C–C Bond Acylation of Oxime Ethers Via NHC Catalysis

An N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-catalyzed strategy has been developed to address the issue of using toxic transitional metals in the field of C-C bond activation. The novel reaction mode enables an efficient docking between the cyanoalkyl from the cycloketone oxime derivative and the acyl group from the aldehyde, affording ketonitrile in moderate to good yields, which is one kind of useful building block for synthesizing nitrogen-containing pharmacophores.