentally benign aryl siloxanes. The reaction is highly efficient and proceeds at ambient temperature which is the key feature of the methodology considering the weak coordination nature of the substrate as well as the sluggish reactivity of siloxanes. A wide array of pharmaceutically relevant novel biaryls has been synthesized under operationally simple conditions.

Diastereoselective Spirocyclization of Benzoxazines with Nitroalkenes via Rhodium-Catalyzed C-H Functionalization/Annulation Cascade under Mild Conditions.

A Rh(III)-catalyzed [3 + 2] annulation of benzoxazines with nitroolefins that proceeds via redox-neutral C-H functionalization has been demonstrated, leading to the novel class of spirocycles in a single step. The construction of three continuous stereogenic centers has been achieved starting from easily accessible achiral substrates in an atom-efficient manner under mild reaction conditions. A broad range of pharmaceutically relevant nitro substituted spirocyclic 2,3-dihydro-1,4-benzoxazine derivatives has been synthesized in good to excellent yields with high diastereoselectivity.

Diastereoselective Spirocyclization of Cyclic N-Sulfonyl Ketimines with Nitroalkenes via Iridium-Catalyzed Redox-Neutral Cascade Reaction.

An Ir(III)-catalyzed [3 + 2] annulation of weakly coordinating N-sulfonyl ketimines with challenging α, ß-unsaturated nitro olefins has been achieved via redox-neutral C-H functionalization in the presence of a catalytic amount of silver hexafluoroantimonate. The generation of three consecutive stereogenic centers in a single step via direct C-H functionalization is the prime feature of this methodology. A wide array of pharmaceutically relevant nitro-substituted spirocyclic benzosultams was synthesized with good to excellent diastereoselectivity as well as in high yield starting from easily accessible substrates.

Epigenetic pathogenesis of human papillomavirus in upper aerodigestive tract cancers.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been recently associated with squamous cell carcinoma of upper aerodigestive tract (SCC of UADT), but its possible role in promoting aberrant methylation in these tumors has largely remained unexplored. Herein, we investigated the association of HPV with aberrant methylation in tumor-related genes/loci consisting of the classical CpG Island Methylator Phenotype (CIMP) panel markers (p16, MLH1, MINT1, MINT2, and MINT31) and other frequently methylated cancer-related genes (DAPK1, GSTP1, BRCA1, ECAD, and RASSF1) and survival of UDAT cancers. The study includes 219 SCC of UADT patients from different hospitals of Northeast India. Detection of HPV and aberrant promoter methylation was performed by PCR and Methylation Specific PCR respectively. Association study was conducted by Logistic regression analysis and overall survival analysis was done by Kaplan-Meier plot. HPV was detected in 37% of cases, with HPV-18 as the major high-risk sub-type. Although HPV presence did not seem to affect survival in overall UADT cancers, but was associated with a favourable prognosis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Hierarchical clustering revealed three distinct clusters with different methylation profile and HPV presence. Among these, the CIMP-high subgroup exhibited the highest HPV positive cases (66%). Furthermore, multivariate analysis revealed a strong synergistic association of HPV and tobacco towards modulating promoter hypermethylation in UADT cancer (OR = 27.50 [95% CI = 11.51-88.03] for CIMP-high vs. CIMP-low). The present study proposes a potential role of HPV in impelling aberrant methylation in specific tumor related loci, which might contribute in the initiation and progression of SCC of UADT.