N-alkenyl indoles as useful intermediates for alkaloid synthesis.

A mild cross-coupling reaction to access several N-alkenyl-substituted indoles has been developed. The coupling procedure involves treating a NH-indole with various alkenyl bromides using a combination of 10 mol % of copper(I) iodide and 20 mol % of ethylenediamine as the catalyst in dioxane at 110 °C in the presence of K(3)PO(4) as the base. When treated with acid, these unique enamines produce a dimeric product derived from a preferred protonation reaction at the enamine π-bond. A cationic cyclization reaction of the readily available 2-(2-(1H-indol-1-yl)allyl)cyclopentanol was utilized to construct tetracyclic indole derivatives with a quaternary stereocenter attached to the C(2)-position of the indole ring. An alternative strategy for selective functionalization at the C(2)-position of a N-alkenyl-substituted indole derivative that was also studied involves a radical cyclization of a xanthate derivative. The work described provides an attractive route to the tetracyclic core of some vinca alkaloids, including the tetrahydroisoquinocarbazole RS-2135.