Toward Leiodermatolide: Synthesis of the Core Structure

The macrocyclic core (35) of the marine natural product leiodermatolide (1) was synthesized from two key fragments, vinyl iodide 23 (C1-C11 part) and vinyl stannane 31 (C12-C18 part). A Stille coupling led to conjugated Z,Z-diene 32. The derived seco acid 34 was cyclized using a Yamaguchi macrolactonization. Key steps in the assembly of vinyl iodide 23 were a Paterson aldol reaction, and a Kumada coupling on a triflate derivative to create the C4-C5 trisubstituted double bond. The two stereocenters in fragment 31 were established by a Marshall-Tamaru reaction. The longest linear sequence comprises 20 steps.