aldehyde or nitroalkene in place of the propargylic iodide affords the C-7 and C-6 functionalized prostaglandins, respectively. This new protocol constitutes the simplest three-component method for the synthesis of various natural and unnatural prostaglandins.
Abstract Studies on the practical method for trapping enolates generated from enone with organocopper reagent have been described. Instead of carcinogenic hexamethylphosphoric triamide (HMPA), N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) has been found to be an effective additive for trapping the enolate.