Pd‐Catalyzed Decarboxylative Cross‐Coupling of N‐Aryl Anthranilic Acids to Access Carbazoles: Gram Scale Total Synthesis of Anti‐ Cancer Drug Ellipticine

Abstract An efficient and scalable Pd‐catalyzed decarboxylative cross‐coupling strategy for the synthesis of carbazoles has been developed by using N‐aryl anthranilic acids. By employing a well‐designed catalytic system, this protocol access diverse carbazole derivatives via a C−C bond‐formation in one‐pot. The substituted carbazoles were obtained in good to excellent yields with high functional‐group tolerance. We have also demonstrated the gram‐scale synthesis of the anti‐cancer drug Ellipticine by utilizing this methodology. This concise and scalable total synthesis of ellipticine exemplifies the efficiency of our methodology in producing this significant anti‐cancer compound.