ABSTRACT

1,8-Diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) has received a significant importance in organic synthesis during recent years because of its interesting ability to catalyze organic reaction sufficiently at mild conditions. DBU can work as a catalyst under simple conditions inducing the operational simplicity of the experimental procedures by reducing the side products and waste. The notable advantages in these cases include the less expensive catalyst which is commercially readily available, easy to handle, and most importantly recoverable. The DBU as a catalyst has been explored for several practical methodologies and is highly useful for the synthesis of a wide variety of organic materials. The selectivity (chemo-, regio-, and stereo-) of these reactions is highly impressive and applicable in modern chemical transformations. The DBU possesses enhanced basic properties and high mechanical as well as thermal stability. In recent years, a large number of organic transformations have been carried out using DBU as a catalyst. The DBU has successfully been employed to conduct a wide variety of organic reactions including usual chemical modifications, cyclizations, eliminations, esterifications, condensation reactions, multicomponent reactions, etc. In fact, during last few decades, a tremendous interest has sparked in various organic transformations promoted by DBU and a large number of publications have appeared in the literature. Since chemical transformations catalyzed by DBU have recently been proven to be highly important in organic synthesis we review in this article the recently appeared significant protocols using DBU as a catalyst.