Abstract
The conjugate addition reaction is a widely employed tool for the synthesis of functionalized carbon chains. In this reaction several stereogenic centers can be formed at the α- and/or β-position of the activating group and stereochemical control can be achieved by introducing a chiral auxiliary linked to the conjugate acceptor or, alternatively, by employing a chiral catalyst. Regarding to the last topic, in the last years the use of chiral small organic molecules as catalysts (also referred to as organocatalysts) in several asymmetric transformations has been a field of intense research. In this paper, we present our main recent efforts directed toward the development of new asymmetric methodologies for carrying out conjugate addition reactions using chiral auxiliaries and organocatalysis.