Commercially available (+/-)-alpha-lipoic acid was employed as a novel, che
mically robust linker for the immobilization of ketones. The utility of thi
s thioacetal based linker in solid-phase synthesis was demonstrated by synt
hesizing several 4-acetylbiphenyls and 4-alkoxyacetophenones via Suzuki and
Mitsunobu reactions, respectively. The products were easily cleaved from s
olid support by treatment with [bis(trifluoroacetoxy)iodo] benzene. (C) 199
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