Current Organic Chemistry - Volume 7, Issue 4, 2003

In this era of heightened environmental awareness and ever-increasing demand for higher efficiency from chemical processes, one of the major challenges facing organic synthesis is the utilization of abundantly available carbon sources as precursors for more advanced intermediates. The dual problems of activation of thermodynamically stable precursors and their stereoselective incorporation pose new challenges, solutio Read More

Palladium catalyzed allylic alkylations are important reactions in organic synthesis. In general stabilized carbanions are used as soft C-nucleophiles. Nonstabilized enolates from ketones and esters often cause problems, and the developments and improvements made with these interesting nucleophiles are summarized in this review.With respect to ketone enolates, best results are obtained with the corresponding tin derivati Read More

The author's work in the use of cyclopropylcarbene-transition metal complexes is summarized in this manuscript. Reactions leading to the formation of cyclopentenones, cycloheptadienones, and highly functionalized vinylic iodides have been developed based on various processes that result in opening of the cyclopropane ring.

The rhodium-catalyzed intramolecular hydroacylation of unsaturated aldehydes leads to the formation of cyclopentanone derivatives. The cyclization catalyzed by Wilkinson's complex is highly diastereoselective, and via this reaction, 3,4-disubstituted 4-pentenals were used to prepare the four stereoisomers of 3,4-disubstituted cyclopentanones. Several biologically active molecules, including 8- isoprostanoic acid, prost Read More

The objective of this review is to survey the current state of the Wacker and related alkene oxidation reactions focusing on the reactions of higher alkenes and emphasizing the mechanistic pictures that have evolved, the current understanding regarding issues of selectivity, recent applications of the chemistry in synthesis, and the use of other transition metal catalysts to effect related oxidation reactions.