A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides

Abstract N-trifluoromethyl compounds, featuring a CF3 group directly attached to nitrogen, are valuable in medicinal chemistry. Despite substantial advances in their synthesis over the past decade, the efficient preparation of inherently unstable N-CF3 secondary amines remains a challenge in synthet...

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Main Authors: Jia-Luo Fu, Jun-Yunzi Wu, Juan-Fen Shi, Long-Ling Huang, Honggen Wang, Qingjiang Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-05-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60225-2
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author Jia-Luo Fu
Jun-Yunzi Wu
Juan-Fen Shi
Long-Ling Huang
Honggen Wang
Qingjiang Li
author_facet Jia-Luo Fu
Jun-Yunzi Wu
Juan-Fen Shi
Long-Ling Huang
Honggen Wang
Qingjiang Li
author_sort Jia-Luo Fu
collection DOAJ
description Abstract N-trifluoromethyl compounds, featuring a CF3 group directly attached to nitrogen, are valuable in medicinal chemistry. Despite substantial advances in their synthesis over the past decade, the efficient preparation of inherently unstable N-CF3 secondary amines remains a challenge in synthetic chemistry. Herein, we present a mild and practical method for synthesizing these compounds via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides using iodine as the oxidant, silver fluoride as the fluorinating reagent, and tert-butyldimethylsilane as the proton precursor. This approach benefits from simple workup, as all reagents and by-products can be easily removed through simple filtration and evaporation. This protocol features a broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, and good to excellent yields. Additionally, the resulting products can be readily converted into N-CF3 carbamoyl fluorides, valuable building blocks for the synthesis of diverse N-CF3 carbonyl derivatives.
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spelling doaj-art-4006c29c3bd34499897a8e01bb71e4492025-08-20T03:16:41ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-05-0116111010.1038/s41467-025-60225-2A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanidesJia-Luo Fu0Jun-Yunzi Wu1Juan-Fen Shi2Long-Ling Huang3Honggen Wang4Qingjiang Li5State Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityState Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityState Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityState Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityState Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityState Key Laboratory of Anti-Infective Drug Discovery and Development, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chiral Molecule and Drug Discovery, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen UniversityAbstract N-trifluoromethyl compounds, featuring a CF3 group directly attached to nitrogen, are valuable in medicinal chemistry. Despite substantial advances in their synthesis over the past decade, the efficient preparation of inherently unstable N-CF3 secondary amines remains a challenge in synthetic chemistry. Herein, we present a mild and practical method for synthesizing these compounds via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides using iodine as the oxidant, silver fluoride as the fluorinating reagent, and tert-butyldimethylsilane as the proton precursor. This approach benefits from simple workup, as all reagents and by-products can be easily removed through simple filtration and evaporation. This protocol features a broad substrate scope, good functional group tolerance, and good to excellent yields. Additionally, the resulting products can be readily converted into N-CF3 carbamoyl fluorides, valuable building blocks for the synthesis of diverse N-CF3 carbonyl derivatives.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60225-2
spellingShingle Jia-Luo Fu
Jun-Yunzi Wu
Juan-Fen Shi
Long-Ling Huang
Honggen Wang
Qingjiang Li
A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
Nature Communications
title A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
title_full A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
title_fullStr A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
title_full_unstemmed A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
title_short A mild and practical approach to N-CF3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
title_sort mild and practical approach to n cf3 secondary amines via oxidative fluorination of isocyanides
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-60225-2
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