Enantioselective synthesis of Anomala osakanapheromone and Janus integerpheromone: a flexible approach to chiral γ-butyrolactones

Abstract

The enantioselective synthesis of Anomala osakanapheromone and Janus integerpheromone has been achieved without using any protecting groups. The synthesis involved using an asymmetric alkynylation to obtain γ-hydroxy-α,β-acetylenic esters with high ee (84%) and yields (∼80%), followed by selective hydrogenation and lactonization in high overall yields (87% and 89%).