[reaction: see text] A new route toward puupehenone-related bioactive metabolites from (-)-sclareol, based on the palladium(II)-mediated diastereoselective cyclization of a drimenylphenol, is described. Utilizing this, the first enantiospecific synthesis of the antitumor and antimalarial (-)-15-oxopuupehenol, together with improved syntheses of (+)-puupehenone, (+)-puupehedione, and (+)-15-cyanopuupehenone, were accomplished.

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A very expedient and efficient new route toward taiwaniaquinoids, bearing the 4a-methyltetrahydrofluorene skeleton, is reported. Key steps are the intramolecular Friedel-Crafts alkylation of an aryldiene and the degradative oxidation of a methylenedioxy group; the latter process could also be utilized for building the 2-hydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone unit, which is frequently found in natural products. Utilizing this new methodology, (+/-)-dichroanone (7) (three steps, 77% overall yield) and (+/-)-taiwaniaquinone H (6) (four steps, 70% overall yield) have been synthesized from commercial alpha- (11a) or beta-cyclocitral (11b).

The enantioselective total synthesis of liphagal, a selective inhibitor of PI3K α isolated from the marine sponge Aka coralliphaga, has been achieved. The novel tetracyclic "liphagane" skeleton is formed in one step, after the hydrogenation of a dihydroxydrimane phenol benzyl ether in the presence of cationic resin.