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Updated: May 12, 2026

Efficient Construction of Drug-like Bispirocyclic Scaffolds Via Organocatalytic Cycloadditions of α-Imino γ-Lactones and Alkylidene Pyrazolones
Published on: February 7, 2019
A concise total synthesis of pyrovellerolactone using a rhodium-catalyzed [(3 + 2) + 2] carbocyclization reaction
P Andrew Evans1, Phillip A Inglesby, Kathryn Kilbride
1Department of Chemistry, Queen's University, 90 Bader Lane, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada. Andrew.Evans@chem.queensu.ca
Abstract:
A concise and highly convergent three-step total synthesis of the lactarane natural product, pyrovellerolactone, is described. The key step involves a regio- and diastereoselective rhodium-catalyzed [(3 + 2) + 2] carbocyclization of an alkenylidenecyclopropane with a 4-hydroxybut-2-ynoate followed by an in situ intramolecular lactonization to generate the tricyclic core in a single operation. This represents the first example of a higher-order [3 + 2 + 2] carbocyclization reaction in total synthesis, which is likely to provide an important strategy for the construction of related targets within this sesquiterpene family.
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