The modulation of selectivity of highly reactive carbon radical cross-coupling for the construction of C-C bonds represents a challenging task in organic chemistry. N-Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) catalyzed radical transformations opened...

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Rh(III)-catalyzed C-H activation and annulation of 1-benzoylpyrrolidine with propargyl alcohols has been achieved for an efficient synthesis of (4-benzylidene)isochroman-1-one. Highly enantioenriched products were obtained starting from optically pure propargyl alcohols.

Axially chiral aldehydes have received increasing attention in enantioselective catalysis. However, only very few catalytic methods have been developed to construct structurally diverse axially chiral aldehydes. We herein describe an NHC-catalyzed atroposelective esterification of biaryl dialdehydes as a general and practical strategy for the construction of axially chiral aldehydes. Mechanistic studies indicate that coupling proceeds through a novel combination of NHC-catalyzed desymmetrization of the dialdehydes and kinetic resolution. This protocol features excellent enantioselectivity, mild conditions, good functional-group tolerance, and applicability to late-stage functionalization and provides a modular platform for the synthesis of axially chiral aldehydes and their derivatives.