Gold-catalyzed transformation of unsaturated alcohols.

The use of gold-complexes to activate carbon-carbon π-bonds has become a well-known and highly reliable mode of reactivity for applications in organic synthesis. This review covers the use of gold-catalysts for activation of unsaturated alcohols to effect substitution with concomitant loss of water and is mostly focused on reactions where the π-acidity appears to overcome the inherent Lewis acidity of the complexes for alcohol activation. Select examples from the literature which demonstrate advances made between 2011 and 2014 are presented.