We developed the first carbenoid insertion reaction into the urea C-N bond. The urea insertion reaction proceeded smoothly using Rh2(NHPiv)4, a rhodium catalyst previously designed by our group, to construct a diazabicyclic system. Highly functionalized bridged molecules with three adjacent stereocenters were diastereoselectively synthesized via the urea insertion reaction followed by hydride reduction or nucleophilic addition sequences in one-pot.
Keywords: carbenoid; insertion; rhodium; urea.