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Updated: Feb 21, 2026

Imine Metathesis by Silica-Supported Catalysts Using the Methodology of Surface Organometallic Chemistry
Published on: October 18, 2019
Experimental and Computational Exploration of para-Selective Silylation with a Hydrogen-Bonded Template
Arun Maji1, Srimanta Guin1, Sheng Feng2,3
1Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India.
Abstract:
The regioselective conversion of C-H bonds into C-Si bonds is extremely important owing to the natural abundance and non-toxicity of silicon. Classical silylation reactions often suffer from poor functional group compatibility, low atom economy, and insufficient regioselectivity. Herein, we disclose a template-assisted method for the regioselective para silylation of toluene derivatives. A new template was designed, and the origin of selectivity was analyzed experimentally and computationally. An interesting substrate-solvent hydrogen-bonding interaction was observed. Kinetic, spectroscopic, and computational studies shed light on the reaction mechanism. The synthetic significance of this strategy was highlighted by the generation of a precursor of a potential lipophilic bioisostere of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), various late-stage diversifications, and by mimicking enzymatic transformations.
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