Transition metal-catalyzed dehydrogenation is a clean oxidation method requiring no additional oxidants. We have accomplished a heterogeneous Pd/C-catalyzed aqueous dehydrogenation of 1,4-cyclohexadienes and cyclohexenes to give the corresponding highly-functionalized arenes. Furthermore, various arenes could be efficiently constructed in a one-pot manner via a Diels–Alder reaction and the following
Pyridines, which comprise one of the most important classes of the six-membered heterocyclic compounds, are widely distributed in nature, and the transition-metal-catalyzed [2 + 2 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of two alkynes and a nitrile is one of the most powerful methods for preparing versatile, highly substituted pyridine derivatives. However, the lack of chemo- and regioselectivity is still a crucial issue associated with fully intermolecular [2 + 2 + 2] cycloaddition. The present study developed the Ni(0)-catalyzed intermolecular dehydrogenative [4 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of 1,3-butadienes with nitrites to give a variety of pyridines regioselectively.