The recent progress in palladium-catalyzed [4＋2] cycloaddition reaction is reviewed. The main focuses are the influences of some factors, such as the substrates of diene and dienophile, the amount of catalysts, chiral ligands, solvents, counter ions, temperature and reaction time, on the Pd-catalyzed Diels-Alder [4＋2] reaction. Moreover, the stereoselectivity and possible mechanisms of the [4＋2] cycloaddition are discussed.

Key words: palladium-catalyzed, Diels-Alder reaction, [4＋2] cycloaddition, reaction mechanism, research progress