Cembrene total synthesis

The closure of the macrocyclic ring by means of an intramolecular 8 2 reaction is a straightforward approach, and sulfur-stabilized carbanion alkylation has been successfully applied in the synthesis of 14-membered cembranoids. The synthesis of nephthenol (40) and cembrene A (59) is an example of this methodology. In Li and Yue s report, the total synthesis of ( )-sarcophytol M (17) was achieved from ger-aniol (137) through 12 steps and in 8.9% overall yield with an intramolecular nucleophilic addition of a sulfur-stabilized carbanion to a ketone as a key step. This example is the first of the closure of a macrocyclic ring with the intramolecular nucleophihc addition of a sulfur-stabilized carbanion to a ketone (Scheme 6-7). 

The first enantioselective total synthesis of l -(—)-cembrene A (59) and / -( )-nephthenol (40) were achieved by employing an intramolecular nucleophilic addition of sulfur-stabilized carbanion to asymmetric epoxide as the key step, starting from L-serine (Scheme 6-13). ... 

Yue et al. reported on the total synthesis of / -(—)-cembrene A by using the mod-ihed Wittig reaction and titanium-induced intramolecular carbonyl coupling as key steps the overall yield is 29% starting from -geranylacetone (164) and R-(+)-limonene (168) (Scheme 6-15). ... 

Li et al. reported on the total synthesis of cembrene C from geraniol (137) or trans, frani-famesol (91) by using the titantium-induced intramolecular coupling of the dicarbonyl precursor keto enal 176 as the key macrocyclization step (Scheme 6-17). 

Stereoselective construction of the epoxide functionality in the macrocyclic cembrene skeleton comprises a challenging task for total synthesis. We report herein the completion of the total syntheses of the above cembranoxides in detail. 

Starting from the chiral pool (/f-(+)-hmonene), the total synthesis of natural (-f)-3,4-epoxycembrene A (56) has been achieved by Liu et al. with the low-valent titanium-mediated intramolecular pinacol couphng of the corresponding sec-keto aldehyde precursor 171 (Scheme 6-25). A more general and efficient enantioselective synthesis of (+)-3,4-epoxy-cembrene A (56) with a chiral pool protocol and Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation for the introduction of three chiral centers has also been reported by the same authors in 2001 (Scheme 6-26). ... 

Characteristic to some important cembrane diterpenoids, such as isocembrene, cembrene, cembrene C, and sarcophytol A, is a 1,3-diene unit in the macrocyclic skeleton. In continuation of our ongoing project on the total synthesis of cembrane-type diterpenoids, we intended to explore a novel macrocyclization method to... 

Thus, an efficient and convergent total synthesis of ( )-isocembrene has been accomplished in seven steps from the known geranylacetone through an intramolecular Stille cross-coupling reaction. The strategy is of great potential for the divergent synthesis of complex cembrane-type diterpenoids such as cembrene-C and sarcophytols. 

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