Treatment of 2-(1-alkynyl)phenyl isocyanates 6 with the iminophosphorane 14 produced in situ the benzoenynyl carbodiimides 15. Thermolysis of 15 under refluxing p-xylene furnished the 6H-indolo[2,3-b][1,6]naphthyridines 5, which could be regarded as the 5-aza analogues of ellipticine alkaloids. Similarly, condensation of 6 with the iminophosphorane 20 led to the formation of the 6H-indolo[2,3-b][1,5]naphthyridines 25 as the major isomer and the 10H- indolo[2,3-b][1,7]naphthyridines 26 as the minor isomer. The indolonaphthyridines 32, 33, and 34 having a methoxyl substituent were likewise synthesized. Treatment of the diisocyanate 43 with 2 equiv of the iminophosphorane 7 furnished 45 having two indoloquinoline units incorporated in a seven-fused-ring system.

Thermolysis of the carbodiimide 9a in gamma-terpinene at 138 degrees C produced 2-(phenylamino)quinoline (11a, 49%) and the parent 6H-indolo[2,3-b]quinoline (14a, 16%). Apparently, 11a was produced via the biradical 10a followed by hydrogen-atom abstraction from gamma-terpinene. A two-step biradical pathway through 12a or a one-step intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction could furnish 13a, which then underwent tautomerization to give 14a. With the carbodiimide 9b having a trimethylsilyl substituent at the acetylenic terminus, thermolysis in refluxing p-xylene at 138 degrees C produced the 6H-indolo[2,3-b]quinoline 14b (86%) exclusively. Treatment of 14b with 6 N NaOH in refluxing ethanol then furnished 14a in 92% yield. Similarly, the 6H-indolo[2,3-b]quinolines 14c-f were obtained from thermolysis of the carbodiimides 9c-f. The use of the aza-Wittig reaction between 4-methoxyphenyl isocyanate and the iminophosphoranes 2d and 2f to produce the corresponding carbodiimides followed by thermolysis furnished the 6H-indolo[2,3-b]quinolines 16d and 16f having a methoxy substituent at the C-2 position. Thermolysis of the carbodiimides 25a and 25b produced 26a and 26b having two indoloquinoline units connected at the 11 and 11' positions with either a three-carbon or a five-carbon tether. Using 1,4-phenylene diisocyanate for the aza-Wittig reaction with 2 equiv of the iminophosphorane 2g followed by thermolysis furnished 31 (66%) having two indoloquinoline units incorporated in the seven fused rings.

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Sequential treatment of (Z)-3-methyl-2-penten-4-ynal (10) with the allenylborane 2 and 2-aminoethanol furnished 11. The use of 11 for cross-coupling with aryl iodides followed by the KH-induced syn elimination of the coupled adducts 13 provided easy access to a variety of dienediynes 14 for subsequent conversions to dibenzo[a,e]cyclooctenes (sym-dibenzocyclooctatetraenes) 17. By cross-coupling with 1,2- and 1,4-diiodobenzene, it was possible to obtain 19 and 25 having two dienediynyl moieties. It was anticipated that the oligomers 21 and 26 containing multiple dibenzo[a,e]cyclooctenyl units could thus be synthesized. The 1H NMR spectrum of 32 having three dibenzo[a,e]cyclooctenyl units indicates the presence of three diastereomers 32a−c in a random statistical distribution of 2:1:1. Similarly, the 1H NMR spectrum of 33 having two dibenzo[a,e]cyclooctenyl units exhibits signals that support the presence of two diastereomers 33a and 33b in a 1:1 ratio.