Nickel-catalyzed selective cross-coupling of aromatic electrophiles (bromides, chlorides, fluorides and methyl ethers) with organolithium reagents is presented. The use of a commercially available nickel N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) complex allows the reaction with a variety of (hetero)aryllithium compounds, including those prepared via metal-halogen exchange or direct metallation, whereas a commercially available electron-rich nickel-bisphosphine complex smoothly converts alkyllithium species into the corresponding coupled product. These reactions proceed rapidly (1 h) under mild conditions (room temperature) while avoiding the undesired formation of reduced or homocoupled products.

In the presence of a catalytic amount of an imidodiphosphoric acid, enantioselective desymmetrization of bicyclic bislactones by reaction with alcohols took place smoothly to afford enantiomerically enriched monoacids having an all-carbon stereogenic center. Concise catalytic enantioselective syntheses of both (-)-rhazinilam and (-)-leucomidine B were subsequently developed using (S)-methyl 4-ethyl-4-formylpimelate monoacid as a common starting material.

SPINOL-based phosphoric acids are highly effective chiral hosts for the enantioselective liquid–liquid extraction of 1,2-aminoalcohols. The ee is highly dependent on temperature pH and solvent type.

Mild and general alumina-promoted hydrolysis conditions for converting α-iminonitriles into carboxamides have been developed. In combination with the oxidative three-component Strecker reaction, the one-pot direct amidation of aldehydes and alcohols is reported. Subsequently, an Yb(OTf)(3)-catalyzed Michael addition of thiols to α,β-unsaturated α-iminonitriles is reported for the synthesis of β-mercapto-α-iminonitriles. The successful integration of an oxidative Strecker reaction, thio-Michael addition, and neutral-alumina-promoted hydrolysis of β-mercapto-α-iminonitriles into a three-component one-pot process allowed us to develop the direct conversion of amines, aldehydes, and thiols into β-mercaptoamides. All of these procedures were applicable to aromatic and aliphatic amines and aldehydes.