UC Riverside

Analysis of the current top grossing pharmaceuticals finds that a vast number of them contain amines. As a result, the development of methodologies for the formation of amine-containing compounds is of high value and great importance. With the ability to treat: cancer, HIV, malaria, diabetes, and depression, as well as other ailments, increased efforts have been made to optimize the production of these compounds to increase yield while decreasing the environmental impact. This work is ongoing, and is a culmination of the fields of organic synthesis, catalysis, green chemistry, and biochemistry. The work in the Larsen group revolves largely around the use of copper-based catalysis to access hindered amine scaffolds through single-step, multicomponent reactions. Further functionalization of these compounds allows for the synthesis of previously unknown, biologically active, α-amino triazoles. Preparation and analysis of electronically diverse pyridyl triazoles allows for the development of new complexes with platinum and palladium. These pyridyl triazole palladium

complexes are highly reactive under mild aerobic conditions when used in Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions. Pyridyl pyrazoles are another class of compounds that show promise in the field of catalysis. Utilization of electronically diverse ligands allows for fine-tuning of the resulting complex for both classes of ligands. With further investigation, this may allow for the discovery of new reactivity in organic transformations.