The invention relates to
camptothecin and a method for preparing analogues of the
camptothecin, and belongs to the field of
organic chemistry. The method comprises the following steps of: carrying out
palladium / carbon
catalytic oxidation on 3,10-dioxo-4-ethyl-6,6-disubstituted alkoxy (alkylthio)-1,4,7,8-tetrahydropyrane (3,4-f)
indolizine serving as a starting material in the presence of catalytic amount of
organic base or under an alkali-free condition to generate 3,10-dioxo-4-ethyl-6,6-disubstituted alkoxy (alkylthio)-1,4,7,8-
tetralin-hydroxy-
pyran(3,4-f)
indolizine; and carrying out molecular
iodine-catalyzed ketal deprotection and carrying out Friedlander condensation of substituted o-aminobenzaldehyde (o-aminobenzophenone) and the 3,0-dioxo-4-ethyl-6,6-disubstituted alkoxy (alkylthio)-1,4,7,8-
tetralin-hydroxy-
pyran(3,4-f)
indolizine so as to obtain the
camptothecin and the analogues thereof. In the invention, the catalyst
palladium / carbon can be recycled for three times without reducing
catalytic effect, and the whole synthetic
route has the advantages of mild
reaction conditions, simple operation, environmental friendliness, high yield and quality of products, and suitability for industrial production. In the formula, R1 refers to H, OH and OCH3, and R2 refers to H, and C1 to C5
alkyl.