Total Synthesis of Aryl C-Glycoside Natural Products: Strategies and Tactics

The aryl C-glycoside structure is, among the plenty of biologically active natural products, one of the distinct motifs embedded. Because of the potential bioactivity as well as the synthetic challenges, these structures have attracted considerable interest, and extensive research toward the total synthesis has been performed. This Review focuses on the synthetic strategies and tactics employed in the total synthesis of this class of natural products. The Introduction describes the historical background, structural features, and synthetic problems associated with aryl C-glycoside natural products. Next the Review summarizes the methods for constructing the aryl C-glycoside bonds. Completed total syntheses—and, in some cases, selected examples of incomplete syntheses—of natural aryl C-glycosides are also summarized. Finally described are the strategies for constructing polycyclic structures, which were utilized in the total syntheses.