Gwilherm Evano studied chemistry at the Ecole Normale Supe ´rieure in Paris (France) and received his Ph.D. from Universite ´Pierre et Marie Curie in 2002 under the supervision of Franc ¸ois Couty and Claude Agami. After postdoctoral study with James S. Panek at Boston University, working on the total synthesis of the ansamycin natural products Cytotrienin A and Reblastatin, he joined the CNRS as Charge ´de Recherche at the University of Versailles in 2004. His research interests focus on asymmetric synthesis and reactivity of nitrogen heterocycles, copper-catalyzed cyclization reactions, and the total synthesis of natural products. Nicolas Blanchard obtained his Ph.D. in 2000 from Paris VI University (France) under the supervision of Professor J. Cossy and Dr. C. Meyer, working on the total synthesis of the ionophoric antibiotic zincophorin. He then joined Professor W. R. Roush (University of Michigan) for a postdoctoral stay (2001-2002) as a Lavoisier fellow, working on the total synthesis of the plecomacrolide formamicin. In late 2002, he joined the CNRS as Charge ´de Recherche in Professor Kouklovsky's laboratory (Orsay University, France). In 2006, he moved to the group of Prof. J. Eustache (Haute-Alsace University, France). His research interests focus on the synthesis of biologically relevant compounds using new methodologies including nitroso Diels-Alder cycloadditions and stereoselective metalmediated transformations.