Chemoenzymatic and enantiodivergent routes to 1,2-ring-fused bicyclo[2.2.2]octane and related tricyclic frameworks.

New and simple protocols are described for the conversion of the enzymatically-derived and enantiomerically pure cis-1,2-dihydrocatechol (X = I) and its 6-methylated derivative into either antipodal form of compounds embodying the tricyclic frameworks of terpenoids . Key steps include intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) and (in some cases) singlet or triplet-based photochemical processes.

A formal total synthesis of platencin.

The readily available and enantiomerically pure trienes 12 undergo a thermally induced intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction to give the corresponding mixture of compounds 13 and 14. This mixture has been elaborated to an advanced intermediate associated with Nicolaou's recently reported total synthesis of the natural enantiomeric form of the antibiotic platencin (2).

A chemoenzymatic total synthesis of the undecenolide (-)-cladospolide B via a mid-stage ring-closing metathesis and a late-stage photo-rearrangement of the E-isomer.

A sixteen-step synthesis of the twelve-membered macrolide (-)-cladospolide B(2) from the microbially-derived cis-1,2-dihydrocatechol 5 is described. Pivotal steps include the ring-closing metathesis (RCM) of diene 12 to give the ten-membered lactone 13 together with small amounts of the head-to-tail and head-to-head dimers 14 and 15, respectively. The saturated lactol 19 derived from compounds 13 and 14 readily participates in a Wadsworth-Horner-Emmons reaction to give the E-configured alpha,beta-unsaturated ester 20.