Dialkyl 2-(alkylamino)-4,9-dihydro-9-oxocyclohepta [b]pyran-3,4-dicarboxylates are prepared in a one-pot three-component reaction of alkyl isocyanide, dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylate, and a-tropolone (¼ 2-hydroxycyclohepta-2,4,6-trienone). The reaction proceeds smoothly at room temperature and under neutral conditions to afford tropolone derivatives in high yield.Introduction. -Heterocycle-fused tropolones, an important class of compounds with varied pharmacological and biological properties have attracted great attention since the beginning of tropoid chemistry [1 -4]. The cyclohepta [b]pyran ring system is the backbone of some natural products such as paulitine (Fig.), which displays several biological activities, and some derivatives of this system exhibit platelet anti-aggregating, HIV protease inhibition, anesthetic, histaminic response-reducing, antimalarial, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic activities [5 -8]. . Also the reaction of chloro(phenyl)ketene with 2-(aminomethylidene)cycloheptanones, followed by dehydrochlorination of the primary adducts, yields 4-amino-6,7,8,9-tetrahydro-3-phenylcyclohepta[b]pyran-2(5H)-ones [14].