Published papers

A visible-light-driven deoxygenative [3 + 2] annulation between α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds and electron-rich olefins was developed, which proceeded under mild conditions with a broad substrate scope and functional group tolerance, enabling straightforward access to diverse substituted cyclopentenes. This cascade annulation strategy exploited the reactivity of phosphine radical cations, generated from triarylphosphines by the oxidation with the excited-state iridium-based photocatalysts, toward olefins to form the corresponding distonic radical cations with a chain length pertinent to constructing cyclopentene scaffolds via sequential radical addition and intramolecular Wittig reaction.

Intermediary radical cations, generated through single-electron oxidation of enol silyl ethers by excited Ir-based photocatalysts, can be exploited as Brønsted acids for the activation of heteroarylcyanides. This strategy enables the direct allylic C−H heteroarylation of enol silyl ethers under visible-light irradiation.

The combination of 8-quinolinecarboxaldehyde and benzoic acid proved to be an effective catalyst system for the racemization of N-unprotected α-aryl- or α-alkyl-substituted α-amino amides. Application of this system to chemoenzymatic dynamic kinetic resolution provided an efficient access to enantiomerically pure N-acetyl-α-amino amides in good to high yields.

A photoinduced catalytic C(sp3)-H alkylation of benzylic fluorides is developed. The use of zwitterionic 1,2,3-triazolium amidate as a hydrogen-atom transfer catalyst is uniquely effective for promoting this transformation. The combination of C-H alkylation with subsequent displacement of the C-F bond enables 1,1-difunctionalization of benzylic fluorides, providing rapid access to an array of functionalized molecular entities.

An unconventional cooperative catalysis for hydrogen-atom-transfer-mediated acceptorless dehydrogenative cross-coupling is described. The combined use of zwitterionic 1,2,3-triazolium amidate and an Ir-based photosensitizer as catalysts enables C-H/C-H cross-couplings between heteroatom-containing C-H donors and enamides or 1,1-diarylethenes under visible-light irradiation without the need for any oxidants, hydrogen evolution catalysts, or electrodes. A key to establishing this catalysis is the susceptibility of the conjugate acid of the triazolium amidate, amide triazolium, toward single-electron reduction to complete the catalytic cycle.

Inhibition of transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) is expected to block the spike protein-mediated fusion of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Nafamostat, a potent TMPRSS2 inhibitor as well as a candidate for anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug, possesses the same acyl substructure as camostat, but is known to have a greater antiviral effect. A unique aspect of the molecular binding of nafamostat has been recently reported to be the formation of a covalent bond between its acyl substructure and Ser441 in TMPRSS2. In this study, we investigated crucial elements that cause the difference in anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of nafamostat and camostat. In silico analysis showed that Asp435 significantly contributes to the binding of nafamostat and camostat to TMPRSS2, while Glu299 interacts strongly only with nafamostat. The estimated binding affinity for each compound with TMPRSS2 was actually consistent with the higher activity of nafamostat; however, the evaluation of the newly synthesized nafamostat derivatives revealed that the predicted binding affinity did not correlate with their anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity measured by the cytopathic effect (CPE) inhibition assay. It was further shown that the substitution of the ester bond with amide bond in nafamostat resulted in significantly weakened anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity. These results strongly indicate that the ease of covalent bond formation with Ser441 in TMPRSS2 possibly plays a major role in the anti-SARS-CoV-2 effect of nafamostat and its derivatives.