Stereoselective Synthesis with Rhodium Carbenes and Nitrenes

Low-valent reactive intermediates of carbon and nitrogen - namely, transition-metal complexes of carbenes and nitrenes - display diverse and powerful reactivity in the synthesis of complex organic molecules. Our group has focused on rhodium carbene complexes derived from substrates that lack electron-withdrawing groups. The diminished electrophilicity of these intermediates imparts exceptional functional group tolerance, enabling the construction of architecturally complex organic frameworks. The development of new methods and their application to the synthesis of a variety of heterocycles, including several natural products, will be presented. In parallel, analogous transformations involving rhodium nitrenes have been employed to generate complex heterocycles. The discovery of the first five-membered aromatic heterocycles featuring point chirality within the ring will be described, along with discussion of their distinctive structural characteristics.

Speaker: Jared Shaw, UC Davis