Ruthenium-catalyzed isomerization of oxa/azabicyclic alkenes: an expedient route for the synthesis of 1,2-naphthalene oxides and imines.

1,2-Naphthalene oxides and imines can be rapidly accessed through a ruthenium-catalyzed isomerization of readily available 7-oxa/azabenzonorbornadienes. These mild reaction conditions were found to be tolerant to various functional groups and the isomerization is highly regioselective.