Macrolide Synthesis through Intramolecular Oxidative Cross-Coupling of Alkenes.

A RhIII -catalyzed intramolecular oxidative cross-coupling between double bonds for the synthesis of macrolides is described. Under the optimized reaction conditions, macrocycles containing a diene moiety can be formed in reasonable yields and with excellent chemo- and stereoselectivity. This method provides an efficient approach to synthesize macrocyclic compounds containing a 1,3-conjugated diene structure.