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We developed a visible-light-driven expanded EDA complex profile for the synthesis of aza-arenes via aza-6π electrocyclization of 2-styrylanilines with aromatic aldehydes. This protocol relies on the EDA complexes of AlCl 3 with imine to induce the absorption red-shift to visible light from ultraviolet light. An array of 2,3-disubstituted quinolines were constructed smoothly after excitation with blue-light-emitting diodes at room temperature. In addition, the resultant product, used as a cell permeable lipid droplet-specific probe, shows a low working concentration, a short staining time, and functionality in living and fixed cells.

A boryl radical-promoted dehydroxylative alkylation of 3-hydroxy-oxindole derivatives is achieved. The reaction starts from addition of 4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP)-boryl radical to the amide carbonyl oxygen atom, which induces a spin-center shift process to promote the C-O bond cleavage. The elimination of a hydroxide anion from a free hydroxy group is also accomplished. Capture of the generated carbon radical with alkenes furnishes a variety of C-3 alkylated oxindoles. This method features a simple operation and broad substrate scope.

The first palladium-catalyzed direct o -C-H iodination of benzaldehydes was successfully developed with the assistance of commercially available 2,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)aniline as the optimal monodentate transient directing group (MonoTDG). Moderate to excellent yields and good selectivity were achieved for a broad substrate scope under mild conditions. More importantly, the synthetic application was demonstrated by a concise two-step total synthesis of the natural product hernandial, which was accomplished by merging this new MonoTDG-assisted C-H iodination and subsequent copper-catalyzed cross-coupling.

2-Fluoro-5-(trifluoromethyl)aniline was found to be a suitable monodentate transient directing group (MonoTDG) to enable Ru(II)-catalyzed intermolecular direct ortho -C(sp 2 )-H imidation of benzaldehydes. N -Tosyloxyphthalimide was used as an alternative azide-free amidation reagent to achieve high efficiency and good functional group tolerance. Moreover, the reaction could be enlarged to gram scale, and the amidated product could be readily converted into useful quinazoline and fused isoindolinone scaffolds by one-step derivatization.

A copper-catalyzed anti -Markovnikov hydrosilylation of alkynes with PhSiH 3 was reported. This reaction represents a notable and efficient example on copper-catalyzed hydrosilylatioin of alkynes, which shows excellent recognition between the terminal and internal triple bonds. Various (hetero)aromatic and aliphatic substituted terminal alkynes underwent this reaction to afford the ( E )-vinylsilanes in high yields and with excellent regioselectivity.

A regioselective radical hydroboration of gem -difluoroalkenes was developed for the synthesis of α-difluoroalkylborons. The reaction features excellent regioselectivity, broad substrate scope, and good functional group capability. DFT calculations implicated the remarkable α-selectivity was driven from the kinetically and thermodynamically more favorable α-addition step. The resulting α-difluoroalkylborons could be readily converted into NHC-borane-tethered monofluoroalkenes, which demonstrated unique reactivity and applicability in the synthesis of monofluoroalkene derivatives through transformations of the boron unit.

Benzidine was found to be a novel transient directing group to enable Pd-catalyzed direct selenylation of inert C(sp 2 )-H bonds of benzaldehydes. Diverse diarylselenides were readily constructed in high efficiency and satisfactory yields with good functional group tolerance. The practical usage of the method was further demonstrated by enlarged reaction to gram scale and application in the facile access to two selenoxanthenes and one fluorescent probe.

We report Pd-catalyzed ortho-C-H methoxylation and chlorination of benzaldehydes by employing monodentate transient directing groups (TDGs) as an alternative strategy to bidentate TDGs. More importantly, a single crystal of benzaldehyde imine ortho-cyclopalladium intermediate was successfully obtained, and its structure was unambiguously determined by X-ray diffraction, which clearly showed that it was a binuclear palladium species bridged by a pyridone ligand. The utility of this approach was further demonstrated through the synthesis of key intermediates of natural products and drugs.

A synthetic method based on radical borylation/cyclization cascades of N-allylcyanamides was developed to construct diverse boron-substituted N-heterocycles. In the reaction process, the N-heterocyclic carbene-boryl radical underwent a chemo- and regioselective addition to the alkene moiety, followed by cyclization with the N-cyano group. The resulting amide-iminyl radical intermediates underwent further reactions to afford various boron-tethered N-heterocyclic molecules. Further transformations to access synthetically useful building blocks were also demonstrated.

In this work, an efficient synthetic route was developed to construct PAHs with diverse shape, width, and edge topology. The precursors of PAHs were obtained by using a direct arylation of arenes via a transient ligand-directed C-H functionalization strategy and the cycloaromatization was readily achieved by using a Brønsted acid catalyst. This novel route provides an opportunity to build up PAHs in a highly efficient manner.

A radical borylative cyclization reaction of 1,6-dienes was developed to assemble boron-handled six-membered heterocycles and carbocycles. This reaction was initiated by the chemo- and regio-controlled addition of an N-heterocyclic carbene-boryl radical to one of the alkene tethers, followed by an intramolecular 6- exo cyclization to afford a six-membered ring framework. The utility of this method was demonstrated in the synthesis of diverse paroxetine analogues through late-stage derivatization of the boryl functional unit.

A new protocol for radical transformations of thioamides promoted by Lewis base-boryl radicals is reported. The desulfurizative reduction to access organic amines was enabled utilizing 4-dimethylaminopyridine-BH 3 as the boryl radical precursor and PhSH as the polarity reversal catalyst. Alternatively, the chain process for unsaturated thioamides was switched to an annulation reaction using N-heterocyclic carbene-BH 3 as the boryl radical precursor and sterically bulky Ph 3 CSH as the catalyst, allowing for the construction of N-heterocyclic and carbocyclic skeletons.

A diversity-oriented synthesis of useful spirocyclic pyrrolidines was successfully accomplished via late-stage cascade reactions of o-succinimide-substituted benzaldehydes. A catalytic amount of aniline as a transient directing group was efficient for the ruthenium-catalyzed ortho-C(sp 2 )-H alkylation of benzaldehyde with maleimide. The in situ formed imine overrided a series of other traditional directing groups with excellent site selectivities. More importantly, only 0.5 mol % of ruthenium catalyst was sufficient for a 100 mmol scale-up reaction without column chromatography purification.

Triflimide (Tf2NH) specifically catalyzed reactions of alcohols and vinyl azides, enabling efficient construction of amides with C-C bond formation through nucleophilic attack of vinyl azides onto the putative carbocation intermediates derived from alcohols are described.

A method for aliphatic C-H bond oxidation of oximes and hydrazones mediated by 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-oxyl (TEMPO) has been developed, which enables the concise assembly of substituted isoxazole and pyrazole skeletons.

Oxidative skeletal rearrangement of 5-aryl-4,5-dihydro-1,2,4-oxadiazoles into quinazolinones is induced by molecular oxygen (under a dry air atmosphere) that likely proceeds via transient iminyl radical species. Concise syntheses of biologically active quinazolinone derivatives were demonstrated using the present strategy.