Chemistry of enol silyl ethers. A general synthesis of 3-hydroxyhomophthalates and a biomimetic synthesis of sclerin

A general synthesis of 3-hydroxyhomophthalates is developed and applied to the synthesis of sclerin (24), a compound possessing plant-growth activity; the critical step in the synthesis of 24 can be considered as the controlled condensation of a di-β-carbonyl unit with a tri-β-carbonyl unit.