Selective C–C bond cleavage-enabled annulation between β-lactams and π- systems via Ni–Al bimetallic catalysis (opens in new tab)

The substitution of classical dienes with C–C bonds in Diels–Alder-type reactions is a compelling paradigm in modern syntheses. Although activation of C–C bonds α to a single heteroatom has been well established, extending this strategy to synthetically valuable C–C moieties α to two heteroatoms remains challenging because of the competing activation of adjacent C–heteroatom bonds. Here we overcome this limitation through the development of a selective C2–C3 bond activation protocol in β-lact...