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Updated: Mar 18, 2026

A Two-Step Protocol for Umpolung Functionalization of Ketones Via Enolonium Species
Published on: August 16, 2018
A Radical Bidirectional Fragment Coupling Route to Unsymmetrical Ketones
Lucile Anthore-Dalion1, Qiang Liu1, Samir Z Zard1
1Laboratoire de Synthèse Organique, CNRS UMR 7652, Ecole Polytechnique , 91128 Palaiseau Cedex, France.
Abstract:
A powerful strategy for the regioselective bidirectional synthesis of unsymmetrically substituted ketones is described, relying on the fact that the exchange of a xanthate is much faster than the radical addition to an unactivated alkene. The use of an alkene as the formal "alkylating" agent associated with the tolerance for numerous functional groups and the mildness of the experimental conditions removes many of the problems associated with the classical ionic and transition-metal-based approaches.
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