Intercepted Meyer-Schuster Rearrangements in Organic Synthesis

The Meyer-Schuster rearrangement of propargylic alcohols is a transformation in organic synthesis known for almost a century. The products of this reaction-alpha,beta-enones and their alpha-functionalized units-are highly important functional groups for various synthetic transformations. Two modifications of this classical reaction, which involves interception of the intermediate allenol (or its equivalent) by either electrophiles or nucleophiles, have attracted the attention of synthetic organic chemists. This Focus Review provides a detailed description of the development of these two strategies.