One-pot N-arylation of indoles directly from N-arylsulfonylindoles via consecutive deprotection and S(N)Ar Reactions with activated Aryl halides.

An efficient one-pot step by step t-BuOK-mediated procedure for the synthesis of N-arylindoles has been developed in moderate to good yields. The protocol involves the consecutive deprotection of N-arylsulfonylindoles as latent indoles and subsequent S(N)Ar reactions with activated aryl halides. This tandem reaction affords an efficient and convenient preparation of N-arylindoles that benefit from prior indoles protection by arylsulfonyl group, and can shorten a reaction sequence and improve synthetic efficiency.