Research Progress in Asymmetric Monofluoromethylation and Difluoromethylation Reactions

The presence of fluorine atoms or fluorine-containing groups in organic molecules can affect their metabolic status, lipophilicity and binding affinity with biological receptors. Hence, the selective introduction of fluorine atoms or fluorine-containing groups into molecules is a very popular strategy for new drug research and development in spite of the fact that there are relatively few studies on asymmetric monofluoromethylation and difluoromethylation reactions. The progress and challenges of asymmetric monofluoromethylation and difluoromethylation are prospected in this paper.