Asymmetric sulfonylation with sulfur dioxide surrogates: a new access to enantiomerically enriched sulfones.

Enantiomerically enriched sulfones occupy a prominent position in pharmaceutical chemistry and synthetic chemistry. Compared with conventional methods, a direct asymmetric sulfonylation reaction with the fixation of sulfur dioxide represents an attractive strategy for the rapid assembly of chiral sulfones with enantiopurity. In this highlight, we survey recent exciting advances in asymmetric sulfonylation by using sulfur dioxide surrogates, and discuss asymmetric induction modes, reaction mechanisms, substrate scope and opportunities for further studies.