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Diverse medicinal plants such as those from the genus Artemisia have been employed globally for centuries by individuals belonging to different cultures. Universally, Artemisia species have been used to remedy various maladies that range from simple fevers to malaria. A survey conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) demonstrated that 80% of the global population is highly reliant on herbal medicine for their primary healthcare. WHO recommends artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACT) for the treatment of global diseases such as malaria. Artemisinin is a bioactive compound derived from Artemisia annua leaves. It is a sesquiterpene endoperoxide with potent antimalarial properties. This review strives to instill natural products to chemists and others in diverse fields with a heterogeneous set of knowledge compiled from multifaceted researchers and organizations in literature. In particular, the various Artemisia species and effective extraction, isolation, and characterization methodologies are discussed in detail. An in-depth investigation into the literature reveals that divergent species of Artemisia exhibit a vast array of biological activities such as antimalarial, antitumor, and anti-inflammatory activities. There is substantial potential for bioactive compounds from Artemisia to provide significant relief from differing human ailments, but more meticulous research in this field is needed.

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Our group has used Ti-promoted aldol additions with an oxazolidineselone as the chiral auxiliary with much success. In these reactions, the Se atom in the auxiliary both promotes stereospecific addition as well as reports on, through the use of 77Se NMR spectroscopy, the ratio of diastereomers produced and the geometry of intermediates as the reaction proceeds. Through stable isotope labeling and NMR spectroscopy, we are able to experimentally observe a Ti enolate in solution and gain insight into its structure and reactivity. Results from molecular modeling calculations are also presented for comparison with NMR data.