The outlook of organic synthesis has changed many times during its tractable history. The initial focus on the synthesis of substances typical of living matter, exemplified by the first examples of organic chemistry through the synthesis of urea from inorganic substances by Liebig, was accepted as the birth of organic chemistry, and thus also of organic synthesis. Although the early developments in organic synthesis closely followed the pursuit of molecules typical in nature, towards the end of the 19th century, societal pressures placed higher demands on chemical methods appropriate for the...

Saponins are complex molecules made up of sugars linked to a triterpenoid or a steroid or a steroidal alkaloid. These natural products are attracting much attention in recent years because of the host of biological activities they exhibit. The diversity of structural features, the challenges of isolation because of their occurrence as complex mixtures, the pharmacological and biological activities still to be discovered, and the prospect of commercialization - these all are driving the study of saponins. Triterpenoid saponins are dominating constituents of this class and occur widely...