An Overview of Syntheses of Salvinorin A and its Analogues
ChemCatChem August 26, 2024 Soufian Tibouti, Louis Barriault
Salvinorin A is a powerful hallucinogen in humans and a selective, high-efficacy agonist of the kappa-opioid receptor. It is the first plant-derived ligand with high selectivity for this receptor, and its structure is unrelated to other opioid receptor ligands, lacking any nitrogen. Its synthetic access is challenging due to a highly sensitive epimerizable center at carbon 8. Only nine completed syntheses have been achieved to date. This review summarizes the key strategies used in these syntheses, from Evans in 2007 to Barriault in 2023.