Synthesis of 4-(N,N- dimethylaminoethyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazole: molecular structure and reactivity of the 1,2-dihydrocarbazol-4(3H)-one and derivatives

The synthesis and reactivity of 1,2-dhydrocarbazol-4(3H)-one, (1), is reported. An X-ray molecular structure study of (1) provided information on the inactivity of its carbonyl group with potentially anionic reagents. 4(2- Dimethylaminoethyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazole has been synthesized from 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazol-4-ylidenemethyl acetate by reduction of the exocyclic double bond, followed by transamination and reduction.