NiH Catalysis-Enabled Synthesis of 4-Arylpiperidines from Pyridines and Aryl Iodides.

4-Arylpiperidines are prominent motifs in bioactive molecules and drugs. However, general synthetic strategies for their construction remain underexplored. We herein describe a route to 4-arylpiperidines from simple pyridines and aryl iodides. NiH-catalyzed regioselective hydroarylation of 1,2-dihydropyridines served as the key step to access various 4-aryl tetrahydropyridines, which were readily converted to diverse 4-arylpiperidines via hydrogenation or functionalization of the enamine double bond. This protocol features direct use of iodoarenes as arylating reagents, mild conditions, and excellent functional group tolerance.