The small chemical compound 8-ethoxy-2-(4-fluorophenyl)-3-nitro-2H-chromene (S14161) was recently identified as an inhibitor of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K). In the present study, we designed a novel synthesis of S14161 and prepared a series of its analogues via the oxa-Michael–Henry reaction in the presence of catalytic amounts of l-proline and triethylamine. Further structural simplification led to the identification of 6-bromo-8-ethoxy- ...
