Abstract: | α-Methylene-γ-butyrolactones [dihydro-3-methylene-2(3H)furanones] constitute an important group of natural products and possess wide-ranging biological activities. Progress in the synthesis of the heterocycle and the classification of the synthetic methods are not only of practical interest, but also fundamentally important as a current example for the construction of an unusual 1,4-functionality distance and an α-substituted acrylic ester moiety which is susceptible to nucleophilic attack. |