Palladium-Catalyzed Cascade Approach to 12-(Aryl)indolo[1,2-c]quinazolin-6(5H)-ones

A straightforward one-pot approach to the synthesis of challenging 12-arylindolo[1,2-c]quinazolin-6(5H)-ones is described. Starting from readily available o-(o-aminophenylethynyl)trifluoroacetanilides, palladium-catalyzed aminoarylation of the triple bond with Arl, ArBr, and ArN2+BF4- is followed by cyclization of the resulting N-trifluoroacetyl-2-(o-aminophenyl)-3-aryl indole. This sequential reaction provides the title compounds by means of a rare elimination of trifluoromethane.