@-Lactones have been known for more than 100 years,'and they are readily prepared by a number of methods, 2 perhaps the most generally useful being Adam's method of cyclization of@-hydroxy acids via treatment with benzenesulfonyl chloride in~ yridine.~ This method, and others, have been used to prepare@-lactones of widely diverse structural typesn2 However, to our knowledge, there has been but one mention of a@-lactone which bears ...
