Recent Advances in Radical Addition/Divergent Cyclization of Ynones

Abstract

Over the past decade, designing new radical reactions has emergered as an increasingly-powerful strategy to construct complex molecular scaffolds, which usually features divergent predictable reaction outcome, diverse radical precursors, and various initiations. Notably, radical cascade addition reactions serve as an efficient and practical strategy for the construction of cyclic compounds. The scope of intermolecular radical acceptors is usually limited to C-C double or triple bonds. In contrast to radical addition onto alkenes, the use of alkynes is often more challenging. The regioselectivity in the radical addition step onto internal alkynes can be controllable by adjusting the electronic effects of the substrate. Among these, ynones are classic radical acceptors in organic synthesis, and many types of bio-relevant cyclic compounds could be obtained by cascade radical cyclization reactions. In this review, we've organized the content based on the structures of the final products, hoping it will inspire more research in this area.