Stereospecific synthesis of a key synthon for faranal — The trail pheromone of the antMonomorium pharaonis

An effective scheme is proposed for the synthesis of the methoxymethyl derivative of racemic (erythro)-5-iodo-3,4-dimethylpentan-1-ol (a for obtaining faranal) from methyl (erythro)-3,4,5-trimethylhex-5-enoate — the product of the diastereospecific 1,4-addition of 2,3,-dimethylallylmanganese chloride to methyl crotonate. Institute of Organic Chemistry, Urals Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, Ufa. Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 3, pp. 459–463, May–June, 1993.