The following dissertation discusses the development of a nickel catalyst for the synthesis of Csp2-Csp bonds in addition to the development and mechanistic studies of nickel and palladium catalysts for the synthesis of Csp2-N bonds.

The first chapter is a review of the cross-coupling reactions discussed in this dissertation. Nickel and palladium will be compared with respect to physical properties and reactivity differences. The challenges associated with nickel-catalyzed cross coupling will be illustrated, while drawing analogies to analogous palladium-catalyzed reactions. The literature background for the synthesis of Csp2-Csp bonds, catalyzed by palladium and palladium/copper catalytic systems, will be reviewed, while highlighting the challenges and limitations of the field. The field of Csp2-N bond-forming reactions will be examined, as the differences in reactivity between nickel and palladium will be emphasized.

Chapter 2 discusses our efforts towards the development of a nickel catalyst for the development of a Csp2-Csp bond forming reaction, performed in the absence of a copper co-catalyst.

Chapter 3 describes the development of a single-component nickel complex that catalyzes the coupling of aryl chlorides with primary alkylamines. A series of mechanistic experiments, including synthesis of catalytic intermediates and kinetic experiments, were performed to elucidate the mechanism of the reaction.

Chapter 4 discusses our report the palladium-catalyzed coupling of aryl halides withammonia and gaseous amines as their ammonium salts. A difference in selectivity between reactions of aryl chlorides and aryl bromides was discovered and investigated.

Chapter 5 describes the development of a single-component nickel catalyst for the coupling of aryl chlorides with ammonia and ammonium sulfate to form the corresponding primary arylamines. The application of ammonium salts was extended to the coupling of gaseous amines, such as methylamine and ethylamine, which were subjected to the reaction conditions as their hydrochloride salt.

Previous research has proposed that genomic instability contributes to cancer progression, with its initiation linked to tetraploid cell formation (Duesberg, P., and R. Li. 2003. Cell Cycle. 2: 202-210; Ganem, N.J., Z. Storchova, and D. Pellman. 2007. Curr. Opin. Genet. Dev. 17: 157-162). However, there is little direct evidence linking cancer-causing mutations with such events, and it remains controversial whether genomic instability is a cause or an effect of cancer. In this study, we show that adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) mutations found in human colorectal cancers dominantly inhibit cytokinesis by preventing mitotic spindle anchoring at the anaphase cortex and, thus, blocking initiation of the cytokinetic furrow. We find that dividing crypt cells in the small intestines of APC(Min/+) mice exhibit similar mitotic defects, including misoriented spindles and misaligned chromosomes. These defects are observed in normal crypt cells with wild-type levels of beta-catenin and, importantly, are associated with tetraploid genotypes. We provide direct evidence that the dominant activity of APC mutants induces aneuploidy in vivo. Our data support a model whereby tetraploid cells represent a first step in the onset of genomic instability and colorectal cancer.