We report a total synthesis of the pyridine-containing limonoid alkaloid (-)-xylogranatopyridine B in 11 steps from commercially available dihydrocarvone. The central pyridine ring was assembled by a late-stage fragment coupling approach employing a modified Liebeskind pyridine synthesis. One fragment was prepared by an allyl-palladium catalyzed oxidative enone β-stannylation, in which the key bimetallic β-stannyl palladium enolate intermediate undergoes a β-hydride elimination. This methodology also allowed introduction of alkyl and silyl groups to the β-position of enones.

The catalytic enantioselective synthesis of α-chiral olefins represents a valuable strategy for rapid generation of structural diversity in divergent syntheses of complex targets. Herein, we report a protocol for the dual CuH-and Pd-catalyzed asymmetric Markovnikov hydroalkenylation of vinyl arenes and the anti-Markovnikov hydroalkenylation of unactivated olefins, in which readily available enol triflates can be utilized as alkenyl coupling partners. This method allowed for the synthesis of diverse αchiral olefins, including tri-and tetrasubstituted olefin products, which are challenging to prepare by existing approaches.

We report the first total synthesis of the limonoid andirolide N using a 12-step sequence from commercially available materials. The final step of this route demonstrates the chemical feasibility of our biosynthetic proposal that andirolide N arises from 8α-hydroxycarapin. The strategic use of a degraded limonoid as a platform for the synthesis of more structurally complex congeners may be a general approach to obtain limonoids with diverse functional properties.

The enantioselective hydrocyanation of olefins represents a conceptually straightforward approach to prepare enantiomerically enriched nitriles. These, in turn, comprise or are intermediates in the synthesis of many pharmaceuticals and their synthetic derivatives. Herein, we report a cyanide-free dual Pd/CuH-catalyzed protocol for the asymmetric Markovnikov hydrocyanation of vinyl arenes and the anti-Markovnikov hydrocyanation of terminal olefins in which oxazoles function as nitrile equivalents. After an initial hydroarylation process, the oxazole substructure was deconstructed using a [4+2]/retro-[4+2] sequence to afford the enantioenriched nitrile product under mild reaction conditions.

We report the first total synthesis of (+)-granatumine A, a limonoid alkaloid with PTP1B inhibitory activity, in ten steps. Over the course of this study, two key methodological advances were made: a cost-effective procedure for ketone α,β-dehydrogenation using allyl-Pd catalysis, and a Pd-catalyzed protocol to convert epoxyketones to 1,3-diketones. The central tetrasubstituted pyridine is formed by a convergent Knoevenagel condensation and carbonyl-selective electrocyclization cascade, which was followed by a direct transformation of a 2H-pyran to a pyridine. These studies have led to the structural revision of two members of this family.Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) has emerged as an exciting target for the treatment of many ailments, such as diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases. 1 Granatumine A (6), a bislactone limonoid alkaloid isolated from the Chinese mangrove (Xylocarpus granatum), has shown moderate inhibitory activity against PTP1B, while the related limonoid alkaloid xylogranatopyridine B (1) was found to be inactive. 2 This increased potency may arise due to the synthetically demanding structural differences, namely the presence of an acid-labile C3 benzylic ether substituent and a reorganized A-ring with a fused lactone.