Photomediated Hydro- and Deuterodecarboxylation of Pharmaceutically Relevant and Natural Aliphatic Carboxylic Acids

Herein, we report a photomediated hydro- and deuterodecarboxylation of different primary, secondary, and tertiary carboxylic acids catalyzed by an organic pyrimidopteridine photoredox catalyst. The reaction was optimized by a statistical design of experiment (DoE). Under optimized reaction conditions, the conversion of commercially available nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in tablet form and on gram scale was realized. The scope of the application comprises primary, secondary, and tertiary aliphatic biologically active carboxylic acids. A deuterium incorporation of up to 95% by using D2O as inexpensive deuterium source was achieved. A sensitivity assessment as well as experiments aiding the elucidation of the reaction mechanism are discussed.