Palladium-catalyzed
organometallic transformations of free amines
are often unsuccessful due to side reactions, such as oxidation, that
can occur. However, the ability to furnish the free amine products
from these reactions is important for improving the utility and sustainability
of these processes, especially for accessing their potential as medicinal
and agrochemical agents. Notably, the 3,3-diarylallylamine motif is
prevalent in a variety of biologically relevant structures, yet there
are few catalytic approaches to their synthesis, and none involving
the free amine. Herein, we describe a simple protocol for the arylation
of cinnamylamines and the diarylation of terminal allylamines to generate
a diverse group of 3,3-diarylallylamine products using a Pd
II
precatalyst. Key features of the method are the ability to access
relatively mild conditions that facilitate a broad substrate scope
as well as direct diarylation of terminal allylamine substrates. In
addition, several complex and therapeutically relevant molecules are
included to demonstrate the utility of the transformation.