A facile procedure for synthesis of 3-[2-(N,N-dialkylamino)ethyl]-3-fluorooxindoles by direct fluorination of N,N-dialkyltryptamines

▶ One-step synthesis of 3-fluorooxindoles from indoles having basic amine moieties ▶ Selectfluor™ was used for the fluorination ▶ A Lewis acid as an additive significantly enhanced yields of 3-fluorooxindoles ▶ The Lewis acid decreased the nucleophilicity of the amino group ▶ The developed procedure could apply to an antimigraine drug, rizatriptan.