Total synthesis of (+)-cylindradine A

Cylindradines A and B, members of the polycyclic pyrrole-imidazole alkaloids (PIAs), are the only congeners bearing a 3-carbamoylpyrrole unit among the PIAs. In this communication, we described a total synthesis of (+)-cylindradine A based on intramolecular Friedel-Crafts type cyclization of pyrrole-aldehyde and oxidative cyclization of tricyclic pyrrolopyrrolidine-guanidine with hypervalent iodine to construct the cyclic guanidine structure including the N,N'-aminal moiety.