The present invention relates to compounds of the formula (I):
and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, to processes for the preparation of, intermediates used in the preparation of, and compositions containing such compounds and the uses of such compounds for the treatment of pain.
experimental and theoretical studies indicate that silver acetate is the actual catalyst for C-H activation of electron-poor arenes, rather than the previously reported gold(I)-catalyzed process. An unprecedented Au/Ag dual catalysis is proposed, in which silver(I) is responsible for the activation of electron-poor fluoroarenes via a concerted metalation-deprotonation pathway, and gold(III) is responsible