They came from the deep: Syntheses, applications, and biology of ladderanes

Ladderanes are hydrocarbons consisting of two or more fused cyclobutane rings. These molecules and their derivatives are of fundamental interest to physical organic chemists due to their strain and electronic properties. Recently, the astonishing discovery that some bacterial lipids contain ladderane substructures has revitalized interest in this class of molecules. This review describes the synthesis, reactivity, applications, and biology of ladderanes.