Glycosylation reaction is an important class of reactions in organic chemistry, and the development of the method contributes to the synthesis of many biologically active compounds containing various glycoside bonds. Is arguably the most important, albeit challenging, reaction in the field of carbohydrate chemistry. Examples of the products of glycosylation reactions are glycoproteins, glycolipids, glycosaminoglycans, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides. Glycosylation types are classified according to the identity of the atom which binds the carbohydrate chain, i.e. C-linked, N-linked, O-linked or S-linked. In this short review, recent reports of the main glycosylation methods, basic mechanisms, factors influencing the stereoselectivity and their applications in the synthesis of bioactive molecules are described.

In carbohydrate chemistry, the O-glycoside is an organic molecule in which sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. In the last few years, considerable progress has been made in the synthesis and applications of O-glycosides. Despite their challenging chemistry, due to their versatility, O-glycosides play a pivotal role the development of the chemistry of novel materials and bioactive molecules. This review summarizes recent developments, in the last twenty years, about the Ferrier rearrangement reaction involving synthesis, mechanistic proposal and application of 2,3-unsaturated O-glycosides.

1,2,4-oxadiazoles are used in a wide range of applications, including medicinal chemistry and chemistry of materials. However, this kind of oxadiazoles is not usually prepared in an undergraduate organic teaching laboratory. This work describes a didactic sequence for the preparation of 1,2,4-oxadiazols, mediated by microwave irradiation, employing home-use microwave oven. For the development of this practice, one lecture and one laboratory session were used. At the end of this session, a questionnaire was applied to evaluate the didactic sequence. The conclusion was that this approach can be used for the preparation of 1,2,4-oxadiazoles as a pedagogical practice to make the process of teaching easier and enjoyable.