Nickel-catalyzed direct thiolation of unactivated C(sp3)–H bonds with disulfides.

The first nickel-catalyzed thiolation of unactivated C(sp3)–H bonds with disulfides was described. This transformation uses (dppp)NiCl2 as a catalyst and BINOL as a ligand, which are efficient for the thiolation of β-methyl C(sp3)–H bonds of a broad range of aliphatic carboxamides. The reaction provides an efficient synthetic pathway to access diverse thioethers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]