Nickel-Catalyzed Regiodivergent Dearomative Arylboration of Indoles

Abstract

Indole dearomatization is an important strategy to access indolines, a motif present in a variety of natural products and pharmaceuticals. Herein, a method for transition-metal catalyzed regiodivergent dearomative arylboration of indoles to generate diverse indolines is presented. The method accomplishes intermolecular dearomatization of simple indoles through a migratory insertion pathway on substrates that lack activating or directing groups on the C2- or C3-positions. Synthetically useful C2- and C3-borylated indolines can be accessed through a simple change in N-protecting group in high regio- and diastereoselectivities (up to >50:1 rr and >20:1 dr) from readily available starting materials. Additionally, the origin of regiodivergence was explored experimentally and computationally to uncover the remarkable interplay between carbonyl orientation of the N-protecting group on indole, electronics of the C2-C3 p-bond, and sterics. The method enabled the first enantioselective synthesis of (-)-azamedicarpin.