Catalytic retro-allylation

In 1996, when transition-metal-catalyzed carbon-carbon bond cleavage was just emerging as a current topic in organic chemistry, Kondo and Mitsudo reported the first transition-metal-catalyzed retro-allylation of homoallylic alcohol to simply cleave off the allylic moiety with a ruthenium complex [7]. After 10 years of silence, transition-metal-catalyzed retro-allylation has been rapidly developing since 2006. Nowadays, catalytic retro-allylation can be regio- and stereoselective, hence being a useful tool for modern organic synthesis [8]. 

In 1940, the reaction was unexpectedly discovered by M. F. Carroll while attempting the acetylation of various allylic alcohols. When cinnamyl alcohol (186) was treated with ethyl acetoacetate (185) in the presence of catalytic sodium acetate, the anticipated acetate 187 was not formed via a retro-Claisen condensation. However, the methyl ketone 189 was isolated. 

It has been reported that a retro-oxidative cyclization process proceeds in catalytic C-C bond cleavage reactions. For example, a six-membered cyclic allylic carbonate 38 underwent a palladium-catalyzed decarboxylative C-C bond cleaving reaction to afford dienyl aldehyde 40 (Scheme 7.12) [15]. It is proposed that oxidative addition of the allylic carbonate to palladium(O) followed by elimination of carbon dioxide generates the palladacycle 39. Subsequent retro-oxidative cyclization produces the diene and aldehyde functionalities. 

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