Abstract A method for the rapid synthesis of psoralen and 4??methylpsoralen has been developed. The key intermediates, coumarinyloxyaldehydes, were obtained in only two steps from the easily available starting materials, 7??hydroxycoumarin derivatives, by an oxidative procedure. By using Swern oxidation, psoralen and 4??methylpsoralen were finally produced in the overall yields of 71% and 67%, respectively.
