Abstract
For the embryonic stage of this entire research problem we must go back to the year 1945 when Papadakis synthesized for the first time 5-(p-hydroxyphenyl)-2,6-dicarbethoxy-cyclo-hexanedione-1,3, the parent substance of several compounds which have been prepared since then. This parent compound was synthesized as a result of a great interest which was aroused at that time in substances resembling cardiac glycosides found in the digitalis plant. Fieser and Strain have compiled all the work that had been done up to that time on the extraction, purification, structure and essential functional groups of these substances. Attempts were also made by Elderfield et al. to synthesize simpler substances having the essential functional groups of the natural glycosides. It was hoped that the synthetic substances may have advantages over the natural products in cardiotherapy.