Cleavage of a carbon-carbon triple bond via gold-catalyzed cascade cyclization/oxidative cleavage reactions of (Z)-enynols with molecular oxygen.

A highly efficient carbon-carbon triple bond cleavage reaction of (Z)-enynols was developed, which offered a new route to highly substituted butenolides. The methodology is realized by a tandem reaction using a single gold(I) catalyst, which could catalyze different reactions of cyclization/oxidative cleavage in the same vessel.