Electrocatalytic Intermolecular C(sp3)–H/N–H Coupling of Methyl N-Heteroaromatics with Amines and Amino Acids: Access to Imidazo-Fused N-Heterocycles

An efficient NH4I-mediated intermolecular annulation of methyl N-heteroaromatics with amines/amino acids was developed by virtue of anodic oxidation, providing a variety of functionalized imidazo-fused N-heterocycles with good to excellent yields. The practicality of this protocol was demonstrated by the readily available starting materials, broad substrate scope, water tolerance, scalability, and the diverse transformations of the electrolysis product.