Oxidation of NOBINs Toward α-Spiropyrrolidones.

While the oxidation of phenols and BINOLs is well documented to lead to a broad range of useful organic scaffolds, that of NOBINs is far less explored. We investigate herein their oxidation with a number of standard chemical oxidants, leading upon skeletal rearrangement to the corresponding α-spiropyrrolidones, which represent a rare and highly valuable heterocyclic core.