Asymmetric organocatalytic reactions by bifunctional amine-thioureas

Abstract

The development of organocatalysts has greatly changed the art of organic transformation in the chemical synthesis community for the past decades. Nature's work underpins the success of hydrogen-bonding catalysis were obviously shown in a myriad of enzymatic reactions. More recently, the emergence of bifunctional organocatalysts which work complementarily in activating two components of a chemical reaction has emerged as a frontier of research in asymmetric synthesis. In this particular review, works on asymmetric reactions catalyzed by bifunctional amine-thioureas are examined. © 2011 The Royal Society of Chemistry.