Propargyl Radical Chemistry: Renaissance Instigated by Metal Coordination

ConspectusOver the last two decades, radical chemistry of propargyl systems was developed into a potent synthetic field providing access to classes of organic compounds that are otherwise hardly accessible. The levels of diastereoselection thus achieved (up to 100%) are unprecedented for free propargyl radicals, as well as for organic radicals π-bonded to transition metals. These advances were enabled by the coordination of the triple bond to a Co2(CO)6 core that precluded an acetylene–allene rearrangement, stabilized requisite propargyl cations, created conformational constraints at the carbon–carbon bond formation site, configurationally altered the acetylenic moiety allowing for 1,3-steric induction upon the newly formed stereocenters, increased bulkiness of propargyl triads thus controlling the spatial orientation of converging radicals, and allowed for α-to-γ projection of the reaction site and alteration of the transiency of radical intermediates.In the course of these studies, a number of popular “...