Formal total synthesis of (±)-strictamine - the [2,3]-Stevens rearrangement for construction of octahydro-2H-2,8-methanoquinolizines

For decades, akuammiline alkaloids have attracted synthetic chemists due to their intriguing molecular architecture. Among the different structural elements embedded in their carboskeleton, the methano-quinolizidine system constitutes the signature structural element of this alkaloid family. Herein, we describe a novel synthetic access to this system which relies on a [2,3]-Stevens rearrangement and results in the formal synthesis of strictamine.