Facile synthesis of α-aminonitriles

α-Aminonitriles were prepared by reacting α-trimethylsilyloxynitriles with various amines in methanol. The silyloxynitriles were obtained by condensing a wide range of aldehydes (aliphatic, aromatic and heteroaromatic) with trimethylsilyl cyanide (TMSCN) in the presence of a catalytic amount of zinc iodide.