A palladium-catalyzed
reductive cyclization of nitroarenes has
been designed to construct sp3-C–NHAr bonds from
sp3-C–H bonds by using an enolizable nucleophile
to intercept a nitrosoarene intermediate. Exposure of ortho-substituted nitroarenes to 5 mol % of Pd(OAc)2 and 10 mol % of phenanthroline under 2 atm of CO constructs
partially saturated 5-, 6-, or 7-membered N-heterocycles
using α-pyridyl carboxylates, malonates, 1,3-dimethylbarbituric
acid, 1,3-diones, or difurans as the nucleophile.