Decarboxylative Alkylation of Heteroarenes Using N‑Hydroxybenzimidoyl Chloride Esters

Functionalized N-heteroarenes are highly desired motifs in medicinal chemistry and pharmaceutical industry. Minisci-type reactions usually require a protonated N-heteroarene for the alkyl radical to attack. This work describes a leaving-group-assisted redox-active ester to enable direct coupling of an amino acid with N-heteroarenes. The efficient and sustainable photoredox strategy provides rapid access to an alkylated heterocyclic manifold.