LAUSR

Trifluoromethylation via broken C-F bonds Trifluoromethyl substituents are widely used in pharmaceutical research to tune the properties of drug candidates. Generally, they are introduced intact through the formation of carbon-carbon bonds. Levin et al. discovered an unusual alternative mechanism, in which borane abstracts fluoride from the CF3 group in a gold complex. The activated CF2 fragment can then bond to a wide variety of other carbon substituents added to the same gold center. Return of the fluoride liberates a trifluoromethylated compound from the metal. This mechanism could be useful for the introduction of radioactive fluoride substituents for positron emission tomography applications. Science, this issue p. 1272 A gold complex forms carbon-trifluoromethyl bonds via borane-catalyzed cleavage and reformation of a C–F bond. The biological properties of trifluoromethyl compounds have led to their ubiquity in pharmaceuticals, yet their chemical properties have made their preparation a substantial challenge, necessitating innovative chemical solutions. We report the serendipitous discovery of a borane-catalyzed formal C(sp3)-CF3 reductive elimination from Au(III) that accesses these compounds by a distinct mechanism proceeding via fluoride abstraction, migratory insertion, and C-F reductive elimination to achieve a net C-C bond construction. The parent bis(trifluoromethyl)Au(III) complexes tolerate a surprising breadth of synthetic protocols, enabling the synthesis of complex organic derivatives without cleavage of the Au-C bond. This feature, combined with the “fluoride-rebound” mechanism, was translated into a protocol for the synthesis of 18F-radiolabeled aliphatic CF3-containing compounds, enabling the preparation of potential tracers for use in positron emission tomography.