A convenient synthesis of Muscalure (cis-9-tricosene) (3), the sex pheromone of house fly (Musca domestics L.), is described. Methyl 3-oxohexanoate (1) was alkylated with 1-chloro-cis-9-octadecene (oleyl chloride). The product, without isolation, was demethoxycarbonylated to give cis-14-tricosen-4-one (2). The desired compound (3) could be obtained by the Huang-Minlon reduction of (2).
