Among all biologically active sulfonamides, primary sulfonamides possessing terminal SO2NH2 group occupy special place due to their high zinc binding capability which has been successfully exploited for discovery of several different medicinally active primary sulfonamides. However, majority of the primary sulfonamide synthesis involve traditional method of treating ammonia with sulfonyl chloride, which in turn is typically obtained either from thiols by harsh oxidation conditions or chlorination of sulfonic acids. We herein report a simple and convenient protocol to access primary sulfonamides by direct sulfonylamidation of unfunctionalized arenes [direct CH activation to C-SO2NH2]. Usefulness of the protocol has been further demonstrated successfully by extending the application to formal syntheses of known drugs, acetazolamide (2), methazolamide (3), ethoxzolamide (4), and a pharmacologically active benzolamide (6).
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