News & Views

The activation of a Si–Si bond and its subsequent trans-addition across an alkyne substrate is a challenge. Now, a Pd-catalysed process for the trans-bis-silylation of terminal alkynes is reported, using a quinoline-substituted disilane reagent.

The synthesis of polyacene is hampered by low solubility and instability of the product as well as side reactions. Now, polyacene is synthesized by polymerizing monomers confined in a metal–organic framework.

Nearly all phosphorus-containing chemicals are prepared from phosphate ores via hazardous, energy-intensive, multi-step procedures that feature toxic, pyrophoric white phosphorus (P₄) as an intermediate. Using a different approach, many of these products can be prepared from phosphates in two simple steps free from P₄.

Supramolecular assemblies of peptides with differing morphologies and properties are formed by varying the synthetic route to the fibrous assemblies.

Cation exchange reactions convert ionic nanocrystals into new compositions through the substitution of cations. Now, a cation exchange reaction has been demonstrated on a Cu₂Se nanocluster with a uniform arrangement of atoms.

Stereocontrolled radical polymerizations are elusive, owing to the difficulty of controlling facial addition at a propagating planar, sp² radical chain end. Now, cobalt–porphyrin initiators are reported that enable the preparation of well-defined, highly isotactic polyacrylamides at low Lewis acid loading.

Renewable-energy-driven electrosynthesis of chemical feedstocks is gaining attention as a green alternative to traditional processes. Now, the production of industrially relevant C–S-based compounds from CO₂ and SO₃²⁻, with a simple Cu₂O electrocatalyst, has been demonstrated.

The conversion of CO₂ into complex molecules by genetically enhanced microorganisms is desirable but challenging. Now, a two-stage strategy featuring carbon sequestration, using the cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus, and cellular catalysis, using Escherichia coli, is reported for the synthesis of value-added molecules from CO₂.

Aromatic molecules with multiple one-half twists are synthesized using different precursors and synthetic routes. The pseudo-helicoidal structural chirality of these molecules and the loop of the twisted π-electronic structure fully overlap, thus giving rise to enhanced chiroptical responses.

The conversion of nitrogen (N₂) to ammonia (NH₃) is a key enabler in increasing global food production and nitrogen-containing feedstocks; however, the industrial process for producing NH₃ from atmospheric N₂ is energy intensive and has a large carbon footprint. Now, an efficient and mild catalytic method for the reduction of N₂ has been demonstrated, contributing to the development of a more sustainable process for the production of NH₃.

A partial sequential galvanic exchange method is reported for synthesizing heterostructured interfaces between ordered intermetallic phases on a preformed metal template. Four distinct phases with engineered interfaces between them could be combined in one particle.

Nature evolves proteins by iterating through an untold number of mutations over time. Now, a method is reported to prepare and optimize synthetic polypeptides in an automated high-throughput fashion driven by artificial intelligence.

It is challenging to design alloy nanocrystals with complex but homogeneous configurations. Now, a direct solution-phase synthesis is reported which can incorporate different alloy configurations into one nanoparticle. The nanoparticles, with atomically precise catalytic sites, are demonstrated as highly active and cost-effective catalysts.

Assembly and functionalization of biologically active steroids continue to pose a synthetic challenge. Now, mining and engineering of selective P450 C–H hydroxylases provide a biocatalytic C14–H hydroxylation, which can be integrated into chemoenzymatic syntheses of C14-functionalized steroids.

Metalloclusters play important roles in biology, materials and catalysis; however, their synthesis is not straightforward. Now, a strategy is reported where a controlled level of substitution based on incoming ligand steric properties is achieved, creating interesting metallocluster compositions.

Retrosynthesis has served as a playground for computer-aided design for many decades. Computer-aided methods are usually predicated on human-expert rules or learning algorithms that extract the rules from literature data. Now, an approach that bridges the gap between these computer-driven methods and the traditional, intuition-driven, ‘chalk board’ retrosynthetic methods is reported.

The elementary steps of transition-metal catalysis can be thwarted by high energy barriers. Now, by designing light-harvesting ligands on rhodium centres, these barriers are lowered or circumvented by accessing the excited state of the metal, enabling otherwise challenging reactivity at room temperature.

Bicyclo[1.1.1]pentyl (BCP) fragments are typically made from heat- and air-sensitive propellane, which decreases their potential impact in drug discovery. Now, easily accessible BCP sulfonium salts that are storable at room temperature enable the synthesis of a diverse set of functionalized BCP fragments.

A heterogeneous catalyst adlayer for CO₂ reduction is reported which suppresses H₂ evolution and promotes multicarbon product formation in strong acid. The resulting electrolyser has a single-pass CO₂ conversion efficiency of 45%.

Direct, stereocontrolled functionalization of ubiquitous C(sp³)–H bonds represents the most efficient route towards highly valuable molecules from feedstock chemicals. Now, diverse, enantioenriched, unnatural α-amino acids are obtained from readily available carboxylic acids in one step via iron-catalysed asymmetric nitrene transfer, overcoming the reactivity and selectivity challenges of intermolecular C–H amination.