Isoaurostatin: total synthesis and structural revision

Isoaurostatin, a topoisomerase I inhibitor isolated from Thermomonospora alba has been synthesized for the first time from 2,4-dihydroxyacetophenone via 6-methoxybenzo-2(3H)-furanone in five steps. The E-isomer was converted into Z-isomer, but spectroscopic data of either of these two isomers did not match with those of the natural product. The structure of isoaurostatin has been revised to a known isoflavone, daidzein (), based on careful analysis of spectroscopic data.