Mo-catalyzed asymmetric olefin metathesis in target-oriented synthesis: enantioselective synthesis of (+)-africanol.

Catalytic asymmetric ring-opening metathesis (AROM) provides an efficient method for the synthesis of a variety of optically enriched small organic molecules that cannot be easily prepared by alternative methods. The development of Mo-catalyzed AROM transformations that occur in tandem with ring-closing metathesis are described. The utility of the Mo-catalyzed AROM/ring-closing metathesis is demonstrated through an enantioselective approach to the synthesis of (+)-africanol.