Sulfonyl-Directed Photoinduced Dehydro-Diels-Alder Reaction of Aryl Maleimides: Enabling Regioselective Naphthalene Synthesis.

ABSTRACT: Light-mediated intermolecular dehydro-Diels-Alder (DDA) reactions have emerged as a powerful strategy for constructing multisubstituted naphthalenesprivileged scaffolds found in natural products, pharmaceuticals, and functional materials. However, developing a general [4 + 2] cycloaddition system that accommodates electron-deficient dienes with both electron-rich and electron-deficient alkynes has remained challenging. Herein, we report a catalyst-free DDA reaction between sulfonyl-substituted aryl maleimides, serving as electron-deficient dienes, and alkynes under visible-light irradiation. By proceeding via a triplet intermediate manifold that bypasses conventional single-electron-transfer pathways and their redox matching constraints, this protocol enables efficient and regioselective

SUBMITTER: Song XH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12848740 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature