Blue light-promoted N-H insertion of amides, isatins, sulfonamides and imides into aryldiazoacetates: Synthesis of unnatural α-aryl amino acid derivatives

A photochemical protocol using blue light allows the N-H insertion of amides, isatins, sulfonamides and imides into aryldiazoacetates to afford the corresponding alpha-amino esters. This method is experimentally simple, inexpensive and tolerates numerous functional groups, thus allowing the straightforward preparation of a variety of alpha-aryl amino acid derivatives in good yields. (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd.