Cesium carbonate promoted cascade reaction involving DMF as a reactant for the synthesis of dihydropyrrolizino[3,2-b]indol-10-ones

We presented a cesium carbonate promoted cascade reaction of N-tosyl-2-(2-bromophenylacetyl) pyrroles with DMF to synthesize dihydropyrrolizino[3,2-b] indol-10-ones. The transformation involved three successive bond formations without the aid of an exogenous transition metal catalyst or ligand.