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The photoionization of chiral molecules by elliptically polarized femtosecond laser pulses produces photoelectron angular distributions which show a strong and enantio-sensitive forward/backward asymmetry along the light propagation direction. We report on high precision measurements of this photoelectron elliptical dichroism (PEELD). Using an optical cavity to recycle the laser pulses and increase the signal-to-noise ratio, we determine enantiomeric excesses with a 0.04% precision with a low-power femtosecond laser (4 W) in a compact scheme. We perform momentum-resolved PEELD measurements in 16 molecules, from volatile terpenes to non-volatile amino acids and large iodoarenes. The results demonstrate the high structural sensitivity of PEELD, confirming the spectroscopic interest of this technique. Last, we show how a convolutional neural network can be used to retrieve the chemical and enantiomeric composition of a sample from the momentum-resolved PEELD maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

6‐Alkyl‐6‐hydroxycyclohexa‐2,4‐dienone derivatives, commonly referred to as ortho‐quinols, and their simple ester and ether variants constitute a class of organic compounds that aroused much interest amongst chemists over the past 70 years for several reasons related to organic synthesis, natural product chemistry and biochemistry. It was very early on that organic chemists understood the potential of the unique yet versatile chemical reactivity of such compounds to synthesize more complex structures, and it soon emerged that ortho‐quinols could constitute key intermediates in the biosynthesis of certain natural products of various origins. This minireview discusses the chemistry of ortho‐quinols from the point of view of their role in the synthesis and biosynthesis of natural products. Examples of completed syntheses of natural products mostly taken in the literature of the last 20 years or so, together with some chosen pieces from older but pioneering and most remarkable works, are highlighted to illustrate this discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An enantioselective synthesis of the bacterial metabolite (+)-strepantibin A, a novel inhibitor of the hexokinase II (HK2) in cancer cells, is described. Its monomethylated resorcinolic para -terphenyl core was conveniently prepared through a Danheiser benzannulation. The elaboration of its ortho -quinolic chiral center was accomplished by relying on an iodyl-promoted regio- and enantioselective hydroxylative dearomatization. The olefinic side-chain of the resulting ortho -quinol was finally oxygenated under Wacker-type conditions to generate the propanone appendage of (+)-strepantibin A.