Total Synthesis of Soraphen A_1α

Abstract

From the simple building block D-glucose, soraphen 1 a (R  CH3) and the derivative 1 b (R  H) have been prepared. Compound la is the parent compound of a new class of eighteen-membered macrolides with interesting biological properties. One of the key steps of the total synthesis was the selective methylation of 1 b yielding 1 a.