A new method has been developed for the copper-mediated trifluoromethylthiolation of allylic halides by using potassium fluoride, elemental sulfur, and (trifluoromethyl)trimethylsilane in anhydrous N,N-dimethylformamide. This protocol provides facile access to a variety of allylic trifluoromethyl thioethers in moderate to good yields under mild, ligand-free reaction conditions.

This paper describes a rapid and practical synthetic route involving six-step reactions towards the diastereoselectively synthesis of (±)-endo-Epibatidine, starting from 6-chloro-3-pyridinecarboxaldehye. The effective Henry reaction gave precursor (E)-6-(6-chloropyridin-3-yl)-5-nitrohex-5-en-2-one (3a) which could be used in the next step. Various benzoic acid derivatives were used to optimize intramolecular Michael addition of ketone to pyridinylnitroolefins to provide the key intermediate 3-(6-chloropyridin-3-yl)-4-nitrocyclohexanone ((±)-7a) with high yield.

This paper describes a concise and practical route to enantiomerically enriched 5-alkyl substituted nicotine analogs. The Vilsmeier reaction was used to construct the nicotinaldehydes ring followed by the introduction of the chiral homoallylic alcohol by organic boron reagent and the cyclization of the pyrrolidine ring through the reduction of a chiral azide. 17 analogs have been synthesized and their corresponding biological activities were tested, in which compounds 10d and 10g exhibit excellent IC₅₀ values against RD and SY-SY5Y.