Stereocontrolled Synthesis and Structural Revision of Plebeianiol A

We report the structural revision via synthesis of the abietane diterpenoid plebeianiol A. The synthesis was accomplished by a short and convergent sequence that featured our previously established cobalt-catalyzed hydrogen-atom-transfer-induced radical bicyclization. We further connected plebeianiol A as the likely biogenetic precursor to another previously reported ether-bridged abietane. Finally, we demonstrated that the key cyclization event is efficient with the A ring diol protected as two different cyclic acetals or in unprotected form.