Abstract

The Morita-Baylis-Hillman reaction is an organocatalyzed chemical transformation that allows access to small poly-functionalized molecules and has considerable synthetic potential and promising biological profiles. In this review, we report the efforts made by Brazilian research groups in recent years on the development of Morita-Baylis-Hillman chemistry. The review covers these contributions, with a focus on mechanistic studies, improvement of the experimental conditions, and the use of Morita-Baylis-Hillman adducts as building blocks for the synthesis of heterocycles, natural products and drugs.

Keywords: Morita-Baylis-Hillman, Heterocycles, Drugs, Acrylates, Mass Spectrometry, Natural Products.

Graphical Abstract