Palladium Nanoparticle-Catalyzed Stereoselective Domino Synthesis of All-Carbon Tetrasubstituted Olefin Containing Oxindoles via Carbopalladation/C-H Activation.

The binaphthyl stabilized palladium nanoparticles (Pd-BNP) catalyzed single-step, stereoselective domino synthesis of symmetrically and unsymmetrically all-carbon tetrasubstituted olefin containing oxindoles from readily accessible anilides has been developed. The Pd-BNP catalyst showed a wide range of functional group tolerance that enabled building a library of heteroaromatics. This reusable Pd catalyst reflected its utility in the synthesis of biologically important AMP-activated protein kinase deprived of any metal Pd contamination. The nanocatalyst was easily recovered and reused five times without any appreciable loss in particle size or catalytic activity.