Article
Article
Asymmetric synthesis
Article By:
Faller, John W. Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.
Last reviewed:May 2021
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.058100
A chemical reaction or series of reactions leading to the predominant or exclusive formation of a single enantiomer, that is, one of an isomeric pair of chemical compounds whose molecules are nonsuperimposable mirror images. Enantiomers are said to be chiral. Many organic compounds of interest for pharmaceuticals, flavorings, and pesticides are chiral. A specific target of an asymmetric synthesis is a product that contains only the desired enantiomer rather than a mixture of enantiomers of chiral molecules. See also: Molecular isomerism
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