Bleach oxidizes trimethylsilyl cyanide to generate an electrophilic cyanating reagent that readily reacts with an amine nucleophile. This oxidative N-cyanation reaction allows for the preparation of disubstituted cyanamides from amines without using highly toxic cyanogen halides.

The regioselective Stille cross-coupling reactions of 3-tri-n-butylstannyl-1-trimethylsilyl-1-propyne demonstrate isomerization following the initial transmetalation step resulting in allenyl palladium intermediates for reductive coupling to yield conjugated 1,1-disubstituted allenylsilanes.

The chiral base n-BuLi/(-)-sparteine or n-BuLi/(+)-sparteine surrogate promotes kinetic resolution of N-Boc-2-arylpiperidines by asymmetric deprotonation. The enantioenriched starting material was recovered with yields 39-48% and ers up to 97 : 3. On lithiation then electrophilic quench, 2,2-disubstituted piperidines were obtained with excellent yields and enantioselectivities.

A systematically varied series of conformationally restricted ketones, readily prepared from N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, were tested against representative olefins as asymmetric epoxidation catalysts showing useful selectivities against terminal olefins and, in particular, typically difficult 2,2-disubstituted terminal olefins.

Regio- and stereoselective hydrostannation of allenes by using di-n-butyliodotin hydride (Bu2SnIH) was accomplished to give alpha,beta-disubstituted vinyltins, which induced the synthesis of multi-substituted alkenes in a one-pot procedure.

A facile method for the preparation of highly active and enantioselective yttrium precatalysts for asymmetric hydroamination of gem-disubstituted aminoalkenes, from the combination of YCl(3) or YCl(3)(THF)(3.5) with ligand (R)- and n-BuLi is described.