1.2- Diaryl-2-propenones

Reactive three-carbon building blocks such as alkynones [32] and 1,3-diaryl pro-penones (chalcones) (for a review on the chemistry of 1,3-diaryl propenones, see e.g. [33]) which can react with bifunctional nucleophiles in a sequence of Michael addition and cyclocondensation open a facile access to five-, six-, and seven-membered heterocycles (Scheme 1). As a consequence, this general strategy has found broad application. However, standard syntheses of alkynones [34] and chalcones [33] are often harsh and require either strongly basic or strongly Lewis or Brpnsted acidic conditions. Therefore, the application in one-pot methodology, where delicately balanced reaction conditions are a prerequisite, is largely excluded. 

A related reaction involves the use of aryl indole-3-carbinols with enamides. Under the influence of acid catalysts the carbinols generate electrophiles. The adducts hydrolyze to products that are the equivalent of conjugate addition to 1,3-diaryl propenones. These reactions can be done in up to 90% ee with chiral BINOL-phosphoric acid catalysts [293]. 

Alkynones [62] and 1,3-diaryl propenones (chalcones) [63] are reactive three-carbon building blocks that can be transformed into five-, six-, and seven-membered heterocycles with bifunctional nucleophiles in the sense of Michael addition and cyclocondensation. Therefore, a catalytic access to ynones [64] and enones [65] by Sonogashira alkynylation turned out to be a versatile entry to consecutive multicomponent syntheses of heterocycles. This reactivity-based concept has been considerably developed by the Muller group in the past decade. In several reviews, the major advancements of this one-pot methodology have been summarized [66]. Therefore, only very recent conceptual achievements with respect to sequentially Pd-catalyzed processes [7] will be considered here. 

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