Intramolecular Aminocyanation of Alkenes by Cooperative Palladium/Boron Catalysis

A cooperative palladium/triorganoboron catalyst to accomplish the intramolecular aminocyanation of alkenes through the cleavage of N–CN bonds is reported. 4,5-Bis­(diphenylphosphino)-9,9-dimethylxanthene (Xantphos) is found to be crucial as a ligand for palladium to effectively catalyze the transformation with high chemo- and regioselectivity. A range of substituted indolines and pyrrolidines with both tetra- or trisubstituted carbon and cyano functionalities are readily furnished by the newly developed cyanofunctionalization reaction. A preliminary example of enantioselective aminocyanation is also described.