Organocapture

Organocapture

When small organic molecules, rather than transition metal complexes, enzymes or mere acids/bases, catalyze a reaction, the term "organocatalysis" is used. Sometimes the "catalyst" increases the yield of a reaction without accelerating the reaction leading to the desired product by reducing the rate of competing reactions more than that of the desired reaction. When this happens and a covalent intermediate is involved, the term "organocapture" may be used.

References Organocatalysis

B. List, R. A. Lerner, C. F.Barbas III. Proline-catalyzed direct asymmetric aldol reactions. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2000, 122, 2395–2396.

D. W. C. MacMillan, The advent and development of organocatalysis. Nature 2008, 455, 304–308.  

Reference Organocapture

P. Tremmel, H. Griesser, U. E. Steiner, C. Richert, How small heterocycles make a reaction network of amino acids and nucleotides efficient in water. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2019, 58, 13087-13092.