Retrosynthetic analysis definition

Retrosynthetic analysis of antheridic acid produced a totally different plan of synthesis from that which had been employed for the structurally related target gibberellic acid. The synthesis of antheridic acid, which included a number of novel steps, allowed definitive assignment of structure and revised stereochemistry at C(3). 

The propagation steps of the zipper -mode cascade cydization are by definition all-intramolecular processes. Some prototypical examples of the zip-per -mode cascade cyclic carbopalladation producing two to five fused rings in one step are summarized in Scheme 40 [11,113-116,122], One of the major attractive features of this synthetic methodology is the ease of retrosynthetic analysis, which involves finding a linear line of dissection indicated in bro-... 

Of course, this last problem was not very difficult, because it had a two-step solution. As you solve problems that require more steps, this approach (retrosynthetic analysis) will become more and more important. But don t worry. You won t have to solve any problems that require ten steps. That is way beyond the scope of this course. You will generally not have to deal with syntheses that require more than three to five steps. So, with a lot of practice, it is definitely realistic to become a master of solving synthesis problems. Once again, it aU depends on how well you know aU of the reactions. 

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