Acetyltrimethylsilane: a novel reagent for the transformation of 2H-pyran-2-ones to unsymmetrical biaryls.

[reaction: see text] An expeditious synthesis of unsymmetrical biaryls functionalized with electron-withdrawing or -donating substituents is described and illustrated by carbanion-induced ring transformation of 2H-pyran-2-one using acetyltrimethylsilane (ATMS) as a novel reagent in good yield. The novelty of the reaction lies in the creation of an aromatic ring from 2H-pyran-2-ones via two-carbon insertion from ATMS used as a source of carbanion.