No abstract

The transition metal-catalyzed allylic substitution of unactivated allylic substrates (allylic alcohols, allylic ethers and allylic amines) is rapidly becoming an important area of research. There are several advantages to using these substrates in allylic substitution reactions: the use of unactivated alcohols minimizes the production of waste by-products and reaction steps; and allylic ethers and allylic amines are useful substrates because of their stability and their presence in numerous biologically active compounds. Research in this field has therefore gained widespread attention for promoting the development of efficient and environmentally benign procedures for the formation of C-C, C-N and C-O bonds.

This review article provides an overview of progress in asymmetric synthesis of allylic compounds via hydrofunctionalisation and difunctionalisation of dienes, allenes, and alkynes.

Oxazoline-containing ligands have been widely employed in numerous asymmetric catalytic reactions. Pyridine-oxazoline-type ligands, a class of hybrid ligands, were designed earlier than bisoxazoline and phosphine-oxazoline ligands; however, their unique properties have only been discovered recently. Pyridine-oxazoline-type chiral ligands are rapidly becoming popular for use in asymmetric catalysis, especially for several new and efficient asymmetric methodologies. Several types of challenging asymmetric reactions have been discovered recently using pyridine-oxazoline-type ligands showing their special properties and potential for future application in a wide range of new catalytic methodologies. This review provides an overview of this field, with the aim of highlighting both ligand design and synthetic methodology development.