Chemical Predisposition in Synthesis: Application to the Preparation of the Pyrrolidine Natural Products, Plakoridines A and B.

Abstract The pyrrolidine natural products, plakoridines A and B, as well as an array of unnatural analogues, have been prepared using a five-step synthetic sequence modelled on a biogenetic theory. The key transformation involves a ‘Mannich/Michael/internal-redox’ cascade, which proceeds in yields of 31–63%.