Synthesis of highly substituted furans by the electrophile-induced coupling of 2-(1-alkynyl)-2-alken-1-ones and nucleophiles

The coupling of 2-(1-alkynyl)-2-alken-1-ones with nucleophiles, either catalyzed by AuCl3 or induced by an electrophile, provides highly substituted furans in good to excellent yields under very mild reaction conditions. Various nucleophiles, including functionally substituted alcohols, H2O, carboxylic acids, 1,3-diketones, and electron-rich arenes, and a range of cyclic and acyclic 2-(1-alkynyl)-2-alken-1-ones readily participate in these cyclizations. Iodine, NIS, and PhSeCl have proven successful as electrophiles in this process. The resulting iodine-containing furans can be readily elaborated to more complex products using known organopalladium chemistry.