(+)-Podocarpic Acid as Chiral Template in the Synthesis of Aphidicolane, Stemodane and Stemarane Diterpenoids †

• Main Authors: Angela La Bella, Francesca Leonelli, Luisa Maria Migneco, Rinaldo Marini Bettolo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2016-09-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: aphidicolin; stemodin; stemarin; podocarpic acid; synthesis
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/21/9/1197

In this review the synthetic work in the field of aphidicolane, stemodane and stemarane diterpenoids, in which readily available (+)-podocarpic acid (4) was used as chiral template for the construction of their polycyclic structures, is described as it developed along the years. In the frame of this work (+)-podocarpic acid (4) was a very useful tool in a model study leading to the syntheses of tetracyclic ketones 7 and 8, models of key intermediates 5a and 6 in the syntheses of (+)-aphidicolin (1) and (+)-stemodin (2a), respectively. (+)-Podocarpic acid (4) was also converted into (+)-2-deoxystemodinone (2d), allowing confirmation of the stemodane diterpenoids absolute configuration, into (+)-aphidicol-15-ene (36) and into Stemodia chilensis tetracyclic diterpenoid (+)-19-acetoxystemodan-12-ol (2f), allowing confirmation of its structure. (+)-Podocarpic acid (4) was then extensively used in the work which led to the synthesis of (+)-stemar-13-ene (57) and (+)-18-deoxystemarin (3b). Finally, (+)-4 was converted into (+)-2-deoxyoryzalexin S (66), which made it possible to demonstrate that the structure of (+)-66 could not be attributed to a Chilean Calceolaria isolated diterpenoid to which this structure had been assigned.