Recent advances in copper-catalyzed propargylic substitution

The copper-catalyzed propargylic substitution reaction has become a powerful synthetic method to prepare the compounds containing the propargylic subunit. Compared with the other transition-metals applied in the propargylic substitution, copper has many obvious advantages, such as much more inexpensive, easier to handle, milder reaction condition, and higher selectivity. This digest summarizes the recent development in the copper-catalyzed propargylic substitutions with various nitrogen, carbon, oxygen, and sulfur nucleophiles. In addition, the cycloadditions involving the copper-catalyzed propargylic substitution as the key step are included.