Zipeng Zeng, Yueyan Huang, Jiaxin Liang, Linfeng Xu, Shasha Wang, Haoxian Wu, Zheng Zeng, Zhong Zhi Zhu, Xiuwen Chen
A rhodium-copper cooperative catalyzed [4+2] annulation of N-phenylalanine methyl ester with maleimides has been developed, enabling the efficient synthesis of a diverse array of pyrroloquinolinedione derivatives. This protocol employs a radical cyclization pathway and provides a new strategy for constructing complex pyrroloquinolinedione skeletons from simple α-substituted amino acid ester substrates.