Concise Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Gedunin

The limonoids have attracted significant attention from the synthetic community owing to their striking structural complexity and medicinal potential. Recent efforts notwithstanding, synthetic access to many intact or ring D-seco limonoids still remains elusive. Here, we report the first de novo synthesis of gedunin, a ring D-seco limonoid with HSP90 inhibitory activity, that proceeds in 13 steps. Two enabling features in our strategy are the application of modern catalytic transformations to set the key quaternary centers in the carbocyclic core and the use of biocatalytic oxidation at C3 to establish a chemical handle to access the A-ring enone motif. The strategy presented herein may provide an entry point to a wider range of oxidized limonoids.