Kevin Brown, Indiana University

James F. Jackson Professor of Chemistry

Department of Chemistry

Indiana University Bloomington

Abstract: Stereochemically and topologically complex biologically significant molecules are particularly challenging to prepare in useful quantities, even with state-of-the-art chemical reactions. Therefore, the discovery and development of novel and widely applicable stereoselective chemical reactions stands at the forefront of modern organic chemistry research. Alkenes constitute an appealing class of starting materials for chemical synthesis because of their wide availability and ease of synthesis. In this seminar, two approaches towards the functionalization of alkenes will be presented that utilize boron as a key element. The products generated through these methodologies are useful intermediates for chemical synthesis due to the synthetic versatility of the C-B bond. The development of these methods, application to complex molecule synthesis, and mechanistic studies will be described.