Chemical synthesis articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Diversity-oriented synthesis is a valuable strategy to construct complex molecules of medicinal interest. Here, the authors show a folding cascade strategy to convert linear substrates into polycyclic compounds with multiple stereocentres by combining the reductive chemistry of SmI2 with 1,5-hydrogen atom transfer.

    • Mateusz P. Plesniak
    • , Monserrat H. Garduño-Castro
    •  & David J. Procter

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nanographenes with zig-zag peripheries are expected to have unique electronic properties, but their application in organic electronics has been curbed by their difficult synthesis. Here, the authors develop a facile route to zig-zag nanographenes based on a key dehydrative π-extension reaction.

    • Dominik Lungerich
    • , Olena Papaianina
    •  & Konstantin Amsharov

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Polyfluorinated hexopyranoses display unique physical, chemical and biological properties, however their stereoselective synthesis is highly challenging. Here, the authors report a synthetic approach based on the chemical manipulation of inexpensive levoglucosan to obtain heavily fluorinated monosaccharides stereoselectively.

    • Vincent Denavit
    • , Danny Lainé
    •  & Denis Giguère

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Coordination-driven supramolecular assembly provides the ability to build molecular architectures of impressive complexity. Here, the authors use a series of linear metal-organic ligands with specific sequences to construct multiple generations of precisely-controlled, 2D fractal polycyclic supramolecules.

    • Bo Song
    • , Sneha Kandapal
    •  & Xiaopeng Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Understanding the growth pathway of faceted alloy nanoparticles at the atomic level is crucial to morphology control and property tuning, but remains a challenge. Here, the authors reveal the particle growth and facet formation mechanisms of octahedral Pt3Ni nanoparticles using multiple cutting-edge in situ techniques.

    • Xiaochen Shen
    • , Changlin Zhang
    •  & Zhenmeng Peng

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Understanding how one metal nanocluster transforms into another is of synthetic and fundamental importance. Here, the authors use mass spectrometry to reveal an acid-induced structural transformation between two Ag clusters that proceeds via a breakage-growth-reassembly mechanism.

    • Zhi Wang
    • , Hai-Feng Su
    •  & Lan-Sun Zheng

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Topological connection of organic chromophores is an attractive way to design light-emitting covalent organic frameworks but the synthesis of stable light-emitting frameworks remains challenging. Here the authors report the designed synthesis of sp2 carbon conjugated frameworks that combine stability with light-emitting activity

    • Enquan Jin
    • , Juan Li
    •  & Donglin Jiang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Direct trifluoromethylation of unactivated aromatic rings at metabolically susceptible positions is highly desirable in pharmaceutical fields. Here, the authors report a new approach for direct trifluoromethylation of unactivated aromatics by incorporating thiophenes into the backbone of triphenylamine-based ligand.

    • Tiexin Zhang
    • , Xiangyang Guo
    •  & Chunying Duan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sequential alkene isomerization/functionalization enables enantioselective transformations of remote C–H bonds. Here, the authors report a chiral cobalt catalytic system for the highly enantioselective, remote C–H borylation of internal alkenes via an isomerization/hydroboration sequence.

    • Xu Chen
    • , Zhaoyang Cheng
    •  & Zhan Lu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Generation and iterative optimization of designed enzymes can provide valuable insights for a more efficient catalysis. Here the authors have followed the iterative improvement of a designed Kemp eliminase and show that remote point mutations could remodel the designed active site via substantial conformational reorganization.

    • Nan-Sook Hong
    • , Dušan Petrović
    •  & Colin J. Jackson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The development of potassium-ion batteries requires cathode materials that can maintain the structural stability during cycling. Here the authors have developed honeycomb-layered tellurates K2M2TeO6 that afford high ionic conductivity and reversible intercalation of large K ions at high voltages.

    • Titus Masese
    • , Kazuki Yoshii
    •  & Masahiro Shikano

  • Article
    | Open Access

    While the trifluoromethylative difunctionalization of unactivated alkenes has been largely explored, methylative difunctionalization remains underinvestigated. Here, the authors report copper-catalyzed alkoxy- and azido-methylation reactions of alkenes leading to important synthetic building blocks and valuable O- and N-heterocycles.

    • Xu Bao
    • , Takayuki Yokoe
    •  & Jieping Zhu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Glycosylation of partially protected sugars is usually limited by suboptimal regio- and stereo-selectivities. Here, the authors show a general oxidative glycosylation between anomeric stannanes with a nonprotected hydroxyl group and oxygen nucleophiles, additionally providing mechanistic insights into the origin of selectivity.

    • Tianyi Yang
    • , Feng Zhu
    •  & Maciej A. Walczak

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Controlling the composition and crystal phase of layered heterostructures is important. Here, the authors report the liquid-phase epitaxial growth of Sn0.5W0.5S2 nanosheets with 83% metallic phase on SnS2 nanoplates, which are used as 100 ppb level chemiresistive gas sensors at room temperature.

    • Xiaoshan Wang
    • , Zhiwei Wang
    •  & Wei Huang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Electrophilic acylation of arenes is largely limited to electron rich systems, non-polar medium and often displays moderate selectivity. Here, the authors show a directed para-selective ketonisation of arenes, overriding electronic bias and structural congestion, and apply it to the synthesis of bioactive compounds.

    • Arun Maji
    • , Amit Dahiya
    •  & Debabrata Maiti

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Activation of C–N bonds of anilines requires transformation of the amino group into a more reactive functionality. Here, the authors report an aromaticity destruction-reconstruction process that converts abundant anilines into valuable amines through group insertion into the C–N bond and benzylic C–H functionalization.

    • Dandan Han
    • , Qiuqin He
    •  & Renhua Fan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Distributing a reaction workload across laboratories can solve chemical problems more efficiently, but it is challenging to develop viable hardware and software. Here, the authors present an internet-connected network of cheap robots that can perform chemical reactions and share outcomes in real time, demonstrating a digitized approach to chemical collaboration.

    • Dario Caramelli
    • , Daniel Salley
    •  & Leroy Cronin

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In a symmetric molecule with identical functional groups, selective activation of only one site is challenging. Here, the authors show that 4,4″-diamino-p-terphenyl adsorbs asymmetrically to a metal surface, leading to a change in binding affinity of one of its amine groups.

    • Qigang Zhong
    • , Daniel Ebeling
    •  & André Schirmeisen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nitrogenase—whose cofactor consists of a metal–sulfur cluster—catalyzes the production of NH3 from N2, but designing metal–sulfur complexes capable of promoting this conversion remains challenging. Here, the authors report on the activation of N2 by a metal–sulfur cluster containing [Mo3S4Ti] cubes, demonstrating NH3 and N2H4 production.

    • Yasuhiro Ohki
    • , Keisuke Uchida
    •  & Takehiro Ohta

  • Article
    | Open Access

    While endohedral metallofullerenes have demonstrated advantageous electronic and magnetic properties, the isolation of monomeric M@C60 remains highly challenging. Here, the authors prepare trifluoromethylated Gd@C60 and La@C60, where the functionalization of C60 allows for the stabilization of these otherwise reactive species.

    • Ayano Nakagawa
    • , Makiko Nishino
    •  & Hisanori Shinohara

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Molecules exhibiting Möbius topology are fascinating but challenging synthetic targets. Here, the authors report the elegant synthesis and crystal structure of a catenane formed from two fully conjugated, interlocked Möbius nanohoops, and use theoretical calculations to understand its conformational stability and aromaticity.

    • Yang-Yang Fan
    • , Dandan Chen
    •  & Huan Cong

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Despite recent success in developing new covalent organic frameworks (COFs) materials, synthesis of chemically stable COFs still remains challenging. Here the authors demonstrate a facile strategy that transforms imine-linked COFs into robust porous aromatic frameworks by kinetically fixing the reversible imine linkage via an aza-Diels-Alder cycloaddition reaction.

    • Xinle Li
    • , Changlin Zhang
    •  & Yi Liu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Selective remote functionalization of aliphatic C(sp3)−H bonds is highly challenging and often requires transition metals and/or directing groups. Here, the authors show the γ-arylation of aliphatic alcohols via a two-step radical translocation and subsequent radical aryl migration.

    • Florian W. Friese
    • , Christian Mück-Lichtenfeld
    •  & Armido Studer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Subtractive manufacturing of microstructures is important for many applications, yet photoresists for 3D laser lithography allow only removal after development under harsh cleavage conditions. Here, the authors introduce a set of chemoselective cleavable photoresists allowing the orthogonal cleavage of microstructures under mild conditions.

    • David Gräfe
    • , Andreas Wickberg
    •  & Christopher Barner-Kowollik

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Owing to the energetic nature of N–N bonds, poly-nitrogen compounds are considered promising high energy density materials. Here, the authors synthesize three iron–nitrogen compounds at high pressure, including FeN4, which features polymeric nitrogen chains of [N42−]n units.

    • M. Bykov
    • , E. Bykova
    •  & L. Dubrovinsky

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Aliphatic alcohols usually require pre-activation for successful functionalization of their carbon chain. Here, the authors report a silver-catalyzed δ-selective functionalization of aliphatic alcohols via Csp3-H bond cleavage under mild conditions without the need of substrate pre-activation.

    • Yuchao Zhu
    • , Kaimeng Huang
    •  & Ning Jiao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Palladium supported on zeolite is a highly active catalyst for complete methane oxidation, but its stability needs to be improved. Here, the authors design a highly active catalyst resistant to steam-induced sintering under reaction conditions by alleviating the high mobility of palladium nanoparticles and zeolite degradation.

    • Andrey W. Petrov
    • , Davide Ferri
    •  & Oliver Kröcher

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Gold nanoclusters are known to grow stepwise from gold-thiolate monomers and oligomers. Here, the authors find that the evolution of silver nanoclusters differs completely from that of gold: rather than following a bottom-up pathway, the clusters evolve from similarly-sized Ag-thiolate cluster intermediates.

    • Yitao Cao
    • , Jiahao Guo
    •  & Tierui Zhang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Sub-nano clusters with atomic precision provide a compelling platform for bridging heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis, but their synthesis remains a great challenge. Here, the authors report a precursor-preselected wet-chemistry strategy to synthesize highly dispersed Fe2 clusters supported on mesoporous carbon nitride.

    • Shubo Tian
    • , Qiang Fu
    •  & Yadong Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    High-nuclearity silver clusters are appealing synthetic targets for their remarkable structures, but most are isolated serendipitously. Here, the authors describe the rational use of solvents to form cluster-in-cluster silver nanowheels, which comprise an octahedral Ag64+ core surrounded by a Ag56 cage of unusual seven-fold symmetry.

    • Zhi Wang
    • , Hai-Feng Su
    •  & Lan-Sun Zheng

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hydroformylation of 1,2-disubstituted alkenes usually occurs at the α position of the directing heteroatom. Here, the authors report the asymmetric rhodium-catalyzed hydroformylation of 1,2-disubstituted alkenylsilanes with excellent regioselectivity at the β position (relative to the silicon heteroatom) and enantioselectivity.

    • Cai You
    • , Xiuxiu Li
    •  & Xumu Zhang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The 3-thiazolidine ring, a pharmaceutically interesting cyclic structural element found e.g. in some antibiotics, is hard to obtain via currently used approaches. Here, the authors developed a straightforward method to efficiently synthesize a variety of defined, pure 3-thiazolidines.

    • Nadine Zumbrägel
    • , Christian Merten
    •  & Harald Gröger

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The development of novel chemical reactions converting biomass-derived alcohols into important classes of compounds is a particularly attractive strategy. Here, the authors report the catalytic condensation of phenols and aminophenols or aminoalcohols for the synthesis of carbazoles, quinolones and acridines.

    • Daniel Forberg
    • , Tobias Schwob
    •  & Rhett Kempe

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Gamma-butyrolactones are widespread in Nature, however direct catalytic methods to access them are limited. Here, the authors report a gold-catalyzed cycloisomerization of allenoic acids to acces γ-butyrolactones and apply it to the asymmetric synthesis of xestospongienes E, F, G, and H and other naturally occurring lactones.

    • Jing Zhou
    • , Chunling Fu
    •  & Shengming Ma

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Pressure amplification phenomena have recently been observed in ordered mesoporous solids, but little is understood about this counter-intuitive behaviour. Here, Kaskel and colleagues demonstrate that crystal size can play an important role in modulating pressure amplification in metal-organic frameworks.

    • Simon Krause
    • , Volodymyr Bon
    •  & Stefan Kaskel

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Reactions in aqueous microdroplets can significantly differ from those in bulk. Here, the authors report microdroplets that not only accelerate gold nanoparticle formation by several orders of magnitude but also promote spontaneous nanostructure formation with no reducing agents or template.

    • Jae Kyoo Lee
    • , Devleena Samanta
    •  & Richard N. Zare

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Synthesis of molecularly defined single-active site catalytic materials is the key to bridging the gap between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. Here, the authors develop such catalysts for selective oxidation of heterocyclic compounds to quinoline and indole via the oxidative polymerization of pyrrole derivatives.

    • Yujing Zhang
    • , Shaofeng Pang
    •  & Feng Shi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Designing molecular keys and combining advanced encryption standard cryptography with molecular steganography is a secure way for encoding messages. Here, the authors use the Ugi four-component reaction of perfluorinated acids to create a library of 500,000 molecular keys for encryption and decryption.

    • Andreas C. Boukis
    • , Kevin Reiter
    •  & Michael A. R. Meier

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Despite the biological importance of sulfones, available synthetic methods usually involve toxic metals and reagents or harsh conditions. Here, the authors report an environmentally benign procedure for the metal-free carbon-sulfur bond formation of allylic sulfones in neutral aqueous medium at room temperature.

    • Peizhong Xie
    • , Jinyu Wang
    •  & Teck-Peng Loh

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Controlling chirality and function in metal organic frameworks has been an achievement, but very difficult to carry out in covalent organic frameworks. Here the authors show chiral covalent organic frameworks that are crystallized from achiral precursors by chiral catalytic induction.

    • Xing Han
    • , Jie Zhang
    •  & Yong Cui

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