Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Synthesis of 2,3‐Cyclo[3]dendralenes and Complex Polycycles from Propargyl Alcohols

Ruthenium‐catalyzed cascade transformations for the synthesis of 2,3‐cyclo3]dendralenes and multicomponent processes based thereon to generate complex polycycles are presented. The combination of allylation–cyclization sequences with diene‐transmissive Diels–Alder reactions allows the rapid and selective construction of natural‐product‐like motifs from easily accessible starting materials in a one‐pot process and provides a new method to access potential drug candidates.