Rhodium-Catalyzed Ring Expansion of Azetidines via Domino Conjugate Addition/N-Directed α-C(sp 3 )-H Activation.

A facile synthetic method for 4-aryl-4,5-dihydropyrrole-3-carboxylates is developed, with a rhodium-catalyzed ring expansion strategy from readily available 2-(azetidin-3-ylidene) acetates and aryl boronic acids. Mechanistic investigations suggest a novel domino "conjugate addition/N-directed α-C(sp 3 )-H activation" process. The asymmetric catalytic synthesis of the 4-aryl-4,5-dihydropyrrole-3-carboxylate is realized by using QuinoxP* (91-97% ee). The synthetic utility of this protocol is demonstrated by the synthesis of 3,4-disubstituted or 2,3,4-trisubstituted pyrrolidines with excellent diastereoselectivities.