Concise asymmetric total synthesis of scyphostatin, a potent inhibitor of neutral sphingomyelinase

The concise asymmetric total synthesis of scyphostatin has been achieved by condensation of the optically active cyclohexane unit, prepared from the commercially available 1,4-cyclohexadiene by our own method, and the side chain, prepared by the method developed by Hoye and Tennakoon (T. R. Hoye, M. A. Tennakoon, Org. Lett. 2000, 2, 1481-1483). The modification of the epoxy cyclohexenone unit was achieved in a late stage of the total synthesis, and deprotection of the primary alcohol was conducted in the final step. During the synthesis several key reactions were attained: 1) intramolecular bromoetherification of the cyclohexadiene acetal; 2) stereoselective introduction of the tertiary alcohol, 3) deprotection of the acetal function to the aldehyde by combination with silyl triflate/2,4,6-collidine and the one-pot synthesis of the disilyl aldehyde compounds, with different types of silyl groups, from the dihydroxy acetal compounds; and 4) facile deprotection of the 2,4-dimethoxyphenylmethyl ((2,4)DMPM) protecting group of the primary alcohol.