Department of Chemistry Seminar - Steroid and Terpenoid Chemistry: Efficient and Scalable Synthesis

Speaker: Prof. Jinghan GUI

Institution: State Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Science, China

Hosted by: Prof. Jianwei SUN, Prof. Hugh NAKAMURA

Abstract

Steroids exhibit a broad spectrum of biological activities—including anti-inflammatory, anti-shock, immunosuppressive, and antifertility effects—and their research has played a pivotal role in shaping modern organic chemistry. However, despite remarkable advances in steroid chemistry over the past century, the efficient and scalable synthesis of bioactive steroid natural products remains a daunting challenge, largely owing to their high structural complexity. This talk will present our recent efforts toward developing a bioinspired skeletal reorganization strategy that builds on a two-phase logic: an oxidase phase and an isomerase phase. Selected case studies will illustrate the power of this approach, demonstrating its utility in the concise synthesis of several complex steroids and related terpenoid natural products from inexpensive, readily available starting materials.