Total synthesis of natural products based on hydrogenation of aromatic rings

Arenes and heteroarenes are easily available building blocks in organic chemistry, and saturation the aromatic ring facilitates synthetic chemists to efficiently synthesize natural products with complex three-dimensional structures. Recent advances in catalyst and ligand design have enabled unprecedented progress in the catalytic hydrogenation of (hetero)aromatic systems. Quinoline, isoquinoline, pyridine, and related substrates can now be reduced with high efficiency and stereoselectivity, providing efficient access to saturated and partially saturated architectures vital to synthetic chemistry. Furthermore, catalytic asymmetric aromatic hydrogenation has facilitated the asymmetric total synthesis of complex natural products and pharmaceutical agents. This review highlights recent advances in catalytic (hetero)arene hydrogenation, with a focus on its application in natural product synthesis.