Synthesis of 7-Epi +-FR900482: an epimer of comparable anti-cancer activity

FR900482 is a potent anti-tumor therapeutic that has been investigated as a replacement candidate for the clinically useful Mitomycin C. Herein, we report synthesis and biological testing of 7-Epi (+)-FR900482, which demonstrates equal potency relative to the natural product against several cancer cell lines. Highlights of this work include utilization of our palladium-catalyzed DYKAT methodology and development of a Polonovski oxidative ring expansion strategy to yield this equipotent epimer in 23 linear steps.