Palladium-catalyzed ring-opening thiocarbonylation of vinylcyclopropanes (VCPs) with thiols and carbon monoxide affords the corresponding unsaturated thioesters in moderate to excellent yields. This reaction provides a general method for the ring-opening thiocarbonylation of VCPs. It further demonstrates the utility of transition metal catalysts for the synthesis of organosulfur compounds.

Photochemical damage either to retinoids by near-ultraviolet radiation or to unsaturated fatty acids by near-ultraviolet radiation in the presence of a hydrophobic photosensitizer destroys the virucidal activities of the compounds, as determined by studies on the enveloped bacteriophage ø6.

TiCl4-promoted aldol reaction of ketones as aldol acceptors followed by elimination of the titanoxy group from the Ti-aldolates affords β,β-disubstituted α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds in a one-pot procedure. The use of additives, such as DMF, N,N,N',N'-tetramethylethylenediamine, and pyridine, in the elimination step was found to be important.

A diamine-catalyzed asymmetric tandem reaction between α,β-unsaturated ketones and rhodanine derivatives has been developed to synthesize various spirocyclic compounds with high stereoselectivities (up to 99% ee and >20:1 dr). The products obtained contain two pharmaceutically relevant features: the biologically active rhodanine moiety embedded in a spirocyclic unit.