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Updated: Oct 22, 2025

Methods to Identify the NMR Resonances of the 13C-Dimethyl N-terminal Amine on Reductively Methylated Proteins
Published on: December 12, 2013
Deaminative Reductive Methylation of Alkylpyridinium Salts
Olivia P Bercher1, Shane Plunkett1, Thomas E Mortimer1
1Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States.
Abstract:
Methyl groups can imbue valuable properties in organic molecules, often leading to enhanced bioactivity. To enable efficient installation of methyl groups on simple building blocks and in late-stage functionalization, a nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of secondary Katritzky alkylpyridinium salts with methyl iodide was developed. When coupled with formation of the pyridinium salt from an alkyl amine, this method allows amino groups to be readily transformed to methyl groups with broad functional group and heterocycle tolerance.
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