Rhodium-catalyzed arylative cyclization of alkynones induced by addition of arylboronic acids

Alkynones react with arylboronic acids in the presence of a rhodium(I) catalyst to afford four- and five-membered-ring cyclic alcohols equipped with a tetrasubstituted exocyclic olefin. The cyclic allylic alcohol skeleton is constructed by the carbon–carbon bond formation between the carbonyl group and an alkenylrhodium(I) intermediate formed by the regioselective addition of an arylrhodium(I) species across the carbon–carbon triple bond.