Total synthesis of (−)-spirangien A and its methyl ester

Abstract
The first total synthesis of (−)-spirangien A, a cytotoxic and antifungal polyketide of myxobacterial origin, is reported; this exploits a Stork–Wittig olefination and double Stille cross-coupling sequence to install the sensitive pentaene side chain onto a fully elaborated spiroacetal core, leading initially to the methylester of spirangien A.