The complex [Pd{C,H,CH (Me)NH,}( Me,CO),]CIO, reacted with diphenylacetylene to give [ Pd2(q5-C,Ph,),(p-q2-PhC=CPh)]. A pathway for this reaction is suggested. Species related with the postulated intermediates can be isolated starting from [{Pd[C,H,CH( Me) NH,] (p-Br)},] which reacts with disubstituted alkynes (RCECR, R = C0,Me or Ph) to afford [Pd{C(R)=C(R)C(R)=C(R)C,H,CH-(Me)NH,}Br) (R = C0,Me l a or Ph 1 b) through a double insertion of the alkyne into the Pd-C bond. Complex l a reacted with 1 equivalent of MeO,CC=CCO,Me to give the tri-insertion reaction product 2. These are the first products of alkyne insertion into a cyclopalladated primary amine. Neutral ligands, s u c h as pyridine (py) or CO, can break the Pd-n-olefinic bond in l a to give the corresponding adducts [Pd{C(R)=C(R)C(R)=C(R)C,H,CH(Me)NH,}Br(L)] ( R = C0,Me; L = py 3 or CO 4). Complexes l a and 1 b reacted with AgCIO, (1 : 1 ) in acetone to afford AgBr and [Pd{C(R)=C(R)C(R)=C(R)C,H,CH(Me)NH2}(solv)]CI0, (R = CO,Me, solv = H,O 5a; R = Ph, solv = Me,CO 5b). The reaction of complex l a with AgCIO, (1 :1) and excess of pyridine gave the cationic complex [Pd{C(R)=C(R)C(R)=C(R)C,H,CH(Me)NH,}(py),]CIO, 6 ( R = C0,Me). The crystal structure of complex l b has been determined by X-ray diffraction. The palladium atom is bonded to Br, N, C ( l ) and to the midpoint of the C(3)-C(4) double bond in a distorted square-planar geometry.The metakarbon bond in orthopalladated tertiary amines undergoes insertion reactions with, for example, carbon monoxide, alkenes, acyl halides and alkynes, 5-7 and, upon decomposition, can afford interesting organic compounds. 5 * 8 , 9 These compounds have therefore attracted great interest in organic synthesis.Recently we have described the orthopalladation of amethylbenzylamine. ' We were interested in the reaction of these cyclometallated primary amines with alkynes, first because such reactions have not been reported yet and, secondly, because a different behaviour from their analogous complexes containing tertiary amines is expected. Thus, more stable insertion products are predicted due to their greater basic character and therefore there exists the possibility of studying the reactivity of such mono-or di-inserted complexes with different ligands to afford new types of organopalladium complexes. This is the main objective of the present work. The only reported reactions of cyclopalladated primary amines are those of CO or isocyanides with cyclopalladated benzylamine affording, after insertion and depalladation, phthalimidine or isoindolinimines, respectively. However, these results were published some time ago as a preliminary comm~nication.~