Thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid (Thioproline, Norgamem) is an agent of possible antitumorigenic effect [1, 2, 7]. This drug seems to induce a "reverse transformation" of pathological cells by restoring contact inhibition in cell cultures [2-6]. No evidence of a cytotoxic effect of Thioproline has so far been observed [2, 4, 9]. In our previous work we demonstrated that Thioproline exerts strong ...

The Maitland-Japp reaction has been extended to the synthesis of highly functionalised dihydropyran-4-ones. These dihydropyran-4-ones can in turn be converted stereoselectively into tetrahydropyran-4-ones with tertiary and quaternary stereocentres via the one-pot addition of hydride or carbon nucleophiles and trapping with carbon electrophiles. The utility of this method is demonstrated by prov...