A Historic Overview of the Metal-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling Reactions

The main focus of this publication is the innovation of new synthetic reactions that can form various carbon–carbon bonds with high selectivity. The use of transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of organic electrophiles with organometallic nucleophiles started with the discovery of Kumada–Tamao–Corriu coupling in 1972—the reaction of organic halides and organomagnesium compounds under nickel catalysis. Combining fragments with a series of carbon centers into one segment, the transition-metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions have long been industrially utilized toward the synthesis of functional materials such as agricultural chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and polymers.