In the Last few years, hybrid organic-inorganic trihalide perovskite (HOIP) solar cells an imperative and motivating research field and this is an interesting multifunction material owing to their high carrier mobility, semiconducting properties, and extremely high performance in solar cells (achieved solar power conversion efficiency is >25%). On the other hand, a numerous theoretical and […]
Merging enantioselective isothiourea catalysis with visible-light photoactivation for the synthesis of biologically-relevant chiral molecules
The quest for successful lead candidates in drug discovery has challenged synthetic chemists to develop innovative strategies to rapidly generate screening collections of chiral molecules. In this context, cascade processes provide a powerful tool for rapidly increasing, in one step, structural and stereochemical complexity, while fulfilling the requirements for atom and step economy. The development […]
Late-stage C–H bond construction of cyclopropanes to impact drug discovery
The cyclopropane ring is the 10th most commonly observed core in small-molecule drugs. This is due to the fact that cyclopropanes can positively influence metabolic stability, conformation, pKa, entropy, membrane permeability or pharmacokinetics in drug leads. The cyclopropane ring is often introduced in drug candidates at the early stages of the synthesis, however, the late-stage […]
Renewable Energy through New Electrolysis catalysts for water splitting
Inexpensive, renewable energy storage is vital for the future of humanity. Generating H2 via water splitting in proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis is a promising route for renewable fuel production. Wide-spread use of PEM electrolysis is limited by the high cost of the electrocatalysts which are composed of rare-earth metals such as Ir, Ru, and […]
Metal-catalyzed remote functionalization of aliphatic amines and amides triggered by photocatalytic sp3 C-H activation
Increasing the scope of CO2-utilising photoreactions: asymmetric photosynthesis of amino acids
Carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere at an ever-increasing rate due to the burning of fossil fuels. At the same time, the production of bulk and fine chemistry mostly relies on the same crude oil as a carbon source. This situation is unsustainable and therefore calls for the recycling of CO2 as a carbon […]
Go with the continuous flow: Asymmetric Synthesis of Bioactive Alkaloids by Multistep Continuous- Flow Processes
In the Realm of Chemistry, asymmetric synthesis has a prime importance as it allows creation of optically pure chemical entities. The synthesis of preferred enantiomer is highly desirable when seeking for specific biological activities owing to the importance of chirality. AsymmFlow delineates synthesis, characterization and application of novel asymmetric supported organocatalysts for enantioselective Pictet-Splengler cyclization […]
Supported organocatalysts and their applications in the upgrade of bioderived polyols: desymmetrisation of glycerol to obtain building blocks for fine and pharmaceutical chemicals production
Cooperative nucleophilic-electrophilic catalysis by ionic liquids (IL) has been recognised as a powerful tool for sustainable chemical transformations. Some of these transformations proved to be suitable for biomass derived chemicals upgrade. The SOCUPols project aims at preparing novel organo-catalysts based on supported IL-like fragments for the upgrading of biomass derived polyols such as diols and […]
A Remote-carboxylation Strategy for Alcohols via a Dual-catalytic System
The ability to introduce functionality into molecules in a regio- and chemoselective selective manner is of primary importance in the construction of high value molecular compounds but still remains a major challenge for synthetic chemists. The utilization of functionalities present in readily available and inexpensive starting materials to direct the introduction of further complexity is […]
Photocatalysis in Drug Discovery – Asymmetric Preparation of Bioactive Chiral Lactones and Cyclohexanols
We are in a changing era for drug discovery: the growing perception is that basic chemical research will play a greater role in pharmaceutical development. One current challenge is to develop a new kind of chemistry that yields a screening collection of optimal chiral molecules that increase the probability of success in identifying drug-candidate structures. […]
Sustainable Polyesters and Renewable Terpenoid Monomers
Synthetic polymers derived from petrochemical products are essential for the production of a wide range of consumer products. The demand for more sustainable and renewable monomers and polymers is currently increasing, because fossil feedstock will become scarce in future times, and the global legislation is putting an increasing stress on the use of certain monomers […]
De Novo Fatty Acid Synthesis from Alkane Feedstocks and CO2
FAT-FEEDOX deals with the development of an innovative and unconventional catalytic de novo approach to fatty acids, privileged motifs on the manufacture of detergents, soaps, dyes, plastics, agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals, using simple, available and abundant carbon dioxide (CO2) and alkanes, compounds derived from the crude oil. Specifically, FATFEEDOX will promote a synergistic catalytic C(sp3)–H activation […]
Enantioselective Carbon-Fluorine Bond Formation: A Molecular Editing Approach toward Drug Discovery
The unique properties of the carbon-fluorine (C-F) bond explain why organofluorine compounds play a central role in biopharmaceuticals. One current challenge in drug discovery is the selective installation of C-F stereogenicity within the active site of lead candidates, such molecular editing may greatly help in increasing potency and understanding metabolic degradation paths. However, the limited […]
Functionalization of ethereal C-O Bonds Enabled by Metallophotoredox Catalysis
The direct utilization of native functional groups without the need for prefunctionalized holds considerable promise to revolutionize organic synthesis. While significant advances have been realized within the area of C-H activation, the functionalization of inert C-O bonds in aryl ethers is still at its infancy. Prompted by the natural abundance of aryl ethers in Lignin, […]
The combination of Electrochemistry and Nickel Catalysis: New Bond-Forming Reactions on a Sustainable Platform
Sustainable routes towards the formation of key synthetic carbon–carbon bonds by cross-coupling remains a challenge in organic chemistry. Realization of this goal will enable the combination of simple building blocks to rapidly assimilate synthetic complexity with only a minimum level of stoichiometric waste. Electrochemistry provides a new platform to conduct reactions through in situ generation […]
Fe Complexes for Reduction/Oxidation Catalysis
The Fe-RedOx-Cat project aims to introduce a new family of efficient, robust and selective iron-based electro-catalysts for both, CO2 reduction and H2O oxidation. Taking into account the detrimental environmental effect of CO2 (global warming), the development of new technologies for its valorization (for instance conversion to fuels) is becoming mandatory for our society. The target […]
Dinuclear Gold Catalysis: A New Platform for Cross-Coupling Reactions
Gold catalysis has become a powerful tool for organic chemists to streamline synthesis of valuable and complex molecules. Compared to other transition metals, gold complexes are remarkably stable towards air and water, and are essentially nontoxic, which make them ideal candidates to execute catalytic cross-coupling reactions in industry or in vivo. TWINGOLD aims at broadening […]
Photochemical Cascade Reactions by Merging organo- and Iridium Catalysis: A Stereocontrolled entry to Molecular Complexity
The requirement for drug discovery to facilitate the identification of successful lead candidates has challenged synthetic chemists to develop innovative strategies to rapidly generate screening collections of chiral molecules. Recently, the application of asymmetric aminocatalysis to cascade reactions has addressed this target enabling extraordinary levels of sophistication and stereocontrol, while fulfilling the requirements for both […]