Lipase-Catalyzed Site-Selective Deacetylation of 2-Methoxy-3-methylnaphthalene-1,4-diol Diacetate for Construction of Characteristic Substituted 1,2,3,4-Tetrahydroisoquinoline Derivative of Novel Ecteinascidin Marine Natural Product

??? We developed a site-selective deacetylation of 2-methoxy-3methylnaphthalene-1,4-diol diacetate catalyzed by Candida antarctica lipase B, which furnished 1-hydroxy-2-methoxy-3-methylnaphthalen-4-yl acetate in 88% yield. This product was transformed into 2-methoxy-3-methylnaphthalen-1-ol in a five-step sequence (30.5% overall yield from 7a). It is a novel procedure for preparing a characteristic A ring substituted system for both safracin antibiotics (2) and ecteinascidin marine natural products (1).