This paper summarizes the progress on the total syntheses riod from 2006 to 2010. The overview focuses on the first of natural products accomplished in rnainland China during the petotal synthesis of natural products of contemporary interest includ- ing alkaloids, cyclopeptides and cyclic depsipeptides, macrolides, terpenoids and steroids, saponins and glycosides. The development of novel synthetic strategies and methodologies, and application of new selective synthetic methods in the total syntheses of natural products are included as well.
A novel strategy was developed for a rapid access to the naturally occurring racemic neoclausenamide and its analogs, which featured a highly erythro-selective vinylogous Mukaiyama type reaction （dr= 12：1） and a highly diastereoselective tandem conjugate addition-Davis oxidation ofN-Boc-pyrrol-2（5H）-one 5 （dr= 10：1）. Remarka- bly, the skeleton of neoclausenamide, namely 8n, an analog of neoclausenamide, was built in just two steps with all the four stereogenic centers （relative stereochemistry） established correctly and in excellent diastereoselectivities.
