Oxazole new world: A gold‐catalyzed intermolecular reaction of pyridine‐N‐aminides with ynamides can be used to prepare trisubstituted 1,3‐oxazoles with a variety of functional groups. This formal [3+2] cycloaddition employs robust conjugated N‐ylides as N‐nucleophilic N‐acyl nitrene equivalents for a highly chemoselective and regioselective addition across electron‐rich CC triple bonds.

The insertion reaction of diazocarbonyls to acids could be performed smoothly in fluorinated alcohols in the absence of metal catalyst. This new procedure allowed the chemoselective preparation of various functionalized compounds such as acyloxyesters, depsipeptides, and sulfonate, phosphonate, or boronate derivatives.

Two complementary methods for the synthesis of fluorinated exo-glycals have been developed, for which previously no general reaction had been available. First, a Selectfluor-mediated fluorination was optimized after detailed analysis of all the reaction parameters. A dramatic effect of molecular sieves on the course of the reaction was observed. The reaction was generalized with a set of biologically relevant furanosides and pyranosides. A second direct approach involving carbanionic chemistry and the use of N-fluorobenzenesulfonimide (NFSI) was performed and this method gave better diastereoselectivities. Assignment of the Z/E configuration of all the fluorinated exo-glycals was achieved based on the results of HOESY experiments. Furthermore, fluorinated exo-glycal analogues of UDP-galactofuranose were prepared and assayed against GlfT2, which is a key enzyme involved in the cell-wall biosynthesis of major pathogens. The fluorinated exo-glycals proved to be potent inhibitors as compared with a series of C-glycosidic analogues of UDP-Galf, thus demonstrating the double beneficial effect of the exocyclic enol ether functionality and the fluorine atom.