A Practical and Economical Route to (S)-Glycidyl Pivalate

An efficient method to prepare enantiopure (S)-glycidyl pivalate from (R)-epichlorohydrin and pivalic acid is reported. This work provides an alternative to the synthesis of this important building block from readily available and inexpensive materials.

Tandem C–O and C–H Activation at Palladium Enables Catalytic Direct C–H Alkenylation with Enol Pivalates

The use of oxygen-based electrophiles in cross-coupling remains challenging for substrates with strong C–O bonds, with few examples that can combine C–O activation with an-other strong-bond activation in tandem. We report the first example of a direct, tandem C–O/C–H activation approach to C–C bond formation using palladium catalysis. This reaction combines C–O oxidative addition at enol pivalates with con-certed metallation deprotonation of functionalized heterocycles to achieve base-free direct C–H alkenylation, with pivalic acid as the only byproduct. Mechanistic studies reveal that the Pd(II) C–O oxidative addition product is the major catalyst resting state, indicating that C–H activation is the turnover-limiting step.

Effective Detection and Monitoring of Glioma Using [18F]FPIA PET Imaging

Background: Reprogrammed cellular metabolism is a cancer hallmark. In addition to increased glycolysis, the oxidation of acetate in the citric acid cycle is another common metabolic phenotype. We have recently developed a novel fluorine-18-labelled trimethylacetate-based radiotracer, [18F]fluoro-pivalic acid ([18F]FPIA), for imaging the transcellular flux of short-chain fatty acids, and investigated whether this radiotracer can be used for the detection of glioma growth. Methods: We evaluated the potential of [18F]FPIA PET to monitor tumor growth in orthotopic patient-derived (HSJD-GBM-001) and cell line-derived (U87, LN229) glioma xenografts, and also included [18F]FDG PET for comparison. We assessed proliferation (Ki-67) and the expression of lipid metabolism and transport proteins (CPT1, SLC22A2, SLC22A5, SLC25A20) by immunohistochemistry, along with etomoxir treatment to provide insights into [18F]FPIA uptake. Results: Longitudinal PET imaging showed gradual increase in [18F]FPIA uptake in orthotopic glioma models with disease progression (p < 0.0001), and high tumor-to-brain contrast compared to [18F]FDG (p < 0.0001). [18F]FPIA uptake correlated positively with Ki-67 (p < 0.01), SLC22A5 (p < 0.001) and SLC25A20 (p = 0.001), and negatively with CPT1 (p < 0.01) and SLC22A2 (p < 0.01). Etomoxir reduced [18F]FPIA uptake, which correlated with decreased Ki-67 (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our findings support the use of [18F]FPIA PET for the detection and longitudinal monitoring of glioma, showing a positive correlation with tumor proliferation, and suggest transcellular flux-mediated radiotracer uptake.

Visible-Light Photoredox-catalyzed Decarboxylative α-tertiary butylation of C(sp3)−H Bond of N-aryl tetrahydroisoquinolines with Pivalic acid under Transition-metal-free Conditions

A transition-metal-free visible-light photoredox-catalyzed decarboxylative alkylation of benzylic C-(sp3)−H bonds of N-aryl tetrahydroisoquinolines is reported. The developed methodology tolerates various functional groups and proceeds smoothly without the requirement of stoichiometric oxidants. A preliminary mechanistic study indicated that a radical process is involved in the reaction.

Versatile Reactivity of MnII Complexes in Reactions with N-Donor Heterocycles: Metamorphosis of Labile Homometallic Pivalates vs. Assembling of Endurable Heterometallic Acetates

Reaction of 2,2′-bipyridine (2,2′-bipy) or 1,10-phenantroline (phen) with [Mn(Piv)2(EtOH)]n led to the formation of binuclear complexes [Mn2(Piv)4L2] (L = 2,2′-bipy (1), phen (2); Piv− is the anion of pivalic acid). Oxidation of 1 or 2 by air oxygen resulted in the formation of tetranuclear MnII/III complexes [Mn4O2(Piv)6L2] (L = 2,2′-bipy (3), phen (4)). The hexanuclear complex [Mn6(OH)2(Piv)10(pym)4] (5) was formed in the reaction of [Mn(Piv)2(EtOH)]n with pyrimidine (pym), while oxidation of 5 produced the coordination polymer [Mn6O2(Piv)10(pym)2]n (6). Use of pyrazine (pz) instead of pyrimidine led to the 2D-coordination polymer [Mn4(OH)(Piv)7(µ2-pz)2]n (7). Interaction of [Mn(Piv)2(EtOH)]n with FeCl3 resulted in the formation of the hexanuclear complex [MnII4FeIII2O2(Piv)10(MeCN)2(HPiv)2] (8). The reactions of [MnFe2O(OAc)6(H2O)3] with 4,4′-bipyridine (4,4′-bipy) or trans-1,2-(4-pyridyl)ethylene (bpe) led to the formation of 1D-polymers [MnFe2O(OAc)6L2]n·2nDMF, where L = 4,4′-bipy (9·2DMF), bpe (10·2DMF) and [MnFe2O(OAc)6(bpe)(DMF)]n·3.5nDMF (11·3.5DMF). All complexes were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Desolvation of 11·3.5DMF led to a collapse of the porous crystal lattice that was confirmed by PXRD and N2 sorption measurements, while alcohol adsorption led to porous structure restoration. Weak antiferromagnetic exchange was found in the case of binuclear MnII complexes (JMn-Mn = −1.03 cm−1 for 1 and 2). According to magnetic data analysis (JMn-Mn = −(2.69 ÷ 0.42) cm−1) and DFT calculations (JMn-Mn = −(6.9 ÷ 0.9) cm−1) weak antiferromagnetic coupling between MnII ions also occurred in the tetranuclear {Mn4(OH)(Piv)7} unit of the 2D polymer 7. In contrast, strong antiferromagnetic coupling was found in oxo-bridged trinuclear fragment {MnFe2O(OAc)6} in 11·3.5DMF (JFe-Fe = −57.8 cm−1, JFe-Mn = −20.12 cm−1).

Mechanistic insights into α-branched amines formation with pivalic acid assisted C−H bond activation catalysed by Cp*Rh complexes

Density functional theory computations revealed a pivalic acid assisted C−H bond activation mechanism for rhodium catalyzed formation of α-branched amines with C−C and C−N bond couplings. The reaction energies of...