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A Type of Stable Amides Behaves as Acyl Transfer Reagents upon Visible-Light Irradiation through Self-Aromatization
Wenzhang Xiong1, Guoyin Lai2, Wenbo H Liu1
1School of Chemistry, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510006, China.
Abstract:
Organic molecules with light-modifiable reactivity are important in many fields because they can serve as the "switch" for light to trigger chemical processes. Herein, we disclose a new type of stable non-twisted amides, the reactivity of which can be turned on by light as acyl transfer reagents. Upon photo-activation, these amides react with various nucleophiles including amines, phenols, hydroxide, thiols, boronic acids, and alkynes either under metal-free or metal-catalysis conditions. This reactivity hinges on the design and synthesis of a photo-activatable reagent (7-nitro-5,6-dihydrophenanthridine), which undergoes self-aromatization enabled by an internal oxidant under light. This masked acyl donor group is anticipated to be useful in scenarios where light is preferred to trigger a chemical process.
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