Organocatalyzed enantioselective desymmetrization of diols in the preparation of chiral building blocks.

Desymmetrization of diols is a powerful tool to the synthesis of chiral building blocks. Among the different approaches to perform discrimination between both enantiotopic hydroxyl groups, the organocatalytic approach has gained importance in the last years. A diverse range of organocatalysts has been used to efficiently promote this enantioselective transformation and this Minireview examines the different contributions in this field.