α,α-Dideuterio benzyl alcohols are important building blocks for the synthesis of deuterium-labeled medicines and agrochemicals. We have developed the first general single-electron transfer reductive deuteration of readily commercially available aromatic esters for the synthesis of α,α-dideuterio benzyl alcohols using benign D2O and a mild single-electron donor SmI2. This operationally convenient method features very good functional group tolerance and high deuterium incorporations (>95% D2). The potential impact has been exemplified by the synthesis of numerous deuterium labeled building blocks of important bioactive compounds. Most crucially, the method represents the first example of selective reductive deuteration of benzylic-type ketyl radicals using mild and highly chemoselective lanthanide(II) reagents.

中文翻译：

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使用 D2O 作为氘源合成 α,α-双氘代苄醇的芳族酯的还原氘化

α,α-Dideuterio 苄醇是合成氘标记药物和农用化学品的重要组成部分。我们已经开发了第一个通用单电子转移还原氘化的易于商购的芳香酯，用于使用良性 D2O 和温和的单电子供体 SmI2 合成 α,α-双氘代苄醇。这种操作方便的方法具有非常好的官能团耐受性和高氘掺入量 (>95% D2)。潜在的影响已通过合成许多重要的生物活性化合物的氘标记构建块来证明。最重要的是，该方法代表了使用温和且高度化学选择性的镧系元素 (II) 试剂对苄型羰基自由基进行选择性还原氘化的第一个例子。