Transition metal-catalyzed cross coupling with N-acyliminium ions derived from quinolines and isoquinolines

A Ni(0) catalyst facilitates efficient C–C bond formation between a wide range of π-neutral and π-deficient aryl boronic acids and N-acyliminium precursors derived from quinoline and isoquinoline. The reaction proceeds under mild conditions and is tolerant of common organic functional groups. In addition, a simple one-pot protocol amenable to the direct use of substituted quinolines is described. Consistent with preliminary data revealing a mild, organoboronate-mediated racemization of enantioenriched N-acyliminium precursors, initial results indicate that a chiral phosphoramidite-ligated nickel catalyst promotes enantioselective arylation of racemic substrate with no evidence of a kinetic resolution during catalysis.