Tungsten-anisole complex provides 3,6-substituted cyclohexenes for highly diversified chemical libraries.

Medicinal chemists use vast combinatorial molecular libraries to develop leads for new pharmaceuticals. The syntheses of these compounds typically rely on coupling molecular fragments through atoms with planar (sp) geometry. These so-called flat molecules often lack the protein binding site specificity needed to be an effective drug.

The double protonation of dihapto-coordinated benzene complexes enables dearomatization using aromatic nucleophiles.

Friedel-Crafts Arylation (the Scholl reaction) is the coupling of two aromatic rings with the aid of a strong Lewis or Brønsted acid. This historically significant C-C bond forming reaction normally leads to aromatic products, often as oligomeric mixtures, dictated by the large stabilization gained upon their rearomatization. The coordination of benzene by a tungsten complex disrupts the natural course of this reaction sequence, allowing for Friedel-Crafts Arylation without rearomatization or oligomerization.