Coordination chemistry of oxazoline ligands

4,5-Dihydro-1,3-oxazole ligands (commonly known as 2-oxazolines or simply o xazolines) have been used by many research groups as chiral auxiliaries in transition metal-catalyzed asymmetric organic syntheses. The oxazolines sho w a number,of attractive characteristics: versatility of ligand design, str aightforward synthesis of ligands from readily available precursors, and mo dulation of the chiral centers, which are located near the donor atoms. Thi s review focuses on the transition metal coordination chemistry of oxazolin es. It surveys data describing structural characterization in both solid st ate (X-ray diffraction) and solution (NMR spectroscopy). (C) 1999 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.