Isolation of a Bis-Iodurated Tetra-THF as a Trace Product from the Oxidation of Squalene with RuO4 and Its Double Ring Expansion to a Novel bis-THF-bis-THP Compound

A novel bis-iodurated polyether compound, based on an unprecedented tetra-THF backbone, has been isolated as a trace by-product of the oxidation of squalene with the catalytic system RuO2(cat.)/NaIO4. The double erythro configuration of the central portion of the molecule furnishes the first indirect support of the previously postulated pathway operating in the oxidative pentacyclization of the isoprenoid substrate. A bidirectional double oxidative bis-cyclization is invoked to explain the formation of this compound. The isolated substance was successfully subjected to a double rearrangement-ring expansion to give a novel bis-THF-bis-THP compound.