Because of their central role in the treatment of bacterial infection, the@-lactam antibiotics have received a great deal of attention since their discovery.* Considerable ingenuity has been demonstrated over the years in devising syntheses for the p-lactam system which forms the most salient feature of the penicillin and cephalosporin antibiotics., This class of heterocycles has traditionally been prepared by the cyclization of@-aminopropanoic acid ...
