Ligand-assisted palladium-catalyzed C-H alkenylation of aliphatic amines for the synthesis of functionalized pyrrolidines

The development of a ligand-assisted Pd-catalyzed C-H alkenylation of aliphatic amines is reported. Our studies indicated that an amino-acid-derived ligand renders the C-H bond activation step reversible and promotes the traditionally difficult alkenylation process. The C(sp(3))-H alkenylation proceeds through a 5-membered-ring cyclopalladation pathway that allows access to complex aliphatic heterocycles that could be useful to practioners of synthetic and medicinal chemistry.