PREPARATION AND SYNTHETIC APPLICATIONS OF AZETIDINES

Azetidines (four-membered saturated nitrogen heterocycles) are found in a diverse range of natural products, and also serve as valuable building blocks for other structural classes. The ring-strain inherent in these compounds poses challenges in their preparation, and a number of creative methods for the synthesis of substituted azetidines are presented. The application of azetidines in the construction of acyclic products or other heterocyclic systems is also described. Finally, recent examples of the use of chiral, enantiomerically pure azetidines in asymmetric catalysis are detailed.