A practical 'add one carbon' strategy: convert carbonyl to cyanohydrin/aminonitrile, then transform nitrile into carboxylic acid, amide, or amine.
Reaction: One-Carbon Homologation via Cyanide (Carbonyl → Nitrile → Acid/Aldehyde)
What it does: A practical 'add one carbon' strategy: convert carbonyl to cyanohydrin/aminonitrile, then transform nitrile into carboxylic acid, amide, or amine.
Typical reagents: NaCN (SN2), then optional hydrolysis/reduction downstream
Key intermediate: Varies / context-dependent
Driving force: Formation of more stable bonds / products