In an effort to develop a new synthetic approach to the proaporphine alkaloids, a method for effecting the conversion of a suitably substituted 1-indanone to a hexahydrocyclopent [ij] isoquinoline has been developed. Bobbitt's modification of the Pomeranz-Fritsch reaction applied to 4, 5-dimethoxy-l-indanone affords the corresponding cyclopentisoquinoline (5) in acceptable yield. By the same procedure demethoxydeoxystepharine (11) was prepared ...
