The synthesis of 6-deoxyanthracyclinones: (±)α-citromycinone and (±)4-demethoxy-6-deoxydaunomycinone

Electrochemically Enabled Total Syntheses of Natural Products

Electrochemical techniques have helped to enable the total synthesis of natural products since the pioneering work of Kolbe in the mid 1800's. The electrochemical toolset grows every day and these new possibilities change the way chemists look at and think about natural products. This review provides a perspective on total syntheses wherein electrochemical techniques enabled the carbon─carbon bond formations in the skeletal assembly of important natural products, discussion of mechanistic details, and representative examples of the bond formations enabled over the last several decades. These bond formations are often distinctly different from those possible with conventional chemistries and allow assemblies complementary to other techniques.

An Efficient Multigram Synthesis of Juglone Methyl Ether

Based on the regioselective oxidation of 1,4,5-trimethoxynaphthalene by cerium (IV) ammonium nitrate, an efficient synthesis of juglone methyl ether has been achieved with high overall yield (74%) and good purity (98.6%). Compared with the reported methods, the reaction conditions are milder and the work-up of each step is much simpler. Moreover, the new strategy considerably reduces the cost in the synthesis of juglone methyl ether and is suitable for large-scale preparations.