Total synthesis of sparstolonin B via a palladium-catalyzed aldehyde α-arylation

Abstract A concise and convergent total synthesis of sparstolonin B was developed. A palladium-catalyzed aldehyde α -arylation was utilized to construct the carbon skeleton of the natural product. A subsequent simple one-pot procedure effected global deprotection and closure of the final two rings via an unusual autoredox mechanism for the conversion of a bis-hydroquinone intermediate to the natural product. The 6 step synthetic sequence was realized in 18% overall yield.