Cyclopropene-Templated Assembly of Medium Cycles via Ru-Catalyzed Ring-Closing Metathesis

An expeditious click–click cyclize strategy for the assembly of medium-sized heterocyclic rings is described. The sequence involves the reaction of cycloprop-2-ene carboxylic acids with unsaturated amines to furnish amides, which are further subjected to a Cu-catalyzed directed carbomagnesiation and a ring-closing olefin metathesis reaction. This methodology allows for the efficient preparation of lactams with ring sizes up to 10.