Palladium-catalyzed intramolecular C-H activation/C-C bond formation: a straightforward synthesis of phenanthridines.

The palladium-catalyzed intramolecular C-H activation/C-C cross-coupling has been developed for a straightforward and efficient synthesis of phenanthridines. With Pd(OAc)(2) (4 mol %) as the catalyst, PCy(3) (8 mol %) as the ligand, and Cs(2)CO(3) as the base, this protocol was applied to synthesize a small library of phenanthridine derivatives in good yields in THF.