Benzyl Alcohol/Salicylaldehyde-Type Polyketide Metabolites of Fungi: Sources, Biosynthesis, Biological Activities, and Synthesis.

Marine microorganisms are an important source of natural polyketides, which have become a significant reservoir of lead structures for drug design due to their diverse biological activities. In this review, we provide a summary of the resources, structures, biological activities, and proposed biosynthetic pathways of the benzyl alcohol/salicylaldehyde-type polyketides. In addition, the total syntheses of these secondary metabolites from their discoveries to the present day are presented. This review could be helpful for researchers in the total synthesis of complex natural products and the use of polyketide bioactive molecules for pharmacological purposes and applications in medicinal chemistry.

First Total Synthesis of Varioxiranol A.

The paper describes the first total synthesis of natural varioxiranol A by chiral pool approach and confirmation of its absolute configuration by single-crystal X-ray analysis. The target varioxiranol A and its 4-epimer were obtained after 10 steps from single and available chiral source 1,2-O-isopropylidene-d-glyceraldehyde in an overall yield of 10% and 6%, respectively. A synthetic strategy based on the Julia⁻Kocienski coupling reaction between aromatic sulfone and corresponding aldose derivative makes it possible to prepare other interesting polyketide derivatives (varioxiranols B-G, varioxirane, varioxiranediols).