Asymmetric Synthesis of Natural Products Fully updated learning resource covering the concept of using natural product chemistry for strategies in asymmetric synthesis The third edition of Asymmetric Synthesis of Natural Products introduces students to the rapidly growing field of natural products in organic chemistry, discussing the practical, mainly pharmacological, importance of selected compounds and emphasizing the target-oriented approach of organic synthesis which is key in industrial strategies. To aid in reader comprehension, the text includes key references and an Index of Compounds. The textbook is based on two lecture courses (Asymmetric Synthesis & Asymmetric Synthesis of Natural Products), which the author has delivered more than 50 times over the past 20 years in Finland, the UK, Italy, and Greece. This third edition is fully updated from the earlier versions (published by Wiley in 1993 and 2012). The importance of natural products as truly renewable raw materials in sustainable chemistry and circular economy is illustrated through applications of e.g. organocatalysis, organometallic catalysis, and biocatalysis. The contents consist of traditional text supplemented with illustrations (such as chemical drawings and structural formulae). Three dimensional aspects are also discussed with the use of 3D renderings of structures for both reaction mechanisms (molecular modeling) and crystallographic data. Sample topics covered in the textbook include: The foundations of asymmetric synthesis, including the theory and applications of individual asymmetric reactions Sustainable development, the circular economy, and use of renewable raw materials that have become prominent in many fields of science and technology Various natural product classes, including carbohydrates, amino acids, peptides, proteins, nucleosides, nucleotides, nucleic acids, and polyketides The properties of these natural product classes, including their structures, biosynthesis, and interrelationships, as well as examples of asymmetric syntheses and the practical value of these compounds Asymmetric Synthesis of Natural Products is a comprehensive, authoritative, and up-to-date learning resource on the subject for advanced level undergraduate or early-stage graduate students. It is also useful for specialists already working in synthesis who wish to learn about asymmetric synthesis.

Saponins are complex molecules made up of sugars linked to a triterpenoid or a steroid or a steroidal alkaloid. These natural products are attracting much attention in recent years because of the host of biological activities they exhibit. The diversity of structural features, the challenges of isolation because of their occurrence as complex mixtures, the pharmacological and biological activities still to be discovered, and the prospect of commercialization - these all are driving the study of saponins. Triterpenoid saponins are dominating constituents of this class and occur widely throughout the plant kingdom including some human foods e. g. beans, spinach, tomatoes, and potatoes, and animal feed e. g. alfalfa and clover. Saponins were initially a rather neglected. area of research primarily because of great difficulties in their isolation and characterization. With the advent of more sophisticated methods of isolation and structure elucidation through the last two decades, there has been increased interest in these natural products. Besides structure determination, research activities are now moving forward to clarify structure-activity relationships. Our previous reviews on triterpenoid saponins (l, 2) covered literature from 1979 to mid-1989. The literature on triterpenoid saponins up to 1988 has also been covered by two reviews by HILLER et at. (3, 4). This review incorporates newer trends in isolation and structure determination of triterpenoid saponins, new triterpenoid saponins isolated and biological properties of these products reported during the period late 1989-mid 1996. 2."

Asymmetric Synthesis of Natural Products Ari Koskinen Department of Chemistry, University of Oulu, Finland Natural product synthesis has played a key role in the development of many synthetic methods and will continue to do so in the future. Many recent advances in such diverse fields as immunology, cellular biology and materials science have been achieved through the synthetic chemist's ability to construct often very complicated structures in one enantiomeric form. This book introduces the student to this rapidly growing field of organic chemistry. The first three chapters present the foundations of asymmetric synthesis, with Chapter 3 describing, in concise but clear rationalizations, the reasons for the major asymmetric transformations. Chapters 4 to 10 cover individual classes of natural products; their structures, biosynthesis and interrelationships as well as examples of asymmetric syntheses and the practical value of these compounds.