Recent total syntheses of anthraquinone-based natural products

The scientific community has found deep interest in anthraquinone-based compounds due to their therapeutic properties and challenging structural elements. Various architecturally beautiful natural products have been successfully synthesized in recent decades utilizing two main strategies: either an early-stage synthesis of the anthraquinone and further elongation of the system, or a late-stage introduction of the anthraquinone ring moiety. Select syntheses of complex anthraquinone monomers and dimers within the past 20 years are described with an emphasis on the retrosynthetic disconnections that shape the anthraquinone-installation strategy. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The scientific community has shown great interest in anthraquinone-based compounds due to their therapeutic properties and challenging structural elements. In recent decades, various architecturally beautiful natural products have been synthesized using two main strategies, either through early-stage synthesis of anthraquinone and further system elongation, or late-stage introduction of the anthraquinone ring moiety. This article describes selected syntheses of complex anthraquinone monomers and dimers from the past 20 years, with a focus on the retrosynthetic disconnections that shape the anthraquinone-installation strategy.