Efficient synthetic approach to heterocycles possessing the 3,3-disubstituted-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran skeleton via diverse palladium-catalyzed tandem reactions

Various palladium-catalyzed cascade reactions of O-alkylated 2-iodophenol were explored in order to synthesize novel dihydrobenzofurans. An efficient tandem cyclization/anion capture reaction was developed to yield 3,3-disubstituted-2,3-dihydrobenzofurans. A small library of these compounds was prepared with a parallel organic synthesizer. A multi-component version of this reaction involving 2-iodophenol, an alkylating agent and a nucleophile, provided the same products. The methoxycarbonyl-substituted heterocyclic ring was hydrolyzed to a free acid, which could be used for further transformations.