Challenges for the Synthesis of Azadirachtin

Abstract

Azadirachtin is a complex natural product, which possesses sixteen contiguous stereogenic centers as well as various oxygen-containing functional groups. Completing the synthesis of this compound is one of the greatest challenges for synthetic chemists. It took about twenty-six years for us to achieve the second synthesis of azadirachtin in the world. In this article, I wish to describe the details of our synthetic studies on azadirachtin.