The Friedel-Crafts reaction of methyl alkyl- and arylsulfinates with aromatic systems, activated by one or more electron-donating substituents (OH, OMe, NHR, NR(2)), provides alkyl aryl and diaryl sulfoxides under mild conditions and in moderate to good yields. The very high regioselectivity usually observed in these sulfinylation reactions is rationalized on the basis of a Wheland intermediate having a trigonal bypyramidal structure in which steric and electronic interactions are significant factors strongly destabilizing the attack to the ortho positions.

Optically pure (S)-(-)-xylopinine 2 was prepared in three steps in 52% overall yield. Thus, condensation of the carbanion derived from (S)-4 with the (S)-(E)-sulfinylimine 5 gave a 2:1 mixture of tetrahydroisoquinolines 6a and 6b, differing only in configuration at sulfur. N-Desulfinylation of this mixture gave the diastereomeric sulfoxides which, without separation, were converted into (S)-(-)-xylopinine (2) with loss of the sulfinyl moieties under Pictet-Spengler conditions. This unprecedented ipso electrophilic substitution of a sulfinyl group may have synthetic implications beyond that described in this work.

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The crystal structure of monoginoic acid, 3, is determined and compared with previously reported structures of kauradienoic acid, 1, and kaurenoic acid, 2. 1H and 13C chemical shifts are assigned for all three diterpenes and solution and crystal structure conformations are confirmed with the aid of solution NOE measurements. The overall shapes of 2 and 3 are very similar while 1 is significantly dissimilar. These differences may be partially responsible for the reported greater in vitro uterotropic activity of 1, relative to 2 and 3. Keywords: monoginoic acid, kaurodienoic acid, kaurenoic acid.