A radical deoxychlorination of cesium oxalates has been developed for the preparation of hindered secondary and tertiary alkyl chlorides. The reaction tolerates a number of functional groups, including ketones, alcohols, and amides, and provides complementary reactivity to standard deoxychlorination reactions proceeding by heterolytic mechanisms. Preliminary studies demonstrate that the developed conditions can also be applied to deoxybromination and deoxyfluorination reactions.

An enantioselective synthesis of (À )-10hydroxyacutuminine is reported. Central to our strategy is a photochemical [2+2] cycloaddition that forges two of the quaternary stereocenters present in the acutumine alkaloids. A subsequent retro-aldol/Dieckmann sequence furnishes the spirocyclic cyclopentenone. Efforts to chlorinate the acutumine scaffold at C10 under heterolytic or radical deoxychlorination conditions led to the synthesis of an unexpected cyclopropane-containing pentacycle.

An enantioselective synthesis of (À )-10hydroxyacutuminine is reported. Central to our strategy is a photochemical [2+2] cycloaddition that forges two of the quaternary stereocenters present in the acutumine alkaloids. A subsequent retro-aldol/Dieckmann sequence furnishes the spirocyclic cyclopentenone. Efforts to chlorinate the acutumine scaffold at C10 under heterolytic or radical deoxychlorination conditions led to the synthesis of an unexpected cyclopropane-containing pentacycle.

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