The cover picture shows a facile and green approach for the direct synthesis of C5-substituted 3-methylcyclohex-2-enones via the Aldol-Robinson cascade reactions. Lysine is the active center of type-I aldolase and could effectively catalyze the aldol reaction between aldehydes and acetones. Inspired by the catalytic mechanism of type-I aldolase, L-lysine/imidazole catalytic system was designed to catalyze the cascade reaction to produce a series of C5-substituted 3-methylcyclohex-2- enones with a versatile aldehyde group with the yields of 16% –92%. The use of simple and readily available materials, mild reaction conditions, simple execution, good yields, and wide synthetic potential of the products, make this new catalytic system attractive for academic research and practical applications. More details are discussed in the article by Lin et al. on page 997–1002.

The obtained iron sulfide sample is 3D nanoflowers with an average size of about 160 nm, which consist of many small nanoplates.

MoS₂ was used as a catalyst for the reduction of nitrobenzene under mild conditions. Nitroarenes with halides (F, Cl, Br and I) were reduced selectively without dehaloganation, and functional groups such as NH₂, OH, alkene groups were tolerated during the reduction of the nitro compounds. The reduction of p-chloronitrobenzene was studied over MoS₂ and Pd/C respectively with hydrazine. p-Chloroaniline was obtained quantitively with MoS₂, but some aniline formed by dehaloganation with Pd/C.

We have developed an efficient and highly stereoselective synthesis of the chiral mono- and bis-ferrocenylamines via sodium borohydride reduction, followed by reductive cleavage of the α-methylbenzyl moiety using 5% Pd/C and HCOONH₄. The selectivity was up to 99% de.

Benzohydroxamic acid reacts with dimethyl acetylenedicarboxylate in the presence of 10 mol% NaOAc to generate (E)-N-(1,4-dimethoxy-1,4-dioxobutan-2-ylidene)-1-phenylcarboxamide oxide in good-to-excellent yield in water at room temperature for 2 h.

A concise route to access 5H-imidazo[2,1-a]isoindole heterofused compounds by copper(I)-catalyzed intramolecular coupling of non-activated aryl bromides with azoles is reported for the first time. With CuI as catalyst, 1,10-phenanthroline as ligand, and K₃PO₄ as base, the reactions of 1-(2-bromobenzyl)-1H-imidazoles in DMF/o-xylene (1:1, V:V) at 145°C afford the corresponding substituted 5H-imidazo[2,1-a]isoindoles in high yields via intramolecular C-arylation.

The synthesis of 1-monosubstituted aliphatic 1,2,3-triazoles was achieved in a one-pot reaction from aliphatic halides (Cl, Br), sodium azide and propiolic acid with yields ranging from moderate to good.

The effect of anions and PVP on the transition of thiourea in ethylene glycol solution was studied in detail.

An efficient strategy for the synthesis of a variety of 3-methyleneisoindolin-1-ones has been developed. The reaction proceeded from coupling of 2-iodobenzamides (or 2-bromobenzamides) and terminal alkynes via Cu(OAc)₂·H₂O/2,2′-biimidazole catalyzed in DMF at 60°C and subsequent additive cyclization produced substituted 3-methyleneisoindolin-1-ones in good to excellent yields.

A method for the cyclocondensation of substituted isoflavones with cyanoacetamide in the presence of sodium hydroxide to give 3-cyano-5,6-diaryl-2(1H)-pyridones in good yields is reported.

Imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines have been successfully synthesized in moderate to good yields via a tandem three-component reaction of ethyl 2-(3-oxo-3-arylpropanethioamido)acetates with aromatic aldehydes and malononitrile under microwave irradiation using DABCO as the catalyst. The advantages of this method including high chemo- and regioselectivity make this new strategy highly attractive.

An efficient methodology for the highly diastereoselective synthesis of poly-substituted 4,5-dihydropyrrole derivatives from readily available common reactants in water has been developed. During domino processes, the formation of pyrrole skeleton and its C2-hydroxylation and C3-arylamination were readily achieved via metal-free [3+2] heterocyclization in a one-pot operation.

An intramolecular oxidative coupling reaction was catalyzed by nontoxic FeCl₃ with di-tert-butylperoxide as a sole oxidant at room temperature in CH₂Cl₂/TFA (9:1 V/V) to give phenanthrenes in good to excellent yields.

The functionalized spiro[furan-3,3′-indoline] was developed by domino reactions of pyridinium bromide with isatinylidene acetoacetate in the presence of triethylamine in ethanol at room temperature.

Four new transitional metal complexes were obtained based on benzotriazole-5-carboxylic acid. In these complexes, metal ions are bridged by organic ligands to form 2D layers, which are interlinked by π-π stacking interactions to form supramolecular networks.

Nucleophilic addition of primary aromatic amines to carbodiimides promoted by the mono-indenyl-ligated rare earth metal bis(silylamide) complexes (C₉H₆CMe₂CH₂C₅H₄N-α)Ln[N(SiHMe₂)₂]₂ afforded a series of guanidines.

The hydrogen-bonding interactions in 5-hydroxytryptamine-water (5-HT-H₂O) complexes were studied by geometries, harmonic vibrational frequencies, NBO, QTAIM, LMO-EDA at the MP2/6-311++G(d,p) level.

The mechanism of initial decomposition step of the n-alkane/nitroalkane binary mixture was investigated using quantum chemical calculations. We reveal four initial decomposition pathways and provide insight into the energetic feasibility of all the proposed initial steps.

A fluorescent sensor CSP for saccharides was designed and synthesized based on electron transfer mechanism. The conjugation was extended by incorporating an α,β-unsaturated ketone into the coumarin fluorophore. The sensor has good water-solubility, large Stocks shift (≈150 nm) and long emission wavelength (616 nm), which ensure CSP a potential sensor for sugars in biological systems.