Application of retrosynthetic analysis in the synthesis of natural medicine molecules

Natural products have always been one of the important ways to discover new drugs and drug precursor compounds, and many drugs are directly or indirectly derived from natural products, which has stimulated the interest of chemists to explore the synthesis of natural medicine molecules. For nearly a century, countless chemists have made remarkable contributions to the field of total synthesis of natural medicine molecules. Most of their total synthesis uses retrosynthetic analysis method, which were developed by E. J. Corey. This new method pioneered by provide scientific and efficient tools for the entire field of organic synthesis. This article focuses on four well-known natural medicine molecules (Quinine, Taxol, Ginkgolide, Palytoxin (PTX)) and discusses the role of retrosynthesis in the synthesis of these molecules and the development of retrosynthesis.