Cobalt-catalyzed intramolecular decarbonylative coupling of acylindoles and diarylketones through the cleavage of C–C bonds

We report here cobalt-N-heterocyclic carbene catalytic systems for the intramolecular decarbonylative coupling through the chelation-assisted C-C bond cleavage of acylindoles and diarylketones. The reaction tolerates a wide range of functional groups such as alkyl, aryl, and heteroaryl groups, giving the decarbonylative products in moderate to excellent yields. This transformation involves the cleavage of two C-C bonds and formation of a new C-C bond without the use of noble metals, thus reinforcing the potential application of decarbonylation as an effective tool for C-C bond formation.