Accessing 2‐(Chalcogen)benzothiazoles via Electrochemical Intermolecular Cyclization of Isocyanides with Thiols or Diselenides

Abstract

2‐(chalcogen)benzothiazoles are frequently used as core structures for the development of pharmaceutical agents. A mild strategy for the synthesis of 2‐(chalcogen)benzothiazoles under electrooxidative conditions using isocyanides, thiols or diselenides as substrates was developed. This protocol allows access to structurally diverse 2‐(chalcogen)benzothiazoles in good yields and with good functional group tolerance, which does not require heavy metal catalysts and exogenous oxidants. Furthermore, gram‐scale synthesis was performed to demonstrate the scale‐up applicability of this reaction.