One-pot inversion of d-mannono-1,4-lactone for the practical synthesis of l-ribose

l-Ribose was synthesized in a concise manner from d-mannono-1,4-lactone using one-pot inversion conditions. Treatment of d-mannono-1,4-lactone with piperidine, followed by mesylation-induced SN2-type O-alkylation, afforded the desired one-pot inversion in an optimum yield, and the following straightforward transformations provided l-ribose in good yields.