Formal total synthesis of (±)-hirsutic acid C using the tandem Rh(I)-catalyzed [(5+2)+1] cycloaddition/aldol reaction

A concise formal total synthesis of the linear triquinane natural product (+/-)-hirsutic acid C has been achieved. This synthesis features a tandem Rh(I)-catalyzed [(5+2)+1] cycloaddition/aldol reaction as the key step to build the triquinane skeleton. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.