New synthesis of serricornin, the female sex pheromone of the cigarette beetle

Abstract

Serricornin [(4S,6S,7S)-7-hydroxy-4,6-dimethyl-3-nonanone], the female sex pheromone of Lasioderma serricorne, was synthesized by starting from (2S,4S)-2,4-dimethyl-1,5-pentanediol that had been obtained by lipase-catalyzed enantiomer separation of its racemate.