General and Scalable Synthesis of 2-Aryl and 2-Alkyl Pyrimidines via an Electronically Tuned SNAr Approach.

An efficient SNAr approach for generating a wide array of 2-aryl and 2-alkyl pyrimidines in good to high yields was developed. This methodology does not require precious metal catalysts and is compatible with aryl, heteroaryl, and alkyl magnesium halides as nucleophiles. This process is scalable and performed at room temperature well below the temperature of the competing decomposition of the activated 2-tert-butyl sulfonyl pyrimidine electrophile.

SNAr Regioselectivity Predictions: Machine Learning Triggering DFT Reaction Modeling through Statistical Threshold.

Fast and accurate prospective predictions of regioselectivity can significantly reduce the time and resources spent on unproductive transformations in the pharmaceutical industry. Density functional theory (DFT) reaction modeling through transition state theory (TST) and machine learning (ML) methods has been widely used to predict reaction outcomes such as selectivity. However, TST reaction modeling and ML methods are either time-consuming or data-dependent. Herein, we introduce a prototype seamlessly bridging ML and TST modeling by triggering resource-intensive but much less domain-sensitive DFT calculations only on less confident ML predictions. The proposed workflow was trained and tested on both the Pfizer internal dataset and the USPTO public dataset to predict regioselectivity for SNAr reactions. Our method is accurate and fast, which achieves 96.3 and 94.7% accuracy in predicting the correct major product on Pfizer and USPTO datasets, respectively, in a fraction of conventional TST computing time.

Predicting relative efficiency of amide bond formation using multivariate linear regression.

Amides are ubiquitous in biologically active natural products and commercial drugs. The most common strategy for introducing this functional group is the coupling of a carboxylic acid with an amine, which requires the use of a coupling reagent to facilitate elimination of water. However, the optimal reaction conditions often appear rather arbitrary to the specific reaction. Herein, we report the development of statistical models correlating measured rates to physical organic descriptors to enable the prediction of reaction rates for untested carboxylic acid/amine pairs. The key to the success of this endeavor was the development of an end-to-end data science­based workflow to select a set of coupling partners that are appropriately distributed in chemical space to facilitate statistical model development. By using a parameterization, dimensionality reduction, and clustering protocol, a training set was identified. Reaction rates for a range of carboxylic acid and primary alkyl amine couplings utilizing carbonyldiimidazole (CDI) as the coupling reagent were measured. The collected rates span five orders of magnitude, confirming that the designed training set encompasses a wide range of chemical space necessary for effective model development. Regressing these rates with high-level density functional theory (DFT) descriptors allowed for identification of a statistical model wherein the molecular features of the carboxylic acid are primarily responsible for the observed rates. Finally, out-of-sample amide couplings are used to determine the limitations and effectiveness of the model.

Stereoelectronic Effects in Ligand Design: Enantioselective Rhodium-Catalyzed Hydrogenation of Aliphatic Cyclic Tetrasubstituted Enamides and Concise Synthesis of (R)-Tofacitinib.

We herein report the development of a conformationally defined, electron-rich, C2 -symmetric, P-chiral bisphosphorus ligand, ArcPhos, by taking advantage of stereoelectronic effects in ligand design. With the Rh-ArcPhos catalyst, excellent enantioselectivities and unprecedentedly high turnovers (TON up to 10 000) were achieved in the asymmetric hydrogenation of aliphatic carbocyclic and heterocyclic tetrasubstituted enamides, to generate a series of chiral cis-2-alkyl-substituted carbocyclic and heterocyclic amine derivatives in excellent enantiomeric ratios. This method also enabled an efficient and practical synthesis of the Janus kinase inhibitor (R)-tofacitinib.

Deprotection of N-Boc Groups under Continuous-Flow High-Temperature Conditions.

The scope of thermolytic, N-Boc deprotection was studied on 26 compounds from the Pfizer compound library, representing a diverse set of structural moieties. Among these compounds, 12 substrates resulted in clean (≥95% product) deprotection, and an additional three compounds gave ≥90% product. The thermal de-Boc conditions were found to be compatible with a large number of functional groups. A combination of computational modeling, statistical analysis, and kinetic model fitting was used to support an initial, slow, and concerted proton transfer with release of isobutylene, followed by a rapid decarboxylation. A strong correlation was found to exist between the electrophilicity of the N-Boc carbonyl group and the reaction rate.

Asymmetric synthesis of vabicaserin via oxidative multicomponent annulation and asymmetric hydrogenation of a 3,4-substituted quinolinium salt.

An efficient, asymmetric synthesis of the 5-HT2C agonist vabicaserin in four chemical steps and 54% overall yield from commercially available benzodiazepine was achieved. The synthesis was highlighted by a novel oxidative, multicomponent reaction to affect the quinolinium ring assembly in one step followed by an unprecedented asymmetric hydrogenation of a 3,4-substituted quinolinium salt.

Early chemical development at Legacy Wyeth Research.

This article describes an approach to early process development in the context of the productivity model in legacy Wyeth (i.e. to deliver two New Drug Applications per year for New Molecular Entities). As a result of the model, the cycle time from lead selection to phase I decreased and the number of compounds in early development increased. In response, Wyeth Chemical Development devised a resource-neutral approach to early process development, which is described here. This model harvested synergies from integrating advanced technologies and aggressive sourcing with a matrix research organization and efficient ways of working. It provided a model that met the business needs of our former organization while ensuring the timely delivery of high-quality active pharmaceutical ingredients and safe, scalable processes.

Catalytic enantioselective hydrogenation of N-alkoxycarbonyl hydrazones: a practical synthesis of chiral hydrazines.

An enantioselective hydrogenation of hydrazones catalyzed by Rh complexes (Rh-Josiphos or Rh-Taniaphos) has been developed. The protocol can be applied to hydrazones with three different protective groups (Boc, Cbz, and methoxycarbonyl), allowing for selective deprotection and further elaboration of the hydrazine products in the presence of other functional groups.

Enantioselective hydrogenation of N-H imines.

N-H ketoimines 3a-3v are readily prepared in high yield via organometallic addition to nitriles and isolated as corresponding bench-stable hydrochloride salts. Homogeneous asymmetric hydrogenation of unprotected N-H ketoimines 3a-3v using Ir-(S,S)-f-binaphane as catalyst provides chiral amines 4a-4v in 90-95% yield with enantioselectivities up to 95% ee.

On the mechanism of an asymmetric alpha,beta-unsaturated carboxylic acid hydrogenation: application to the synthesis of a PGD2 receptor antagonist.

Ruthenium complexes employing axially chiral ligands were found to be effective asymmetric hydrogenation catalysts for the reduction of alpha,beta-unsaturated ene acid 1-E to give 2, a prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) receptor antagonist. With [(S-BINAP)Ru(p-cymene)Cl2]2 (3, S-BINAP = (S)-(+)-2,2'-bis(diphenylphospino)-1,1'-binapthyl), it was discovered that low hydrogen pressures (<30 psi) were essential to achieve high enantioselectivities (92% ee). A detailed mechanistic study was undertaken to elucidate this pressure dependence. It was determined that compound 1-E is in a ruthenium-catalyzed equilibrium with endocylic isomer 1-Endo and in photochemical equilibrium with Z isomer 1-Z. Each isomer could be hydrogenated to give 2, albeit with different rates and enantioselectivities. Hydrogenation of 1-Endo with 3 was found to give 2 in high enantiomeric excess, regardless of pressure and at a rate substantially faster than that of hydrogenation of 1-E and 1-Z. In contrast, isomers 1-E and 1-Z exhibited pressure-dependent enantioselectivities, with higher enantiomeric excesses obtained at lower pressures. A rationale for this pressure dependence is described. Deuterium labeling studies with 1-Endo and tiglic acid were used to elucidate the mechanism of hydride insertion and product release from ruthenium. Under neutral conditions, protonolysis was the major pathway for metal-carbon cleavage, while under basic conditions, hydrogenolysis of the metal-carbon bond was predominant.

An efficient catalyst for Pd-catalyzed carbonylation of aryl arenesulfonates.

Aryl carboxylic esters were synthesized by Pd-catalyzed carbonylation of aryl p-fluorobenzenesulfonates or -tosylates. A unique Josiphos ligand was discovered through high-throughput catalyst screening, which was the key for the successful carbonylation of various substrates. This catalyst is effective and works well for both electron-rich and electron-poor aryl arenesulfonates. Isolated yields of up to 90% were obtained for aryl p-fluorobenzenesulfonates and -tosylates. [reaction: see text]

Efficient synthesis of a trisubstituted 1,6-naphthyridone from acetonedicarboxylate and regioselective Suzuki arylation.

[reaction: see text] An efficient five-step synthesis of 1,6-naphthyridone 3b, a p38 mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase inhibitor intermediate, in 32% overall yield starting from acetonedicarboxylate (ADC) is described. The synthesis began with a selective monoamidation of ADC dimethyl ester enolate 9. A novel concomitant enamine formation and an imide cyclization afforded the nitrogen differentially protected enamide imide 12. Treatment of 12 with KO(t)Bu and 3-ethoxyacrylate produced lactam 15 quantitatively, which was converted to tetrachloronaphthyridone 19 via a one-pot p-methoxybenzyl (PMB) deprotection and bischlorination. A highly regioselective Pd(OAc)2/IMes-catalyzed Suzuki coupling completed the synthesis.

Enantioselective nitrile anion cyclization to substituted pyrrolidines. A highly efficient synthesis of (3S,4R)-N-tert-butyl-4-arylpyrrolidine-3-carboxylic acid.

[reaction: see text] A practical asymmetric synthesis of N-tert-butyl disubstituted pyrrolidines via a nitrile anion cyclization strategy is described. The five-step chromatography-free synthesis of (3S,4R)-1-tert-butyl-4-(2,4-difluorophenyl)pyrrolidine-3-carboxylic acid (2) from 2-chloro-1-(2,4-difluorophenyl)-ethanone achieved a 71% overall yield. The cyclization substrate was prepared via a catalytic CBS asymmetric reduction, t-butylamine displacement of the chlorohydrin, and a conjugate addition of the hindered secondary amine to acrylonitrile. The key nitrile anion 5-exo-tet cyclization concomitantly formed the pyrrolidine ring with clean inversion of the C-4 center to afford 1,3,4-trisubstituted chiral pyrrolidine in >95% yield and 94-99% ee. Diethyl chlorophosphate and lithium hexamethyldisilazide were shown to be the respective optimum activating group and base in this cyclization. The trans-cis mixture of the pyrrolidine nitrile undergoes a kinetically controlled epimerization/ saponification to afford the pure trans-pyrrolidine carboxylic acid target compound in >99.9% chemical and optical purity. This chemistry was also shown to be applicable to both electronically neutral and rich substituted phenyl substrates.

Highly diastereoselective heterogeneously catalyzed hydrogenation of enamines for the synthesis of chiral beta-amino acid derivatives.

Pure (Z)-enamines readily prepared from beta-ketoesters and amides using (S)-phenylglycine amide were hydrogenated with very high diastereoselectivities (up to 200:1) using heterogeneous catalysis. Hydrogenolytic cleavage of the (S)-phenylglycine amide afforded the corresponding chiral beta-aminoesters and amides. The high geometrical purity of the (Z)-enamine and a simple activation procedure for the PtO2 catalyst are essential in achieving high selectivity.

Highly enantioselective hydrogenation of aromatic-heteroaromatic ketones.

Asymmetric hydrogenation of ketone 1 using trans-RuCl(2)[(R)-xylbinap][(R)-daipen] (3) as a catalyst afforded secondary alcohol 2 quantitatively and in 99.4% ee. Further exploration of the effect of the thiazole ring substitution revealed that the catalyst was highly effective for the enantioselective hydrogenation of 5-benzoyl thiazoles, which afforded corresponding alcohols in 92-99% ee. The same protocol was applicable to a variety of aromatic-heteroaromatic ketones to generate secondary alcohols in excellent enantioselectivities. [reaction: see text]

Highly regioselective Friedländer annulations with unmodified ketones employing novel amine catalysts: syntheses of 2-substituted quinolines, 1,8-naphthyridines, and related heterocycles.

Catalysts were evaluated on the preparation of 2-substituted quinolines, 1,8-naphthyridines, and chromone derivatives from unmodified methyl ketones and o-aminoaromatic aldehydes. While oxide catalysts yielded the 2,3-dialkyl substituted products, cyclic secondary amines provided the 2-alkylsubstutited products regioselectively. In particular, pyrrolidine derivatives provided the highest regioselectivity favoring the 2-substituted products. The most reactive and regioselective catalyst was the bicyclic pyrrolidine derivative, TABO (1,3,3-trimethyl-6-azabicyclo[3.2.1]octane), yielding 1,8-naphthyridines with as high as 96:4 regioselectivity. Regioselectivity increased with slow addition of the methyl ketone substrate to the reaction mixture, and was positively related to temperature. Isolated yields of single regioisomers were typically 65-84%, while observed regioselectivities were > or =90:10 for 1,8-naphthyridines and > or =84:16 for quinolines.