Total Synthesis of Kopsinitarine E

Kopsinitarines A–E are complex octacyclic caged Kopsia alkaloids with strained cage skeletons and a unique cyclic hemiaminal bridge that makes total synthesis challenging. Herein, we disclose the first total synthesis of kopsinitarine E. The key synthetic features include a SmI₂-mediated radical cascade cyclization and a subsequent semi-pinacol rearrangement to install the key carbocyclic skeleton, a chemoselective hydrosilyl amide reduction to construct the hemiaminal ether bridge, and an intramolecular Mannich reaction to establish the highly strained cage system.     

Bio-inspired Total Synthesis of Twelve Securinega Alkaloids: Structural Reassignments of (+)-Virosine B and (−)-Episecurinol A

The so-called Securinega alkaloids constitute a class of tetracyclic biologically active specialised metabolites isolated principally from subtropical plants belonging to the Phyllanthaceae family. Following a strategy based on alternative hypotheses for their biosynthesis, an easy and time-efficient divergent synthesis enabled access to twelve of those alkaloids featuring (neo)(nor)securinane skeletons. Moreover, this work permitted to reassign the absolute configurations of (+)-virosine B and (−)-episecurinol A.     

A General Strategy for the Catalytic,Highly Enantio‐ and Diastereoselective Synthesis of Indolizidine‐Based Alkaloids

Sixteen indolizidine‐based alkaloids (IBAs) that were isolated as poison constituents of the skin of frogs were synthesized in a highly flexible and stereoselective manner. As a key step, a three‐component, organocatalytic, highly enantio‐ and diastereoselective vinylogous Mukaiyama–Mannich reaction was employed furnishing optically highly enriched butyrolactams as central intermediates on a multigram scale. The attached six‐membered ring was constructed through cyclization of the pendant enoate moiety onto the pyrrolidine ring. The absolute configuration of the bridgehead chiral center and the adjacent 8‐position was established in the initial vinylogous Mannich reaction, whereas the 3‐ and 5‐substituents were introduced through organometallic addition at a late stage of the synthesis with full stereochemical control from the substrate. With this strategy, simple as well as even more complex alkaloids were accessible in good overall yields as single stereoisomers. These syntheses also served to establish the absolute and relative configuration of those IBAs that had never been synthesized before.     

A Flexible Approach to Azasugars: Asymmetric Total Syntheses of (+)‐Castanospermine, (+)‐7‐Deoxy‐6‐epi‐castanospermine,and (+)‐1‐epi‐Castanospermine

The asymmetric total synthesis of natural azasugars (+)‐castanospermine, (+)‐7‐deoxy‐6‐epi‐castanospermine, and synthetic (+)‐1‐epi‐castanospermine has been accomplished in nine to ten steps from a common chiral building block (S)‐ 8 . The method features a powerful chiral relay strategy consisting of a highly diastereoselective vinylogous Mukaiyama‐type reaction with either chiral or achiral aldehydes (≥95 % de; de=diastereomeric excess) and a diastereodivergent reduction of tetramic acids, which allows formation of three continuous stereogenic centers with high diastereoselectivities. The method also provides a flexible access to structural arrays of 5‐(α‐hydroxyalkyl)tetramic acids, such as 17/34 , and 5‐(α‐hydroxyalkyl)‐4‐hydroxyl‐2‐pyrrolidinones, such as 18 and 25/35 a . The method constitutes the first realization of the challenging chiral synthons A and D and thus of the conceptually attractive retrosynthetic analysis shown in Scheme 1 in a highly enantioselective manner.