Lewis acid-promoted carbon-carbon bond cleavage of aziridines: divergent cycloaddition pathways of the derived ylides

Lewis acids are shown to cleave the carbon-carbon bond of activated aziridines at ambient temperature. The derived metal-coordinated azomethine ylides undergo cycloaddition reactions with electron-rich alkenes. Cyclic alkenes afford products that are formally 4+2] adducts most likely derived from a Mannich-type addition to the ylide, followed by intramolecular Friedel-Crafts alkylation. Alternatively, acyclic alkenes undergo 3+2] cycloaddition to give new pyrrolidine products.