Tandem Demethylation/Annulation/Oxidation of 2,3-Bis(2-methoxyphenyl)-3-oxopropanals for One-Pot Construction of Coumestans

A convenient and practical approach to coumestans has been successfully developed by using a one-pot tandem demethylation/annulation/oxidation reaction sequence that employs easily accessible 2,3-bis(2-methoxyphenyl)-3-oxopropanals as the starting material. This synthetic protocol provided a variety of coumestan derivatives in good to excellent yields under mild conditions. The exploration of biologically active coumestan compounds is a potential application of this synthetic method.