A novel straightforward synthesis of 2,4-disubstituted-1,3,5-triazines via aerobic copper-catalyzed cyclization of amidines with DMF.

A novel straightforward synthesis of both symmetrical and unsymmetrical 2,4-disubstituted-1,3,5-triazines via aerobic copper-catalyzed cyclization of amidines with DMF as a one-carbon synthon has been developed. The presented method allows synthesizing the products that are currently inaccessible or challenging to prepare with the advantages of operational simplicity, broad substrate scope, and no need for prefunctionalized reagents, making it a highly practical approach to access various 2,4-disubstituted-1,3,5-triazines.