The cytochalasin H precursor (20) has been synthesized using an intramolecular Diels-Alder reaction to control stereochemistry and to form the 1 I-membered ring. ... The cytochalasans,l an important group of biologically active fungal metabolites, have been the targets of much synthetic endeavour. To date total syntheses of the macrolide cyto- chalasan, cytochalasin B (1) ,2 and the [ 13]cytochalasan , proxiphomin (2) ,3 have been described, together with ...