Cobalt-Catalyzed One-Pot Three-Component Coupling Route to β-Acetamido Carbonyl Compounds: A General Synthetic Protocol for γ-Lactams

An efficient improved procedure for the synthesis of β-acetamido carbonyl compounds is developed by a cobalt(II) chloride-catalyzed three-component coupling protocol. The procedure is also amenable to the synthesis of γ-lactams by a three-component coupling reaction with use of 2-carbomethoxybenzaldehyde. The β-acetamido carbonyl compounds derived from 2-carbomethoxybenzaldehyde are useful intermediates as they can be transformed to the corresponding γ-lactams on treatment with base.