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The bis-tetrahydroisoquinoline (bis-THIQ) natural products have been studied intensively over the past four decades for their exceptionally potent anticancer activity, in addition to strong Gram-positive and Gram-negative antibiotic character. Synthetic strategies toward these complex polycyclic compounds have relied heavily on electrophilic aromatic chemistry, such as the Pictet–Spengler reaction, that mimics their biosynthetic pathways. Herein, we report an approach to two bis-THIQ natural products, jorunnamycin A and jorumycin, that instead harnesses the power of modern transition-metal catalysis for the three major bond-forming events and proceeds with high efficiency (15 and 16 steps, respectively). By breaking from biomimicry, this strategy allows for the preparation of a more diverse set of nonnatural analogs.

Described is a concise total synthesis of N-methylwelwitindolinone D isonitrile, the first in a family of complex bicyclo[4.3.1]decane-containing indole alkaloids to yield to synthesis. The complete carbon core of the natural product was assembled rapidly through a Lewis acid-mediated alkylative coupling followed directly by a palladium-catalyzed enolate arylation reaction. The final ring of the pentacycle was introduced by an indole oxidation/cyclization, and the isonitrile was installed through the rearrangement of an alde-hyde to an isothiocyanate followed by desulfurization.

Described in this report is a rapid asymmetric total synthesis of the tetrahydroisoquinoline antitumor antibiotic (−)-quinocarcin. The sequence employs a mild fluoride-induced aryne annulation developed in our laboratories to build a key isoquinoline-containing intermediate comprising the entire carbon scaffold of the natural product. This intermediate is advanced through six additional steps to the target alkaloid, providing the shortest synthetic route to (−)-quinocarcin reported to date.

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