Reactive carbon species tamed for synthesis

Radicals, the highly reactive species, gain stability by undergoing three different reactions. The first reaction involves a radical-radical coupling, in which a radical combines with another radical, forming a spin‐paired molecule. The second reaction is between a radical and a spin‐paired molecule, generating a new radical and a new spin‐paired molecule. The third reaction is radical decomposition in a unimolecular reaction, forming a new radical and a spin‐paired...

Carbon dioxide fixation in prokaryotes enables the assimilation of inorganic carbon into organic molecules, supporting biosynthetic pathways, sustaining ecosystems, and contributing to the global carbon cycle. It also has industrial applications in carbon capture and bioproduct synthesis. Autotrophic organisms rely on this process to utilize CO₂ as a carbon source in diverse environments.The Calvin CycleThe Calvin cycle is the most widespread carbon fixation mechanism, primarily used by...

Phase I biotransformation reductive reactions are chemical processes that modify drugs by introducing or revealing polar functional groups via reduction. Enzymes called reductases catalyze these reactions, playing a pivotal role in drug metabolism by transforming lipophilic drugs into more polar, water-soluble metabolites for easy excretion. An essential type of reductive reaction is the carbonyl group reduction, where aldehydes and ketones are reduced to alcohols. An example is the...

Radicals adjacent to electron-donating groups are called nucleophilic radicals. These radicals readily react with electrophilic alkenes. The SOMO–LUMO interactions are the driving force for the reaction, where the high-energy SOMO of the electron-rich, nucleophilic radicals interacts with the low-energy LUMO of the electron-deficient, electrophilic alkenes. Such SOMO–LUMO interactions are the basis of reactive radical traps, affecting the selectivity in radical reactions. For...

Oxidative reactions are pivotal in metabolizing numerous compounds, including pharmaceutical drugs. These reactions often occur in carbon-heteroatom systems, such as carbon-nitrogen, carbon-sulfur, and carbon-oxygen.
In carbon-nitrogen systems, aliphatic and aromatic amines can undergo oxidative reactions. Secondary and tertiary amines, like those found in tricyclic antidepressants, can undergo N-dealkylation, a process that involves the oxidation of the alkyl group. In addition, oxidative...

The radical dimerization of ketones or aldehydes gives vicinal diols through a pinacol coupling reaction. However, the behavior of titanium metals used for the reaction as a source of electrons is unusual. When the reaction is carried out in the presence of titanium, diols can be isolated at low temperatures. Else titanium further reacts with diols, forming alkenes through the McMurry reaction.