Palladium-catalyzed substitution reactions of 4-allylimidazole derivatives

In the context of synthetic studies toward the oroidin family of pyrrole-imidazole alkaloids, we required an efficient method for conducting substitution reactions of allylic alcohols derived from urocanic acid. While in some cases this could be accomplished quite readily by classical nucleophilic substitution, it was complicated by allylic transposition in others. Application of Pd-catalyzed π-allyl chemistry provided a convenient solution, giving substitution without allylic transposition. Herein we describe the scope of this reaction in imidazole-containing substrates, and the elaboration of one adduct into a homologated histidine derivative, and into a cyclic homohistidine derivative.