Total Synthesis of Pyrroloiminoquinone Alkaloids

Pyrroloiminoquinone (PIQ) alkaloids are a class of natural products characterized by structurally complex architectures and promising pharmaceutical potential. In recent years, they have become a major research focus in natural product chemistry and drug discovery. This paper systematically reviews the research progress and development of the total synthesis of these natural products over the past 15 years (2011-2025). Centered on three key aspects-synthetic strategy design, application of key reactions, and implementation of synthetic routes-this review provides a detailed and comprehensive analysis of the total synthesis work reported by eight research groups. In addition to describing the specific execution of the synthetic routes developed by each group, we also highlight the core innovations of these approaches, thereby providing valuable academic references for the efficient synthesis of such structurally complex natural products.