Organic Process Research & Development 2006, 10, 363
Organic Reactions, Volume 65. Edited by L. E. Overman. John Wiley & Sons: Hoboken, NJ. 2005. 627 + vii pp. £74.50. ISBN: 0-471-68260-8. Volume 65 of Organic Reactions contains two chapters, the first (140 pp) being an excellent review of the Passerini reaction (L. Banfi and R. Riva). Although discovered more than 80 years ago, the Passerini reaction has seen a resurgence of interest in the past few years for the synthesis of R-substituted amides with highly functionalised substituents. This comprehensive review covers the scope of the reactions and useful experimental procedures and will be invaluable to all researchers. The second and final chapter comprises an 80 page summary and over 350 pages of tables covering Diels-Alder Reactions of Imino Dienophiles (G. R. Heintzelman, I. R. Meigh, Y. R. Mahajan, and S. M. Weinreb). This is also an
10.1021/op050252q CCC: $33.50 © 2006 American Chemical Society Published on Web 01/19/2006
excellent review which covers not only imines but also oximes and imminium salts. The use of this reaction in the synthesis of heterocycles is widespread and intramolecular as well as two-component reactions are covered; stereochemical discussions and enantioselective catalysis complete the chapter. In the experimental procedures, it is unfortunate, in 2005, that in some of the procedures the use of benzene as solvent is recommended; carbon tetrachloride is also used in one instance. For a reaction such as this, surely other, safer, solvents can be found. Apart from this criticism, the volume maintains the high standard of this excellent series and is recommended to all academic and industrial libraries. OP050252Q 10.1021/op050252q
Vol. 10, No. 2, 2006 / Organic Process Research & Development
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