Direct synthesis and cytotoxic activity of new macrodiolides with 2,5-disubstituted tetrahydrofuran moieties

A novel strategy for synthesizing new polyfunctional macrodiolides based on the oxidative cyclization of (1Z,5Z)-diene bonds to form 2,5-disubstituted tetrahydrofurans has been developed. The unsaturated macrodiolide was obtained using an original catalytic homo-cyclomagnesiation of O-containing 1,2-dienes (the Dzhemilev reaction). The macrocyclic compounds demonstrated cytotoxic activity in tests on Jurkat, A549, and HEK293 cell lines.