Dearomatization Strategy of β‑Enamino Ester: Construction of Indenoazepines via Tandem Michael Addition/Polycyclization

A dearomatization strategy of β-enamino esters was developed to construct indenoazepine derivatives. The oxidative dearomatization was combined with a base-promoted tandem Michael addition/polycyclization and an acid-catalyzed aromatization. The nonaromatic structure of the Michael adducts might be essential to the realization of the 7-endo-dig cyclization.