Interception of amide ylides with sulfonamides: synthesis of (E)-N-sulfonyl amidines catalyzed by Zn(OTf)2.

Through the interception of amide ylides with sulfonamides, we herein report the first general example of an intermolecular condensation reaction between sulfonamides and amides. Beyond formamides, this approach was successfully applied to a variety of lactams and linear amides, giving rise to a broad array of (E)-N-sulfonyl amidines.