Modern Carbonyl Chemistry
Edited by Junzo Otera
@
WI LEY-VCH
Weinheim . New York . Chichester . Brisbane . Singapore . Toronto
Edited by:
Prof. Dr. Junro Otera
Department of Applied Chemistry
Okayama University of Science
Ridai-cho
Okayama 700-0005
Japan
Preface
The chemical transformations of carbonyl groups have played a central role in organic
chemistry. The ease with which these groups undergo nucleophilic additions
has led to a variety of synthetically useful reactions. Most significantly, the emergence
of new reactions has not only enabled progress to be made in carbonyl
chemistry itself but exerted a great influence on other fields. In this sense, the
(Barbier-)Grignard reaction was the first epoch-making event. The discovery of
this reaction dates back almost a century, but still holds the status of one of the
most fundamental reactions in modern synthetic chemistry due to its facile availability
and versatility. Furthermore, the contribution of this reaction to organometallic
chemistry is, in particular, worthy of note. Before the discovery of the
Grignard reaction, a considerable number of organometallic compounds and their
reactions had already been known. However, the Grignard reaction clearly exemplified
the synthetic potential of organometallic compounds for the first time.
The next milestone appeared in the 1950s in the context of the development of
asymmetric reactions. Various stereochemical reactions induced by facial discrimination
of the carbonyl group have always been pivotal in this field. Cram’s rule
inspired an explosion of studies on diastereoselective reactions followed by enantioselective
versions. The recent outstanding progress in the non-linear effect of
chirality or asymmetric autocatalysis heavily relies on the carbonyl addition reactions.
Thanks to these achievements, natural products chemistry has enjoyed extensive
advancement in the synthesis of complex molecules. It is no exaggeration
to say that we are now in a position to be able to make any molecules in as
highly selective a manner as we want.


İNDİR