A general and practical palladium-catalyzed monoarylation of β-methyl C(sp3)-H of alanine

A palladium-catalyzed monoarylation of beta-methyl C(sp(3))-H of an alanine derivative with aryl iodides using an 8-aminoquinoline auxiliary is described. The reaction is highly efficient, scalable and compatible with a variety of functional groups with complete retention of chirality, providing a general and practical access to various beta-aryl-alpha-amino acids. The synthetic potential of this protocol is further demonstrated in the sequential synthesis of diverse beta-branched alpha-amino acids.