RhIII-Catalyzed Synthesis of Highly Substituted 2-Pyridones using Fluorinated Diazomalonate

A Rh-III-catalyzed strategy was developed for the rapid construction of highly substituted 2-pyridone scaffolds using alpha,beta-unsaturated oximes and fluorinated diazomalonate. The reaction proceeds through direct, site-selective alkylation based on migratory insertion and subsequent cyclocondensation. A wide substrate scope with different functional groups was explored. The requirement of fluorinated diazomalonate was explored for this transformation. The developed methodology was further extended with the synthesis of the bioactive compound.