Ligand Promoted, Palladium-Catalyzed C(sp2)-H Arylation of Free Primary 2-Phenylethylamines.

A mono- N-protected amino acid (MPAA) ligand promoted, Pd(II)-catalyzed C(sp2)-H arylation of free primary 2-phenylethylamines using the native NH2 as the directing group has been achieved. This method is compatible with challenging simple primary 2-phenylethylamines bearing α-hydrogen atoms. Application of this protocol in the direct structure modification of the drug molecule amphetamine is also demonstrated.