Diels-Alder reactions of 5-vinyl-1-acyl-2-aryl-2,3-dihydro-4-pyridones: regio- and stereoselective synthesis of octahydroquinolines.

[reaction: see text] Readily available 5-vinyldihydropyridones 2 undergo Diels-Alder cyclization with various dienophiles to afford novel octahdroquinolines. The process is highly stereoselective and provides heterocyclic products containing synthetically useful functionality.