Recent advances towards organocatalytic enantioselective desymmetrizing reactions

Desymmetrization of prochiral or meso-subst rates bearing pre-existing stereogenic centers has proven to be a practical and efficient strategy in synthetic chemistry and has attracted tremendous attention for its utility in the facile assembly of valuable molecular complexity, especially in an enantioselective and diastereoselective manner. Simultaneously, organocatalysis has arguably become a powerful toolbox in asymmetric catalysis since its inception, thus capable of providing new opportunities for desymmetrizing transformations. The past 5 years have witnessed remarkable progress in the combination of organocatalysis with desymmetrization, and considerable relevant cases have been successively demonstrated. Organized on the basis of substrate class, this review comprehensively presents a summary of recent advances achieved in this fruitful field, aimed at highlighting the reactions' features, practicalities, and mechanisms.