Intramolecular C(sp3)N Coupling by Oxidation of Benzylic C,N‐Dianions

What a couple! An intramolecular, C(sp3)N coupling to afford azacycles is reported. This reaction proceeds through the oxidation of benzylic C,N-dianions with iodine and builds on an earlier discovery during the synthesis of the natural product lyconadin A. The current study employs conformationally unbiased substrates with less acidic CH bonds and less reactive nitrogen nucleophiles. ZnCl2 was identified as an important additive. As a service to our authors and readers, this journal provides supporting information supplied by the authors. Such materials are peer reviewed and may be re-organized for online delivery, but are not copy-edited or typeset. Technical support issues arising from supporting information (other than missing files) should be addressed to the authors. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.