Copper-catalyzed regioselective ortho C-H cyanation of vinylarenes

Abstract

A copper-based catalytic technique for the regioselective ortho C-H cyanation of vinylarenes has been developed. This method provides an effective means for the selective functionalization of vinylarene derivatives. A copper-catalyzed cyanative dearomatization mechanism is proposed to account for the regiochemical course of this reaction.

Keywords: CH activation; copper; dearomatization; ligand design; synthetic methods.