Rhodium(II)-Catalyzed Desaturative [3+2] Tandem Cyclization of Arylcycloalkanes with β-Dicarbonyls.

Synthetically important scaffolds, fused tricyclic frameworks containing a 2,3-cyclo[ b ]dihydrofuran unit, play a crucial role in drug discovery. In this study, we demonstrate that rhodium(II)/ N -fluorobenzenesulfonimide can catalyze the in situ generation of highly reactive alkene intermediates from commonly accessible alkanes, which undergo intermolecular [3+2] tandem cyclization with the simultaneously generated β-dicarbonyl radical to synthesize a series of fused tricyclic frameworks containing a 2,3-cyclo[ b ]dihydrofuran unit with a quaternary carbon center.