Oxazolidinones as chiral auxiliaries in asymmetric aldol reaction applied to natural products total synthesis

Abstract

The aldol condensation is one of the most important C-C bond formation strategies in the art of organic synthesis. Its asymmetric variant, so-called, aldol reaction has found several applications, particularly in the total synthesis of natural products. One of the most frequent and reliable application of asymmetric aldol reaction is based on the use of a chiral auxiliary. Among different readily accessible chiral auxiliaries, optically active oxazolidinones are prevalent. In 2014, we reviewed the applications of oxazolidinones as chiral auxiliaries in asymmetric aldol reactions, applied to the total synthesis of natural products. Very recently, literature survey revealed several numbers of related publications, encouraged us to update our previous review. thus in this review, we try to underscore the vital role of oxazolidinones as chiral auxiliaries in asymmetric aldol reactions as applied to the total synthesis of natural products, from 2014 to date.