Recent advances in catalytic enantioselective carbometallation of cyclopropenes and cyclobutenes

Abstract

Enantioenriched small carbocycles are key structures in numerous natural products and pharmaceutically important molecules as well as vital intermediates in organic synthesis. Although various catalytic approaches for construction of such molecules from acyclic precursors have been developed, direct enantioselective functionalization of preformed three-membered and four-membered rings represents the most straightforward and modular strategy, enabling rapid and diversified synthesis of enantioenriched cyclopropanes and cyclobutanes from a single set of starting materials without the need of incorporation of specific functional groups. In this Featured Article, we have summarized the recent advances in catalytic enantioselective functionalization of cyclopropenes and cyclobutenes through carbometallation. The plausible mechanisms of such reactions and future of this field are also discussed.