Synlett 2014; 25(6): 751-759
DOI: 10.1055/s-0033-1340627
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© Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York

Artemisinin: A Case Study in the Evolution of Synthetic Strategy

Silas P. Cook*
Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, 800 East Kirkwood Avenue, Bloomington, IN 47405-7102, USA   Fax: +1(812)8558300   Email: sicook@indiana.edu
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Further Information

Publication History

Received: 20 November 2013

Accepted after revision: 10 December 2013

Publication Date:
23 January 2014 (online)


Abstract

Artemisinin represents one of the most important discoveries in the fight against malaria over the last 50 years. As the first endoperoxide-containing natural product, artemisinin has attracted chemists and biologists alike with its potent activity and rapid onset against malaria-causing Plasmodium species. Since its disclosure in 1979, artemisinin has been the subject of several elegant syntheses. Herein, the evolution of synthetic strategy is discussed in the context of artemisinin.