Copper-Catalyzed Allylic Substitution

Allylic substitution catalyzed by copper261- 269 is a transformation that is related to allylie substitutions catalyzed by other transition metals discussed previously in this chapter, but several features of copper-catalyzed allylations make them worth differentiating. First, copper-catalyzed allylic substitutions are conducted with different types of nucleophiles than most allylic substitutions catalyzed by other metals. Second, the regioselectivity of the copper-catalyzed reactions is typically different from that of reactions catalyzed by complexes of other metals, particularly of reactions catalyzed by complexes of palladium. Thus, this last section of the chapter describes studies on allylic substitution catalyzed by copper, with an emphasis on enantioselective examples.