Asymmetric Total Synthesis of Kratom Alkaloids Achieved in 12 Steps with 11% Yield

Why it matters

A practical asymmetric total synthesis of mitragynine, speciogynine, and 7-hydroxymitragynine was achieved in just 12 steps, enabling scalable production of these kratom alkaloids for research and potential pharmaceutical development.

The big picture

The ability to synthesize kratom's key alkaloids in the laboratory at scale — without needing plant material — is a milestone that could accelerate pharmacological research, enable pure compound studies free from plant contaminants, and potentially support drug development pathways.

Key findings

• • Total syntheses of mitragynine, speciogynine, and 7-hydroxymitragynine achieved in 12 steps from commercially available starting materials
• • Total yield exceeded 11% — a practical, gram-scale synthesis suitable for research applications
• • Key steps included an organocatalytic anti-selective Michael reaction and bioinspired skeletal transformations
• • Enantiomeric excess of >99% confirmed by chiral HPLC analysis, ensuring high-purity products

What they say

Synthetic organic chemistry study; Chiba University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Japan; published in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Bulletin 2022.

Bottom line

A 12-step total synthesis of three major kratom alkaloids with >11% yield was achieved, opening doors for scalable research production and pharmaceutical investigation free from plant-derived variability.