Polyene carbocations, synthesis

Other, removable cation-stabilizing auxiliaries have been investigated for polyene cyclizations. For example, a sdyl-assisted carbocation cyclization has been used in an efficient total synthesis of lanosterol. The key step, treatment of (257) with methyl aluminum chloride in methylene chloride at —78° C, followed by acylation and chromatographic separation, affords (258) in 55% yield (two steps). When this cyclization was attempted on similar compounds that did not contain the C7P-silicon substituent, no tetracycHc products were observed. Steroid (258) is converted to lanosterol (77) in three additional chemical steps (225). 

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