Total synthesis of (R)-(+)-goniothalamin and (R)-(+)-goniothalamin oxide: first application of the sulfoxide-modified Julia olefination in total synthesis

A short and efficient synthesis of (R)-(+)-goniothalamin 1 and (R)-(+)-goniothalamin oxide 2 is described. During this approach, the sulfoxide-modified Julia olefination was used as a key step to connect aldehyde 5 to sulfoxide 6. The desired styryl-containing adduct is obtained in good yield and with excellent E/Z selectivity.