Catalysis of the asymmetric desymmetrization of cyclic anhydrides by nucleophilic ring-opening with alcohols

Abstract

The single symmetry-breaking transformation of a relatively simple meso compound can provide highly expedient access to a wide variety of usefully functionalized chiral building blocks. Recent advances in asymmetric desymmetrization, through the development of tertiary amines as nonenzymatic catalysts for the ring opening of meso cyclic anhydrides with alcohols [for example, see Eq. (1)], are discussed here.