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Invited for the cover of this issue are the groups of Roman Dembinski, Mehran Mostafavi, and Amitava Adhikary at the Polish Academy of Sciences, Université Paris-Saclay, and Oakland University. The image depicts a doughnut as a way of illustrating the hole transfer process. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.202000247.

An efficient environmentally benign route for the synthesis of benzimidazo[2,1-a]isoquinoline has been developed by reacting 2-ethynylbenzaldehyde and related substituted alkynylbenzaldehydes with variously substituted ortho-phenylenediamines and aliphatic amines in ethanol. This method provides a convenient, room temperature, atom-economical, and catalyst-free access to diversely substituted isoquinoline fused benzimidazoles. Regioselectivity of the reaction, as referred to o-phenylenediamines, was confirmed by X-ray crystallography. The reaction was found to occur in three major steps (imine formations, cyclization, and aromatization) and a mechanism has been proposed.

Reactions of dicobalt octacarbonyl [Co2(CO)8] with 2′‐deoxy‐5‐oxopropynyluridines and related compounds gave dicobalt hexacarbonyl nucleoside complexes (83–31 %). The synthetic outcomes were confirmed by X‐ray structure determination of dicobalt hexacarbonyl 2′‐deoxy‐5‐(4‐hydroxybut‐1‐yn‐1‐yl)uridine, which exhibits intermolecular hydrogen bonding between a modified base and ribose. The electronic structure of this compound was characterized by the DFT calculations. The growth inhibition of HeLa and K562 cancer cell lines by organometallic nucleosides was examined and compared to that by alkynyl nucleoside precursors. Coordination of the dicobalt carbonyl moiety to the 2′‐deoxy‐5‐alkynyluridines led to a significant increase in the cytotoxic potency. The cobalt compounds displayed antiproliferative activities with median inhibitory values (IC50) in the range of 20 to 80 μm for the HeLa cell line and 18 to 30 μm for the K562 cell line. Coordination of an acetyl‐substituted cobalt nucleoside was expanded by using the 1,1‐bis(diphenylphosphino)methane (dppm) ligand, which exhibited cytotoxicity at comparable levels. The formation of reactive oxygen species in the presence of cobalt compounds was determined in K562 cells. The results indicate that the mechanism of action for most antiproliferative cobalt compounds may be related to the induction of oxidative stress.

The reaction of alk-3-yn-1-ones (a bifunctional reagent) with o-phenylenediamines provides an effective synthetic method with high atom economy for the preparation of diversely substituted 1,5-3H-benzodiazepines. The reaction initially leads to the formation of conjugated enaminones (3-amino-2-alkenones, 51–99%), at room temperature, which constitutes a formal non-catalyzed hydroamination of the non-conjugated alkyne. Non-symmetrical o-phenylenediamines react in a regioselective fashion with respect to amino groups. Both the direct microwave-accelerated reaction of o-phenylenediamines with alkynones in ethanol and the intramolecular cyclization of intermediate enaminones in ethanol/acetic acid lead to substituted 1,5-benzodiazepines with good yields (39–92 and 26–99%). The regio- and stereochemical outcomes of these processes are confirmed by the X-ray structure determination of (Z)-3-[(2-amino-4-methylanilino)-4-(4-methylphenyl)-1-phenylbut-2-en-1-one], 4-[(4-methylphenyl)methyl]-7-nitro-2-phenyl-3H-1,5-benzodiazepine and 6,8-dimethyl-4-(4-methylbenzyl)-2-phenyl-3H-benzo[b][1,5]diazepine.

Sonogashira coupling of diacetyl 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine with diacetyl 5-iodo-2′-deoxyuridine gave the acylated ethynediyl-linked 2′-deoxyuridine dimer (3 b; 63 %), which was deprotected with ammonia/methanol to give ethynediyl-linked 2′-deoxyuridines (3 a; 79 %). Treatment of 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (1 a) with 5-iodo-2′-deoxyuridine gave the furopyrimidine linked to 2′-deoxyuridine (78 %). Catalytic oxidative coupling of 1 a (O2, CuI, Pd/C, N,N-dimethylformamide) gave butadiynediyl-linked 2′-deoxyuridines (4; 84 %). Double Sonogashira coupling of 5-iodo-2′-deoxyuridine with 1,4-diethynylbenzene gave 1,4-phenylenediethynediyl-bridged 2′-deoxyuridines (5; 83 %). Cu-catalyzed cycloisomerization of dimers 4 and 5 gave their furopyrimidine derivatives. One-electron addition to 1 a, 3 a, and 4 gave the anion radical, the EPR spectra of which showed that the unpaired electron is largely localized at C6 of one uracil ring (17 G doublet) at 77 K. The EPR spectra of the one-electron-oxidized derivatives of ethynediyl- and butadiynediyl-linked uridines 3 a and 4 at 77 K showed that the unpaired electron is delocalized over both rings. Therefore, structures 3 a and 4 provide an efficient electronic link for hole conduction between the uracil rings. However, for the excess electron, an activation barrier prevents coupling to both rings. These dimeric structures could provide a gate that would separate hole transfer from electron transport between strands in DNA systems. In the crystal structure of acylated dimer 3 b, the bases were found in the anti position relative to each other across the ethynyl link, and similar anti conformation was preserved in the derived furopyrimidine–deoxyuridine dinucleoside.

Ligand-free 5-endo-dig cyclization of 1,4- and 1,2,4-substituted but-3-yn-1-yl (homopropargyl) azides in the presence of zinc chloride (usually 20 mol %) in dichloroethane at elevated temperature provides 2,5-di- and 2,3,5-trisubstituted pyrroles in high to moderate yields (91–41%). Both conventional and microwave protocols furnished comparable results. A structure of 2-(4-fluorophenyl)-5-(4-methylphenyl)-1H-pyrrole was confirmed by X-ray crystallography.

[structure: see text]. 5-Endo-dig cycloisomerization of 1,4-di- and 1,2,4-trisubstituted but-3-yn-1-ones in the presence of a catalytic amount of zinc chloride (10 mol %) in dichloromethane at room temperature (22 degrees C) provides 2,5-di- and 2,3,5-trisubstituted furans in high yields (85-97%).

The structural investigation of the phosphoroorganic selenium-containing title compound C10H20O6P2Se (1) was carried out. The structure of 1 has been determined by X-ray analysis and correlated with the solid state NMR studies, its purity and identity was confirmed by elemental analysis. The following crystal data were found: triclinic, P1, a = 5.6557(6) A, b = 10.2717(8) A, c = 13.761(1) A, α = 105.580(7)β, p = 90.992(7)°, γ = 101.745(8)°, and Z = 2. Two six-membered rings in the molecule of 1 are in the chair conformation. The selenium atom which bridges the rings is situated axially with respect to both rings. The exocyclic oxygens are, consequently, in equatorial positions.

3,4',5,7-tetraacetyl quercetin (1) was isolated from the heartwood of Adina cordifolia. The structure was elucidated on the basis of spectral evidence.

Efficient, general synthesis of oxophosphoranesulphenyl chlorides ABP(O)SCl 2 based on the reaction of phosphorus trimethylsilylthionoesters ABP(S)OSiMe3 7 with chlorinating agents is described.

A novel efficient synthesis of sym-monoselenopyrophosphates 3 based on the reaction of diphosphoryl diselenides 1 with dialkyltrimethylsilyl phosphites 2 is described.

A novel highly efficient synthesis of sym-tetra-alkyl monothio- and monoseleno-pyrophosphates (RO)2P(O)XP(O)(OR′)2(X = S,Se) based on the condensation of dialkoxyoxophosphorane-sulphenyl or -selenenyl chlorides (RO)2P(O)XCl (X = S,Se) with dialkyl trimethylsilyl phosphites (RO)2POSiMe3(9) is described. Remarkably selective reaction of a O,O′-dialkyl O″-trimethylsilyl selenophosphate (RO)2P(Se)OSiMe3(13) with sulphuryl dichloride in the presence of an equimolar amount of a phosphite (9) leads to the formation of sym-monoselenopyrophosphates in excellent yield. A new rearrangement in phosphorus chemistry, sym-monoselenopyraphosphates (11) to asym-monoselenopyrophosphates (12), has been observed.

The remarkably selective reaction of O,O,O-dialkyltrimethylsilylselenophosphates (1) in the presence of equimolar amounts of dialkyltrimethylsilyl phosphites (2) with sulphuryl chloride leading to tetra-alkyl symmetrical selenopyrophosphates (3) in excellent yields is reported.

Our recent work on ligand exchange in chlorophosphonium salts and chloro-phosphoranes as well as on the reactions of phosphorus pseudohalogens with PIII compounds resulted in the novel methods for the synthesis of various phosphorus and carboxylic acids anhydrides.