2-Cyanoamines: Versatile Intermediates for Carboxamide Linkage Formation and Nitrogen-Containing Cyclic Systems Construction

Over 160 years after the first formation of α-aminonitrile documented, it still carries a huge attention among the organic and medicinal chemists and employed as a powerful synthetic tool for nitrogen based organic compounds [1 - 6]. It is a versatile bifunctional intermediate with an ideal combination of amine and nitrile functionality in same carbon. α-aminonitrile motif themselves have found to be in many complex bioactive natural products [7 - 9], at same time as a key intermediate to many biochemical pathways and late stage synthetic approaches [10 - 13]. This beneficial synthetic intermediate still carries a potential to provide a plenty of opportunities for the establishment of innovative and effective synthetic methodologies.