A NEW AND CONVENIENT ROUTE TO THE AMIDES OF α-AMINO ACIDS AND α-HYDROXY ACIDS BY MEANS OF THE PALLADIUM CATALYZED FACILE CLEAVAGE OF 3-SUBSTITUTED-4-ARYLAZETIDIN-2-ONES
3-Substituted-4-arylazetidin-2-ones were found to be cleaved selectively at the N–C4 bond by the hydrogenolysis on palladium catalyst to give the corresponding amides of α-amino acids or α-hydroxy acids in excellent yields.